Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Mary's Birthday!!!!
Yesterday was a very, very special day! My dear friend and sister in Christ Mary turned 38! Mary is one of the kindest people you will ever meet and our close circle of friends always refer to her as the one "with a heart the size of Texas"...matter of fact I think I'll nickname her "Texas" for short! lol! I picked her up and then went and picked up Renea and the 3 of us went to PF Changs for supper. I had never been there and it was a neat experience. They have lettuce wraps that had been highly reccommended by Danita, and I must be honest I kept thinking how exciting can lettuce be? But I have to admit they were better than my entree! lol! We laughed and had the best time! Our waiter was a gift from God because he was funny and we didn't bother him a bit with our laughing and sillyness. Then after the meal came the dessert choices! Now that was exciting!! LOL! I have a picture of the shot glass dessert cups...we thought they were so stinkin' cute we ordered all 8! That even surprised the waiter! lol! I am just so thankful that God has given me good friends in NC. I lived here about a year and a half before I really clicked with anyone, but Renea and Mary are two gems that definitely shine in my life! Thanks girls! Happy Birthday Mary...I hope we made it a special one! I love you!!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Soaring High!
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew [their] strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; [and] they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
These pictures are of Hannah and her "flying experience" through the JROTC at Rockingham County High School. She loved the experience and didn't even mind to much that they picked at her unmercifully because she required a "booster" seat. The view from the plane is so pretty...you can see that some of the trees below have leaves that are already changing into the beautiful colors of Autumn. The smiles on the girls faces are an evident reminder of how much fun they are having and the joy they are experiencing. I couldn't help but think how they must have felt so big and everything below so small from up in the air in that plane. They actually got to take control and "fly" the plane...(With the real pilot close by of course). It sparked a spiritual thought and application.
I have had times when I have had my strength renewed like the eagles and soared in the sky! There are times when I have felt in control and felt bigger than life but the real truth is....I wasn't. My pilot was actually doing the flying....He was the one causing me to mount with wings like eagles. I was actually very small and spiritually speaking, I probably needed a booster seat! It also occured to me that at times in my life I have looked from those heights and admired the beauty below just like those girls did today but you know what? ....those leaves on those trees are the same color when you are on the ground....you just have a different view...a different perspective. Wow! Could it be that God's beauty is just the same when we are on the ground or whether we are mounting with wings like eagles?....Oh dear sister I think so! I think it is only our perspective that changes.
I want to remember that 1. God is the Pilot! 2. Whether on the ground or in the air...his beauty and his miracles are the same...it is up to my perspective to see them the same! and 3. He knows when it is time to put me back on the ground. Those girls were in total trust of the pilot to give them a safe landing and one at the appointed time...and he did. Don't you know God will do the same for us!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
What's really important to you?
Hey girls! Just wanted to let you know what the Lord has been doing in my heart this past week.
I have a particular burden that the Lord has given me and it seems to become heavier on my heart with each passing day. There is a particular soul that I am praying for and I have such a deep desire to see them come to know Christ. I have prayed for lots of people who are lost over the years and I have had a real desire to see them saved but never before have I lost sleep, cried during the middle of the day, or actually had an ache in my chest for someone......until now. I have a dear friend who I led to Christ almost a year ago and I really had a desire to see her come to Christ but it was as though the Lord had already assured me she would be saved and even though I shed many tears for her it wasn't quite the same as this person I am burdened for now. I feel that part of the urgency I feel with this soul is that I have been witness to the evil that is all around and I can almost sense satan battling for their soul.
I have been reading my Bible searching for verses that would comfort and encourage me to keep on praying and the first one that comes to mind is Matthew 7:7 "Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you." The greek tense in all three of the following words ask, seek and knock is present...the voice is active and the mood is imperative. It means ask and keep on asking. Seek and keep on seeking. Knock and keep on knocking. Don't stop, don't quit don't even slow down....keep on keeping on. Then the Lord reminded me of Isaiah 59:1 "Behold the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear." And as I mediatated on these verses I began to be encouraged. I know that scripture does not lie....it is a reality! If I keep on asking, seeking and knocking....if I believe that the Lord is able to save then I can take comfort in that. I know that he hears every word I say, every silent prayer I think...He knows! Every tear I cry, every time my knees hit the floor on behalf of this soul....God knows! He is not a high priest that does not care but Hebrews tells me he is touched with the feelings of our infirmities! Hallelujah! But then I remembered another verse and my spirituality was bruised a little. Hebrews 12:1 "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset [us], and let us run with patience the race that is set before us," It was as if the Lord said, you need to lay aside the weights that are keeping you from praying more for this soul. I just couldn't get it out of my mind.
I don't watch hardly any TV...doesn't interest me. I hardly ever go out with girlfriends. I don't scrapbook anymore. I mean, the only thing I do for "me" on a daily basis is I love to play on Facebook and see what my friends in GA are doing. Facebook was how I reconnected with girlfriends I haven't seen or heard from in 20 years! It has been so much fun looking at the pictures of their children and hearing about what they are doing now...so much fun! I will get on before work in the morning for a minute or two and then at night I will check it as well. One morning while checking my FB it seemed as if the Lord audibly spoke and said, "Do you love that soul you are praying for enough to give up Facebook?", "Why don't you spend the time in prayer that you would spend on Facebook?" Well, my first thought was ...oh, I don't spend that much time on here, this is my only indulgence for me, it isn't doing any harm....but that wasn't the point. The point was did I love FB more...or was I willing to give it up and spend that time praying. I chose to lay aside that weight and pray for the soul I want to be saved. I told the Lord that whether it took 6 days, 6 months or 6 years I would not go back on FB until my first post could be one of praise for this soul coming to know the Jesus I serve. Then I thought of Jeremiah 29:12-13 "Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." Wow..do you remember when I said I would first check my FB....first thing in the morning....why was I not seeking Him??? I will continue to rid my heart of anything that could be coming between me and my prayers being answered. Jesus could come any moment and I want to take ALL of the people I love with me to heaven....don't you?!! God help us to give you our whole heart.
Please don't think I am saying everyone should abandon their Facebook...lol. No, I'm just sharing with you what God wanted me to do. I'll be honest with you girls, it has been hard not to check my FB...silly...yeah, probably but I'm just being honest. It just really spoke to me that the Lord knows exactly what has our hearts and what is important to us. I just want to prove to Him that this dear, precious soul that I am bringing to his throne room daily is the most important thing to me. And if I know anything about our Lord is that he is compassionate and full of mercy and he honors the sincere actions of obedience and prayers of His people. I know my prayers will be answered and I promise as soon as we have a new family member birthed into the family....I'll let ya know!
Be sensitive to his voice....listen....listen carefully, you just may hear that still small voice calling you.
I have a particular burden that the Lord has given me and it seems to become heavier on my heart with each passing day. There is a particular soul that I am praying for and I have such a deep desire to see them come to know Christ. I have prayed for lots of people who are lost over the years and I have had a real desire to see them saved but never before have I lost sleep, cried during the middle of the day, or actually had an ache in my chest for someone......until now. I have a dear friend who I led to Christ almost a year ago and I really had a desire to see her come to Christ but it was as though the Lord had already assured me she would be saved and even though I shed many tears for her it wasn't quite the same as this person I am burdened for now. I feel that part of the urgency I feel with this soul is that I have been witness to the evil that is all around and I can almost sense satan battling for their soul.
I have been reading my Bible searching for verses that would comfort and encourage me to keep on praying and the first one that comes to mind is Matthew 7:7 "Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you." The greek tense in all three of the following words ask, seek and knock is present...the voice is active and the mood is imperative. It means ask and keep on asking. Seek and keep on seeking. Knock and keep on knocking. Don't stop, don't quit don't even slow down....keep on keeping on. Then the Lord reminded me of Isaiah 59:1 "Behold the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear." And as I mediatated on these verses I began to be encouraged. I know that scripture does not lie....it is a reality! If I keep on asking, seeking and knocking....if I believe that the Lord is able to save then I can take comfort in that. I know that he hears every word I say, every silent prayer I think...He knows! Every tear I cry, every time my knees hit the floor on behalf of this soul....God knows! He is not a high priest that does not care but Hebrews tells me he is touched with the feelings of our infirmities! Hallelujah! But then I remembered another verse and my spirituality was bruised a little. Hebrews 12:1 "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset [us], and let us run with patience the race that is set before us," It was as if the Lord said, you need to lay aside the weights that are keeping you from praying more for this soul. I just couldn't get it out of my mind.
I don't watch hardly any TV...doesn't interest me. I hardly ever go out with girlfriends. I don't scrapbook anymore. I mean, the only thing I do for "me" on a daily basis is I love to play on Facebook and see what my friends in GA are doing. Facebook was how I reconnected with girlfriends I haven't seen or heard from in 20 years! It has been so much fun looking at the pictures of their children and hearing about what they are doing now...so much fun! I will get on before work in the morning for a minute or two and then at night I will check it as well. One morning while checking my FB it seemed as if the Lord audibly spoke and said, "Do you love that soul you are praying for enough to give up Facebook?", "Why don't you spend the time in prayer that you would spend on Facebook?" Well, my first thought was ...oh, I don't spend that much time on here, this is my only indulgence for me, it isn't doing any harm....but that wasn't the point. The point was did I love FB more...or was I willing to give it up and spend that time praying. I chose to lay aside that weight and pray for the soul I want to be saved. I told the Lord that whether it took 6 days, 6 months or 6 years I would not go back on FB until my first post could be one of praise for this soul coming to know the Jesus I serve. Then I thought of Jeremiah 29:12-13 "Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." Wow..do you remember when I said I would first check my FB....first thing in the morning....why was I not seeking Him??? I will continue to rid my heart of anything that could be coming between me and my prayers being answered. Jesus could come any moment and I want to take ALL of the people I love with me to heaven....don't you?!! God help us to give you our whole heart.
Please don't think I am saying everyone should abandon their Facebook...lol. No, I'm just sharing with you what God wanted me to do. I'll be honest with you girls, it has been hard not to check my FB...silly...yeah, probably but I'm just being honest. It just really spoke to me that the Lord knows exactly what has our hearts and what is important to us. I just want to prove to Him that this dear, precious soul that I am bringing to his throne room daily is the most important thing to me. And if I know anything about our Lord is that he is compassionate and full of mercy and he honors the sincere actions of obedience and prayers of His people. I know my prayers will be answered and I promise as soon as we have a new family member birthed into the family....I'll let ya know!
Be sensitive to his voice....listen....listen carefully, you just may hear that still small voice calling you.
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