Please read this. Not very shocking!

God Calling Devotional-August 15th

In need of some prayer... I have to finish my online courses ASAP. I am also trying to get a part time and maybe a full time job in the meantime. Please say a prayer for me that God will strengthen me, give me energy, and that I will walk in His ways. This devotional was almost as if God was speaking straight to me this morning.

August 15 - Not Punishment

I will guide your efforts. You are not being punished for past sins. Take My Words, revealed to you each day from the beginning, and do in all things as I say. I have been showing you the way. You have not obeyed Me in this.

I have a plan that can only in this way be revealed. So rarely do I find two souls in union who want only My Will, and only to serve Me. The union is miracle-working.

I have told you that I am longing to use you. Long ago My world would have been brought to Me, had I been served by many such two souls.

It was always "two and two."

As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he
removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12

Respect

Here is something that I thought of tonight while I was doing the laundry:
A person who deserves your respect does not have to demand that you respect them.

I am not going to even go into the reasons that made me think about this but I believe this to be true. We should pay people with respect whether they deserve it or not...but I am just talking about the kind of person that walks around demanding that you respect them! You know someone like this "I am so and so hear me roar and you better show some R-E-S-P-E-C-T." Just a random thought.

Philippians 2

I Surrender "Some"

Deuteronomy 1:31-33
31 and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
32 In spite of this, you did not trust in the LORD your God, 33 who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go.


How many times do we go to church and sing songs like "I Surrender All" and we can't truly sing it with our whole heart because we know that it is not true of us? Still we go through the motions. If we were honest wouldn't it read for most of us "I Surrender Some"? If we really live a life of submission and surrender to Christ what will be the mark of it in your life and mine? One word comes to mind: VICTORY. In surrendering all we lose ourselves in the cross and we gain everything. Yet our natural inclination is to hold on to what is ours with a tight grip. Let me give you an example. Tonight Rod and I got into a fight...boo. Instead of me entrusting him and his attitude to the Lord I lashed out and began to take my shots with my own words. Then guess what? I am sinning all over the place with what I say. The Lord wants me to be filled and have self-control and instead I throw the baby out with the bath water....because I feel like in saying something back that I am justified and that I can take care of how I am wronged or misunderstood instead of letting the Lord deal with what concerns me. It is pride all the way. I decide by lashing out that I am going to take matters in my own hands and settle the score. What about the song that has the lyrics "In all I do I honor You"? Can we really say that? In all we do we honor Him? Then why are we walking around half the time in defeat? Lord, help us to honor You. Help us to surrender all. Help us not to give in to the constant temptations to take matters into our own hands. I barely go a day without trying to be the boss of my own life. LORD help us!! Father may it not be said of us that we saw all that you did for us yet we did not put our trust in You. Help me, help us, to believe You. You are so worthy Lord. Please forgive us for our pride.

2 Samuel 7:28
28 O Sovereign LORD, you are God! Your words are trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant.

Psalm 4:4-6
4 In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Selah
5 Offer right sacrifices and trust in the LORD.
6 Many are asking, "Who can show us any good?" Let the light of your face shine upon us, O LORD

So Funny

My sister and I caught in a Tornado. Tornadoes are not funny but I thought this pic was. There's no place like home.

Another Blogging Siesta

Okay Shelly's picture turned out better of Emmy, me, and Shelly. Emmy is a fellow blogger that we met at the conference! Also, I look fat here because I was taking a steroid pack for my foot...just an FYI incase you were wondering. LOL!! *** I am kidding about my comment...just a little swollen from the meds.

Vanity

Proverbs 31:30
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

Last night Morgan and I were at Walmart (if you can believe that) and as we were waiting in the check out line I glanced over to one of the headlines on a somewhat legitimate magazine. I NEVER even pick those things up to read since it is mostly garbage but this time I had to. I thumbed through the magazine to read the interview of one of the most glorified stars. I once heard someone say that this woman was the most beautiful woman on the planet. I was truly shocked when I read this interview with her. I could not even believe that someone could be so proud of the darkness that they were in. It really hit me that while people may think this woman is some sort of se* symbol she is lost. All of her good deeds are as nothing if she spends an eternity in hell. All of her beauty is so fleeting and it will be of no profit to her. I felt sorry for her and thought how I needed to pray for her lost soul, knowing that I could be right where she is apart from the grace on my life. To take it a step further why on earth would we want to so desperately live vicariously through these peoples lives in trying to mimic their looks, styles and etc? It is high time that you and I get our focus on things above and not down here on the ground. We will spend a lifetime wasted chasing vanity if we don't look up. We are called to be different...the light of this world. We are not called here to let the world infiltrate us. So how are you doing? I know first hand what it is like to try to find my worth or beauty from this world and people in this world. It truly left an insatiable craving in me that could not be satisfied until I had a beast on my hands. I would search for anyone to fill that void in me and my whole life was aimed at trying to get someone to fill that need in me. It is a vicious cycle and not to mention it is expensive to keep it up. We can't keep it up and we will NEVER be satisfied if we are living to please our flesh. It is destructive when we don't look to the Lord to define our beauty. If we keep comparing ourselves among ourselves and with this world system we will become fools. I know this to be true. It is not wrong for us to want to look our best but all of our clothes, shoes, purses, hairdos...none of it matters in the end. The Lord won't be concerned about all of our "good deals" we got at the mall or the fact that we had the latest hair style. It is meaningless. Please hear me when I say this: Who or what is defining your worth. No one should define who you are but the Lord. He calls you beautiful, loved, chosen, forgiven. When you believe the lies of the enemy, and this world system, you will loose part of yourself in attempt to find yourself. Your closest friend doesn't define you, your husband doesn't define you, this world doesn't define you...your past DOES NOT say who you are. It it the Lord. He created your innermost being and He means for you to find your worth in Him alone. If not you will give into all manner of sin out of pure insecurity. Go to Him...run to Him...spend yourself on behalf of Him. That is only where you will find true security. Take it from someone who knows...

Psalm 45:11
11 The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord.

ReCaP!

I am going to share my notes from the weekend but let me start out with a quote that I read by Phillip Yancey's latest book Prayer. I have been a little slow in getting to read this one but I always love his work.

"Prayer, and only prayer, restores my vision to one that more resembles God's. I wake from blindness to see that wealth lurks as a terrible danger, not a goal worth striving for; that value depends not on race or status but on the image of God every person bears; that no amount of effort to improve physical beauty has much relevance for the world beyond."

Here goes! The passage that she spoke on was 2 Corinthians 1:1-11.

Before the conference the Lord led me to several passages of scripture regarding putting no confidence in the flesh. I think it is fair to say that we try desperately to flesh out obedience, forgiveness, peace, and the hard stuff without really relying on the Holy Spirits help. We are told that upon conversion we receive the Holy Spirit and we are sealed unto the day of our redemption. So as believers in Christ we have the Holy Spirit but are you and I quenching the power of the Holy Spirit? Are we trying to do this walk without relying on Christ in us? We simply aren't able to love, forgive, die to ourselves, or really live apart from His help. I spent some time outside tonight just gazing up at the stars and thinking about the Awesomeness of God. How He is infinitely wise and holy and how vast He is. I can not even begin to comprehend. Anyway, I have been struggling with some things lately that I know I am not capable of dealing with on my own apart from His help. I am asking Him to help me and give me more of the Spirit and that I would not "do as I please" and live to gratify my flesh. I really believe that so much of the stifling of the Holy Spirit is a refusal to submit and we make the decision that we are going to "do as we please". That phrase really speaks to me because Isaiah 58:13 speaks of doing as we please. I can not even begin to count the times that I make decisions based on what pleases me. Anyway, that begins where God was leading me before the conference and then I pick up on her topic "The God of all Comfort".

Here are my notes just so you will know and I wont have to interject with "she said this" and etc.
The word comfort appears 9 times in this passage of scripture (count it for yourself).

"God cannot have compassion without being moved. Compassion is the emotion, comfort is the response."
What is comfort?
What is it not?
How can we be vessels of comfort?

God reveals Himself to Moses in Exodus 34:5-7 as compassionate and gracious.
5 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. 6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."

The New Testament is replete with Jesus being moved to compassion and healing people. His compassion has a response.
Our culture is training us to be compelled in life by our comforts. I had a very tangible example of this at the conference. I was like Lord, why do I have to have an example even while she is speaking. The chairs in most arenas are hooked together. As I was sitting on the front row and Shelly and I were praising the Lord I thought yeah maybe no one is sitting in the seats next to me and I can have room to move around in our praise time. Wrong! A woman and her daughter came in while Beth was speaking. The lady was a large woman (I am not saying anything about her being large...just stating the fact) and she sat down and took up half of my seat. I was struggling at that moment with my rights to my own chair. I could not believe that for the next several hours I was going to have to sit on one side of my chair...not comfortable. Shelly very kindly let me share half of her chair. Don't you love the Lord for working on us in the middle of giving us a word? He wants me to apply it QUICK! Anyway, I forgot to mention that her and her daughter talked the whole conf (LOUDLY). I was like woman don't make Beth get on to you. We are on the front row!

Several things that come to mind:
We want comfortable homes
Comfortable cars
We want comfort food
We want to comfort ourselves when we have problems...maybe by shopping or something
We don't want to get our hands dirty...we want comfort.
Our way...Now!

She said that in our relationships we want comfort. When it gets uncomfortable...we want to bolt! She said that America is suffering from Agliophobia-paranoia of pain or fear of pain. She is so right. As I listened to her I thought about how many of us really want to dive into the book of Job. If we offered a study on Job at our churches I wonder how many people would truly sign up. Probably not many because we are afraid that if we read it that it just may have to happen to us so we just will sit back and read all of the feel good passages. We are scared of suffering and we are afraid that God will hurt us.

One point she wanted to elaborate on was this:
Will we go through suffering and allow God to comfort us or will we make comfort our God?

Will we drop the cult of comfort and really start living?

1. We will live in a rut of relational disasters...paths strone by one messed up relationship after another after another if we refuse to seek comfort in Christ and seek to find comfort elsewhere.

Being comforted by God will involve us getting hurt and just living life to receive His comfort. She pointed out Gen 5:28-29 28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son. 29 He named him Noah and said, "He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the LORD has cursed." Noah sounds like the Hebrew for comfort. How strange it was that his name meant comfort yet he was to build an ark and the earth would be wiped out because of wickedness yet God used him to build the ark and he did not completely destroy the earth. Noah would be sent to bring comfort from our labor and painful toil. Because of the fall we have uncomfortable relationships. Case in point...Adam and Eve's eyes were opened and they felt shame...so they hid from God and their fellowship with God was broken. It was not what it was or what it should have been. I personally love how God works to clothe them immediately which to me points to Christ even then. He covered their nakedness and clothed their shame and He comes to do the same for you and me by the shed blood of Christ. Work became toil and it was meant for enjoyment, se*uality became uncomfortable, their surrounding was uncomfortable. All because of the fall.
Seeking comfort in flesh and blood will always fail us. If a human gets put in the place of God our soul will be tempted to find comfort in someone else. Then our need to find comfort or affirmation keeps amassing itself until our need for filling, comfort, validation becomes titanic. No one else can fill that need in us but Christ. I have been in this place so many times where I so desperately sought the world over to find comfort, and approval that it almost killed me literally. We get hooked on people, substances, media, just about anything to try to fill the void in us. I have found myself in great need lately for the Lord to come and fill me. I have been crying out to Him for His help. That He would be more than my senses, more than how I feel, that He would be enough and that with every single let down that I would see that as an open invitation to come to Him. To fellowship in His suffering and allow Him to deal with the needs in me that only He can properly deal with.
-Unhealthy attract unhealthy and as long as we seek comfort in a person other that Christ we will have a power-play until we self destruct. We have got to seek God and seek our worth in Christ alone.
How many of us have experienced first hand the train wrecks that occur relationally by seeking to put others in the place of God?
Look at the extra-marital affairs that happen in seeking comfort. The substance abuse addictions that occur from trying to get comfort and all manner of addictions that result.

2. We will sign up for a lifetime of addiction if we do not drop out of the cult of comfort.
Ask yourself: Am I a comfort addict? The whole basic addiction thing begins with comfort. We try to medicate and then we have to continually up it. We have to keep feeding and sustaining our addictions. Can I get a witness?

3. We will miss the full measure of our callings if we forfeit true living for comfort.

Then the acronym E-A-S-T-E-R
E-every
A-alternative
S-savior
T-takes
E-early
R-retirement

This is so true. No one will be unfailing to us but the Lord. No one. The full measure of our call in Christ is to make Him known. To make Him obvious. Not to just blend in with the world and what it has to offer which will leave us cheated ALWAYS. We are called to live out of our comfort zones and make Him obvious. This does not mean that we deny ourselves in every way either.

4. We will miss the Presence of God if we seek to meet all of our needs ourselves. I was reading the other day in Phillip Yancey's book that the majority of people in the US can not truly prayer in earnest "Give us this day our daily bread" because our pantry's are stocked to the brim. That really spoke to me and gave me the best word picture of us trying to supply our own needs instead of waiting on God and truly knowing what it means to fellowship in His sufferings.

The actual definition in the Greek for the word comfort is the word Parakaleo and it means to call to ones side. I looked up this word when it is used as a verb and not a noun and it means this:
exhort, urge, beseech, intreat - comfort.

When used as a noun it involves exhortation.

-"If we constantly supply ourself with comfort we will miss the grace of God."

How would we know like Paul if we seek it out on our own what it means in 2 Timothy 4:16-17 when he was deserted by everyone but the Lord stood by his side? We can't know that if we are busy trying to help God out in this area. I can tell you from all that is within me that I know what it is like to be forsaken, betrayed, lonely, suffering and experience the comfort of Christ.
When my first born daughter was born and died I went through a period of grieving that I truly felt alone and it was in that time that the Lord met me. Rod had seemed to have moved on a couple of weeks later and I was still crying and in despair. I did not rely on Rod, I relied on the Lord and I saw firsthand what it means to receive the comfort of Christ. At first I was like Rod why aren't you helping me through this and by staying in the word daily I knew that only Christ could meet the depth of my need. If I had not been in the word daily there is no telling where I would have been in my heart. I can pour out a HUGE bag of cards and etc from my brothers and sisters in Christ that came alongside to encourage me and God used that...but I can say it was God alone who had to walk me through the valley of the shadow of death. No man could do it.

My neck is killing me and I need to go to sleep for church in the morning so I will have to pick back up on this. ;)

This weekend!

Driving to Phillips Arena in Atlanta


On the elevator with a random person named Claire. She was behind us in the line to park and Amanda got out and asked her if we could borrow cash to park and I wrote her a check. So nice of her. It cost 12 dollars to park!! So Claire made the pic, then Amanda, me, and Heather!

Amanda hiding while I take a pic before we all went to sleep.

Me and Shelly!!!!

Us again!

And there is momma beth bringing the word! Shelly got me a seat on the front row! Go Shelly!

I am back and I will be downloading pictures tomorrow and filling you in on the day! Lots of love! Thanks for the prayers!

jenny

Did you think I forgot...TESTIFY ThUrSdAy!

Hey to my regular peeps! I am still at the lake and I have been trying to comment on some of your blog-o-las and I can't. I don't know if is a setting or what. Anyway, it is Thurs. so please leave a comment and tell me something that the Lord is doing in your life. A verse, answered prayer...or whatever!
I am going to say that I am so thankful for the Lord's great love and that He chases us down...and calls us to Him. He has been speaking to me thru His word, lovingly correcting me for my good. I shared on another post that I had some anger well up in me and immediately the Lord sent His word for me to deal with that junk before it began to deal with me. Praise Him! Also, for those of you who asked my foot is better! My friends are trying to talk me into taking the crutches to Atlanta so we can sit up close. HA HA. I am not...don't worry. When she (Beth Moore) was in Bham I sat in the hearing impaired section. It was so funny because I could seriously sing my guts out and no one heard me (how good of God not to bless everyone around me with my singing)! LOL

Also, I was trying to joke on Teri's blog and tell her that I amm "going to get saved" again tomorrow so when the altar call comes I can pray with Beth. LOL!! I am just kidding!!

Going to the Girlie Group

Hey my sistas (siestas) I am at the lake and headed to Atlanta this afternoon! I can not wait!! I am ready to get my praise on in a BIG way. I need the time away to retreat and etc. If Beth comes even remotely near AL I am there! I am so thankful to the Lord for allowing me this time. We were going and did not know if we were going to have a place to stay tonight because all the hotels were booked up a long time ago. I knew that the Lord would provide and we have a free place to stay! Give Him the Praise!
Here are some verses that were really speaking to me this morning:

Proverbs 16:1-3;20;25 and Proverbs 17:14;19;24;27

1 To man belong the plans of the heart,
but from the LORD comes the reply of the tongue.

2 All a man's ways seem innocent to him,
but motives are weighed by the LORD.

-I was thinking about this second verse and how we sometimes do things for vain glory when our works will be tested and the things that were done with an impure motive will be burned up in the fire (11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work.). Lord help us! We are also told when doing good to not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing (Matthew 6:3).

3 Commit to the LORD whatever you do,
and your plans will succeed.

Verse three speaks to me so much about plain obedience. When I seek God and commit all of me, my plans, my time, my agenda, offering all of my members to Him...then my plans will succeed. It may not be what I think it should but I have learned the hard way that it is better to be with Him then setting myself up in opposition to Him! Amen! When we oppose God HE ALWAYS WINS! ALWAYS.

20 Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.

The word for heed here in the Hebrew is to give careful attention to, to pay attention to. The word for trust is again the word to rely on, confide in, to be firm and solidified trusting in Him. When we give heed to His instruction it will ALWAYS be to our benefit. We are blessed by putting our trust in Him.

25 There is a way that seems right to a man,
but in the end it leads to death.
I prayed this verse this morning that I would not put confidence in my flesh or my own feelings but that the Lord's Spirit would be strong in me and He would convict me when I began to go my own way. The way of the flesh always brings destruction and death.


One thing I have seen in Rod is that he never gives full vent to his anger. He doesn't just open the gates of his mouth and bare his soul about everything. There is something to be said for that and I need it to rub off on me a little. Last night I was watching Dr. David Jeremiah and he was talking about anger and how we ARE NOT to nurse our anger or give full vent to it. I really needed to hear that because sometimes I think we do some serious nursing our anger. That will end up causing a bitter root to grow up and defile many (heb 12). Our anger will consume us and hurt others around us. Some of us could be very justified in our bitterness but it will only eat us alive if we do not forgive on a continual basis. There is a very challenging relationship in my life that I am called constantly to forgive with this person. I have to be obedient to God regardless of the hurt and give my burdens to Him, trusting Him with the outcome. It is hard and it takes a lot of prayer...A LOT of PRAYER! Well, gotta run Morgan is in to everything.
Proverbs 17:14
14 Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam;
so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.
19 He who loves a quarrel loves sin;
he who builds a high gate invites destruction.
24 A discerning man keeps wisdom in view,
but a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth.
27 A man of knowledge uses words with restraint,
and a man of understanding is even-tempered.

28 Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,
and discerning if he holds his tongue.

President Bush rescuing Suri Cruise from Scientology! Sorry I just had to put this up.


The Fam


Waiting on Pop to pick her up today. Pop are you really coming?


Still waiting


I think he is almost here


Maybe I should help him by putting myself in the carseat


Here is the food I made for the shower

pics

http://www.kelleymills.com/Schleicher-Wells%20prewedding%20party/schleicherwellsparty.html

you can go here and check out the pics from my weekend. my face is real shiny in some of them because it was like 100 degrees. you will see how i sprained my foot! There is a girl named Jennie that looks like me so don't be confused. :)

I had some anger come out of nowhere tonight so I decided that I wasn't going to bed until it was dealt with and here it is 4 am and I am still not in bed. I did not want to give the enemy a foothold by going to sleep with anger. Anyway, I am about to hit the sack!
I just wanted to say that my computer is flipping out so if you don't hear from me that is why!
I AM GOING TO SEE BETH AND MEET WITH MY JESUS IN A BIG WAY ON FRIDAY! I leave for Atlanta on Thursday and I am soooo excited. I need this so much! I have been getting way to bogged down! Also, Sammie if you read this...the verse you left me has meant so much to me since I was a child. It is only in running in the path of His commands that our hearts are set free. I have learned the hard way to many times.
Love jenny

Morgan hope

What Happens When People Die

I am going to type this out straight from Wayne Grudems Systematic Theology so here goes nothing!

1. The Souls of believers Go Immediately into God's Presence.
Death is a temporary cessation of bodily life and a separation of the soul from the body. Once a believer has died, though his or her physical body remains on the earth and is buried, at the moment of death the soul (or spirit) of that believer goes immediately into the presence of God with rejoicing. When Paul thinks about death he says, “We would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Co 5:8). To be away from the body is to be at home with the Lord. He also says that his desire is “to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Phil 1:23). And Jesus said to the thief who was dying on the cross next to him, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). (Paradise is simply another name for heaven) The author of Hebrews says that when Christians come together to worship they come not only into the presence of God in heaven, but also in the presence of “the spirits of just men made perfect” (Heb. 12:23). However, as we shall see in more detail in the next chapter, God will not leaver our dead bodies in the earth forever, for when Christ returns the souls of believers will be reunited with their bodies, their bodies will be raised from the dead, and they will live with Christ eternally.

funness!

I am hoping to go to sleep soon...but I just have to share about my fun filled night! I went to eat at O'Charley's (Rod's parents called and wanted to take us to dinner) where I am a fan of the big fat yeast roll. Man can not live on bread alone...but I think women can live on yeast rolls. Just kidding! Anyway, then I had to crutch out to Trussville and dig through the trash from the weekend. My parents have a lot of stairs so I had to crawl up them because of my foot. I am not being dramatic either...it is just getting worse. I felt Morgans pain back in the days where she crawled...that takes a lot of work! Do not worry I took gloves to go through the trash! I had to find a deposit receipt that I threw away...to prove that I made a deposit and not a withdrawal. The yeast rolls more than made up for the search through the trash. I am in P-A-I-N right now is why I am not asleep yet. My foot is killing me. I am so nervous that I won't get to go to Atlanta this weekend to see my BFF in the faith! Beth Moore!!!!

The Verdict

I went to the doctor today and he says I sprained my foot. So we shall see! I hurt worse after I went to the doc. I have never had a shot in my foot before and I thought I was going to pass out from that! I think I am going to get a second opinion. I have had a lot of sports injuries in my days and I am not sure I am satisfied with the diagnosis. :)

I was reading this tonight that I wrote a while back and was encouraged by God's words to me then as well as now!

Proverbs 8:32-34 (New King James Version)

32 “ Now therefore, listen to me, my children, For blessed are those who keep my ways. 33 Hear instruction and be wise, And do not disdain it. 34 Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors.

Don't try this at home!

With the trampoline extravaganza this weekend and my home workout video...I think I have earned me a stress fracture on my left foot. I was teaching Sunday School in the married class and I left limping. Anyway, I am going to rest it and then head to the Dr. if it isn't better. The shower was great except for the kisses I kept getting from all the long lost relatives. The food that I made was plenty and I think one of the funniest things was when my sweet little brother asked me what the sausage balls were. He had never had one...
If it weren't for Rod I could have never pulled the whole thing off. I headed to church this morning and he had to miss so he could transport all of the food without it melting. I labeled everything with sticky notes and he brought it and met me. He did not forget anything!! PTL! Did I mention what I dork I was this morning? I had to drive his truck to church...I knew he was going to suggest that I did so before I left so he could use my car for the room. No, I told him....I can't even park that thing. It is a Silverado truck with a V8 engine. I like the speed but not the loftiness of that automobile. I took up two parking spots with my depth perception skills. I really tried and I thought I got it in there but no. I was pondering this when I got behind a Sunday Cadillac (older couple) driving: Why wait till you are old to get that kind of machine and then use it to drive 10MPH?? Kind of like us not tapping into the power that Christ gave us through the cross. Why drive 10MPH when you can drive it like you stole it? LOL!!! I told my grandmother before she left the party: "Drive it like it's hot!" She is not a slow driver but she wasn't sure what I meant...so I clarified by telling her drive it like you stole it (She has a caddy)! She will is the funny thing (lead footed grandmother)!

Jenny performing for her nieces and nephew trying to calm the storm.

the kids are watching their crazy aunt (morgan is just used to it)

Please Lord let them stay on the bed

me making my muscle

Me with the twins...how in the world does my sister do it?

My mom, my little sister Steph, Heather (she is 16 months older than me), and yours truly at the bridal tea.

Okay me being the kid at heart decided that we should all go jump on the trampoline (in hopes that it would not break...thank you Jesus...). My older sister didn't want to get on board she was probably tired from having twins and a 2 1/2 year old. Anyway, I told her she should live a little and she got on...I seriously didn't think we were going to be able to get her off the thing she was having so much fun. Sometimes you just need to get out on the trampoline and jump!

PART ONE

I slept with this passage...Isaiah 30... open on my chest last night. It has been speaking loudly to me all week. Please read it and I am going to put my thoughts on paper when Morgan will let me. I am super tired today and am about to leave.
Some key things the very first verse is written to the Israelites, God's chosen, His beloved. He calls them, through Isaiah, obstinate children. They carry out plans that are not His. Did you hear that? How many times do we carry out plans that are not His? I know personally that when I choose to go at it on my own it brings devastation. I looked up to the sky the other day when I had a flashback of the past and told Him I was so sorry for ever doing that thing. If I had not I would not be experiencing the gut punch to the stomach when I think about it. I prayed that He would help me to believe Him and keep me from my own foolish ways. The bottom line is that when we let a little sin in the door...if we do not repent and I mean quick...we begin to heap sin upon sin. Think about heaping one pancake upon another upon another (are southerners the only ones with pancakes) until you have one fat delicious stack. It looks so good and delicious that you can already feel the bread on your thighs and then you are done eating, you are sick, and you are imploding swollen with that bread. Yuck...your hunger turns to a state of being lethargic. You regret the pancakes...or maybe this is a bad analogy. But that has been my experience. I was listening to Dr. David Jeremiah the other day and he spoke on temptation. He said that he believes that when we are faced with temptation we have a small window of time where the Lord provides a way of escape for us to take. If we do not take it we will walk past our opportunity. For me personally this is true. I wondered why I was experiencing failure in a certain area and it was because I was putting myself in a position to fail. Looking back there was ALWAYS a door of escape...I just chose to yield to the flesh and not the Spirit and I did not take that door. Then after horrible consequences I began to see that I did not even want to walk down the same road at all and that the consequences for my disobedience would bring me so much pain that I just did not even want to go there. He spoke of three things that we are to flee from and they are in Scripture I just don't have time to link: greed, idolatry, and se+ual immorality. Anyway, Gods word is always true and He delights in our obedience far more than sacrifice. The sacrifice He desires is a broken and contrite Spirit...the one who desires to do His will. Anyway, we are to flee from those three things above. Why flee? Because WE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY in our flesh...CAN NOT MAKE the decision in the middle of the bowing down. We can not decide to flirt with those things and stand up to the temptation we will fall every time. Sometimes our way of escape can mean a change of jobs, not driving the same route, not going to a certain place. I am saying not waiting until the heat of passion to make a decision when it is clearly outside of Gods will. I was reminded this morning of how I can do nothing on my own and that if we are God's children we have the Holy Spirit to help us. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty. To the degree that we are fully yielded to Him is the degree that we will be free. My freedom in Christ or lack thereof has always been an issue of Authority. I do not want Him to look at me and say Jenny you are obstinate and you are heaping sin on top of sin. I know so many times in my past that has been the case. Verse 2 of Isaiah 30 speaks of going down to Egypt. When I think of Israels being delivered from the land of slavery I think of my own symbolic Egypt. The Lord has delivered me from much and I have turned back around in my life and believed the lie that my land of slavery was better and gone down to Egypt to find help filling my voids instead of filling them with the Spirit. I put this in generic terms so hopefully you can relate. So please don't make assumptions as to what I am talking about specifically as far as sin. Just like them we go to this world to try to fill a void and yet if we would come with our gaping souls open to Jesus He would gladly fill us and the fruit of that would far outweigh what the world and its TEMPORARY lust brings. TO BE CONTINUED

Taco, Burrito, what's coming out of your speedo?

Does anyone remember that Spartan cheer from Saturday night live back in the day? I was craving a burrito a few minutes ago and I decided to load the side kick up and head to Taco Bell (which normally i find nasty but not tonight) at almost midnight. At first I thought I was headed out for a burrito until my breath was taken away at the sight of the moon. It looked as if the Lord had just put half of it in His Holy Pocket. My heart began to pound when I saw it and of course I thought He may just part the curtain of the sky and call me to meet Him in the air. I drove and got my burrito and then came back home but decided to go to the top of a hill to look at the moon. Well, did I mention I took Night time cold medicine before I left? Not a good plan but I usually do ok with that kind of stuff. Our police department DOES NOT play where I live. This cop ruined my whole "God and the Moon" moment by following me all around the neighborhood to my house. So what was awe turned to heart pounding anxiety. I got pulled over last year for driving to slow. Anyway, all in a day people all in a day!

Isaiah 40:8-10
8 The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever."
9 You who bring good tidings to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, "Here is your God!"
10 See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.

ps Tam Trussville is only a twenty minute drive for me so I am sure I will be blessing you with my blog of randomness! ha ha