Just a thought

We have been waiting for our "new" rooster to crow since he has been moved from his old home to his new one. It is possible that he is crowing but we are unable to hear because of the noise machine in our room or the fact that he is so far away from our house. But, this morning, I was up early and had the dogs outside when I heard him. 3 times he crowed, and it surprised me! It was a really neat sound. But, it got me to thinking about when Peter was telling Jesus how much he loved Him and Jesus said that before the rooster crowed 3 times, Peter would in fact deny Him. Strange, I know, but I began thinking about that and found myself saying that I would Never deny Christ in that way! But wait, would I? As I thought about it more, I thought of all the missed opportunities to share Christ that I have had, or what about the times when I have blatantly sinned when I knew that others were watching me? I was convicted that I do not always show Christ to a watching world. So, it may not be that I deny Him as verbally as Peter did, but in my thoughts and actions, I do not always put Him first in my life. I am so thankful for little glimpses of my sin that the Lord gives. Thankfully, He slowly reveals these things to us. But, I would challenge you to think, what have you said or done that could possibly count as "denying" Christ?
Lord, thank you for your Son, thank you for conviction of sin and thank you
that you do not leave us where we are. Thank you for my rooster and the lesson that we have to learn from Peter. Father, please forgive me for the missed opportunities and for all the times when I did not live for you. I want my life to be a reflection of my risen Lord and and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, in whose name I pray. -Amen

Put off - put on

Last night at youth group, after Tim taught, we went back to our small groups and did the normal question thing but then, Hannah did something really great!

Eph 4:21-24...that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

She started talking about what it practically looked like to put off and to put on. She said that it is easy to think about what we would put off but what would we replace it with? So, she asked the girls to brainstorm and just start saying the put offs and put ons that would replace. Have you ever done that? I mean it was so convicting. I know that I struggle with sin EVERYDAY but what can I DO to change it. Well, first, I need to pray and confess and then I need to renew my mind but then I need to make the action of putting on a priority. So, we went around the room and asked the girls to share two of the put offs that we could pray for them about. I think it is great when we can openly share our struggles and pray for one another and it is never too early to start teaching young women this. So, mine were.....put off- over sensitivity and put on -the truth and the other was to put off fear and put on trust and rest in the Lord. What would you put off today?

additions to the farm!

Well,
not to mention the weekend was busy with Easter fun but we also made some additions to our "farm"! Thanks to some friends at church, we got 5 hens and one big fat rooster! We are getting about 4 fresh eggs again and that is too much fun. For those of you who do not know, we had chickens before, but they were eaten by raccoons. Yes, that is right, those buggers will eat anything! So, now we got the coop 'coon-proof and brought those babies home!

Good Friday...No, GREAT Friday!

Have you ever wondered why the Friday before Easter Sunday is called "Good Friday" and not Great Friday? If you are a born again Christian, this is a thought that may have run through your mind. If you are not a christian, let me tell you why this Friday is so Great. If this day had not happened, there would be no need for the Sunday that followed to be called Resurrection Sunday. You see, Christ paid the ULTIMATE price for sinners and was crucified for our transgressions (sins) on this day...He was beaten, mocked, spat upon and tormented, yet Not a word did He speak. 1Peter 2:22-24 "Who committed no sin,Nor was deceit found in His mouth", who when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously, who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we having died to sins might live for righteousness- by whose stripes you were healed. What this means is this: Friday had to happen so that on Sunday, Christ could defeat death, Satan and the grave to have the ULTIMATE victory and to grant to those who would believe, Everlasting Life! Christ IS RISEN! So, the next time you think about the weekend of Easter, think about the events that took place to make your eternal life in Christ possible and I bet that Good Friday will no longer just be good to you , it will be Great! Praise The Lord!

God is sooooo good!!

Yes, God is good all the time!! But, I wanted to share some recent "goodness" that I have been party to. Let's start here.....I have a friend who is adopting a child from Vietnam and while they are away, I got the privilege to keep her 3 kids for part of the weekend. That in and of its self was AWESOME but, to top it off, we got to have the family tickets to see the NEWSBOYS in concert on Saturday night!! Again, that was great, but during the concert, the youngest child was having a bout with homesickness and so we went out to get some snacks and fresh air...while we were up there, the V.P. of marketing for the Newsboys saw us and came and talked with us and brought the sweet boy a hat...then she began to ask me about the child and I told the story of the parents in Vietnam and do you know what the Lord did then? The lady smiled really big and said, "I want to give you some back stage passes!!!!" So, we got to go backstage and meet all the band members and take some pictures...The older 2 kids were very excited as well and that was really great. It was so kind of the Lord to provide that distraction for them. Then, today, I was cleaning out some drawers (I am preparing for a yard sale) and I found $20 folded up and "hidden" in a drawer. And then, when I was cleaning out a bathroom drawer, I found another box of contacts!!! I was needing some new ones but have not yet made the appointment to go. S0, all this to say that I have been sooo blessed these past few days. As a christian, I know that I am blessed everyday just because of what Christ did on the cross for me, but it is very nice to be tangibly reminded of His Goodness that is so undeserved. Thank you Lord, that you are so faithful to me.

Just had to share!

Where to begin? I am currently trying to read several books right now in my quiet time and I ran across several things today as I read that I wanted to share with you. First, in Desiring God, John Piper is talking about the form of worship..he says that forms of worship should provide 2 things, channels for the mind to apprehend the truth of God's reality and channels for the heart to respond to the beauty of that truth-that is, forms to ignite the affections with biblical truth and forms to express the affections with biblical passion. Later, he goes on to say, "But in the end, form is not the issue. The issue is whether the excellency of Christ is seen. Worship will happen when the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness" shines in our hearts to give us "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Cor 4:6) He closes with this, and I mean, it was so good to me this morning....it is an exhortation.. "Don't let your worship decline to the performance of mere duty. Don't let the childlike awe and wonder be choked out by unbiblical views of virtue. Don't let the scenery and poetry and music of your relationship with God shrivel up and die. You have capacities for joy that you can scarcely imagine. They were made for the enjoyment of God. He can awaken them no matter how long they have lain asleep. Pray for His quickening power. Open your eyes to His glory. It is all around you: The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork" (ps19:1)

The other thing -out of Captured by Grace-The chapter is called The Clear Perspective of Grace

David Jeremiah says : " Salvation is the ultimate version of the "new you"..Having been told that you are a new creation, you expect to rise and walk in newness of life. Why, then, do we have this creeping suspicion that nothing has changed? Why do we still struggle with so many challenges in life: hasty words, compulsive habits, seductive temptations? Why don't we feel the moment-by-moment desire to be all the wonderful things Christ has promised us we can be? Take Heart! Every single one of us who answers to the name christian, is a fellow struggler in this regard. There is no "microwave" serving of spiritual maturity. We all have to "work out our own salvation with fear and trembling" (phil 2:12)...later as he talking about John Newton, he quotes Newton as saying," I hope it will always be a subject of humiliating reflection to me that I was once an active instrument in a business at which my heart now shudders". But, I remember two things, That I am a great sinner and that Christ is a Great Savior." (this is relating to his past as a slave trader) I know this is long, but I LOVED my morning looking at these things.... I walked away so enriched... but I will dwell on this last quote..." I am a great sinner but Christ is MY great Savior! Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for taking the time to read all this! :)

Snow and almond M&M's

Beautiful!!! We woke up again today to more snow. And, because I live in the woods, it is PERFECT!!!! We have tons of birds on the porch and in the "naked" trees! At 7:00 am when my hubby went out to spray off the dish (this is very important because we must watch FOX news at all costs), he saw several deer running over the ridge behind our house and he said it was neat. If I get savvy, I might even post a picture of the snow. You know, we get real excited in the south when we get snow. I hope if any of you are getting snow today that you will take the time to enjoy your day. Often times when things like this happen, we think "oh, No!" my plans for this weekend had to be changed, but we must remember that Man plans his steps but it is the Lord who directs his path. Have a great day!! Oh yea, I almost forgot...the M&M's.... I do not love chocolate. I have a friend who does love it and often times we laugh that we do not know how we are friends because we really don't like a lot of the same things...anyway, I do LOVE almond M&M's and have a big bag that I am working my way through. Since there is snow on the ground, it is okay to eat like a maniac right? It is this thinking that has gotten me in the pickle that I am in now. Well, I did get on the treadmill this week and I lifted 2oolbs of salt for our water system yesterday..so, I will just await Monday to start fresh right? ha! ha!

Cozy by the fire

I love my house. I am not going to lie. About 4 years ago, my hubby and I moved out the the country and we have never looked back. We have a great fireplace that I spend a lot of time in front of (probably too much time)! I was just sitting here, you guessed it, right in front of the fire, and the crackle and pop of the logs has got me captivated. Okay, you might be thinking that I need to get a life, but really, I LOVE the one I have. There is something to me about the "sound" that the fire makes, that makes it so cozy. Yes, it is warm and I love that too, but, have you ever just sat and watched your fire? You should sometime. It is great "therapy" . Looks like I will be having therapy for a few days now as the news reports that we are in for some spring time snow!! This should be lots of fun. Now, to a more serious note, I am so amazed by the Lord, once again, He has allowed me to be in a place where I am forced to realize that it is HIM alone that I need. Last night at youth group, some discussion took place that left me thinking that for sure and for certain, the Lord uses imperfect vessels to do HIS perfect work. Lord, once again, I thank you that YOU are sovereign. I thank you that you knew just what conversation was going to take place last night and the you even ordained it. Although, I was fearful and unsure at times as to what to say, I take comfort in knowing that you did not need me to accomplish your plans for last night. Thank you that you grant grace to me each moment of the day. Lord, I do love you and I want to represent you well in all that I say and do. As a friend of mine often says, Lord let me decrease as you increase in my life. I love you Lord.-Amen

Snow!!!!!

Oh what fun!!! I woke up early this morning because I had to be somewhere today at 8am.....and when I looked outside, I saw the most BEAUTIFUL sight!!! Snow in March. I live in Arkansas so this should be no surprise right? It is supposed to be over 60 tomorrow. It is a wonder that we do not all have pneumonia. Today is my friends birthday too. I wish you the best my friend! The sad thing to me about the snow is that it will be ugly in just a few hours as it begins to melt!!!! Well, after I get the sleep out of my eyes and settle in for some time with the Lord, I am sure that I will be back to post again.

First Post

Well,

This is my first post on my new blog! I am excited. I live in the woods and I have a VERY slow computer so I do not get on here much, but I will try to everyday. I am reading a lot these days and learning so much! I just got back from some much needed time away. I went away over night with some dear friends of mine to a womens retreat to hear Susan Heck. If you are not familiar with her, check her out, I will be posting some info on how to find her in the future. She was awesome! and, the Lord has pointed out so many things that I need to work on. Thank you Lord that you are so patient with me. Thank you that you do not show me all of my sin at once. You are Kind and Gracious. Lord, help me to be more like Christ! I will tell you that I have been praying that the Lord will teach me to love Him more for quite sometime now, well, in the kind way that He does, the Lord showed me the passage that says "If you Love me, Keep my commandments" WOW!!!! I have read that hundreds of times, but it was like this time, I was hit between the eyes, I am so disobedient!!! How can I grow to love the Lord more, I need to be more obedient!!! Lord, you alone can teach me this!! How I long to do your will.