I wanted to take them back as soon as I said them. Words, hurtful words that slipped out way too easily....
"Watch your words and hold your tongue; you'll save yourself a lot of grief." Proverbs 21:23
It was a normal morning, everything was great and the kitchen was filled with happy kids. Until Mom butted in. It all started with a few donuts left in a box on the counter. There were 3 donuts (1 chocolate/2 glazed) and 2 girls.
One girl called the chocolate and the other agreed with (what I perceived to be a disappointed) "okay". Here is where it all fell apart. The moment when I, as Mom, thought that I could help the situation. A situation that didn't need my help at all. The moment when I told one child that they were being selfish and that they should split the chocolate donut.... You know so that they could each have one glazed and half a chocolate.
Sometimes I just don't know why I don't hit pause before I blurt "helpful" things out of my mouth.
My chocolate calling girl, ate 1/2 her donut and left the room. I tried to apologize and make up for the hurt I caused, but it was not ready to be received. So, by the end of breakfast we had uneaten donuts and a un-nurtured soul.
Oh Lord, please help me to hold my tongue. Keep me from causing pain and hurt to others by my words. Let me speak encouragement and love. Amen.
It broke my heart to drop of my bubbly cheerful girl at school as a deflated spirit. To know that my butting in where it was not needed hurt someone that I cherish so much. But a little later, I was happy to receive a text full of forgiveness, grace and love.
Next time I will leave the donut eating to the ones who choose to eat them.
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
The Harvest
"This is the day the Lord has made;We will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24
I am thinking of the above scripture as I am now going to revive my blog! :) It feels weird to be writing on here again after taking some time away, but it feels good too. It feels right and I believe it is what I should be doing. Whoever chooses to follow me on here is in for a little bit of a ride. The ride could be bumpy, hit a dead end or be a smooth ride, only time will tell.
I am changing up the format a little and will be writing about the 4 things that are most important in my life: my faith in Christ, my family, food and fitness and friendships.
God has really been working on my heart that if I sow the proper seeds, then I will reap the goodness of that harvest. And that is my desire, to sow good seeds.
A good harvest usually doesn't come quickly. It takes several things to reap a good harvest: prayer, time, patience, self-control, faith, hope, love and gentleness. Those are just the top seeds to plant in order to reap anything that is worth reaping.
If I want to reap a stronger relationship and faith in God, then I need to take the time to talk with him and study His word. I need to be obedient to what I feel He is leading me to. I also need to share my hope that I have through Him with others, leading other towards Him.
The same things apply to reaping a harvest in my family, friends and my health. I must pour good seeds into those areas, such as time, self-control, love and gentleness to name a few.
I will close with a scripture that is my inspiration for this blog and my harvest. "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9.
Let us not give up, let us march forward strong and steadfast.
I am thinking of the above scripture as I am now going to revive my blog! :) It feels weird to be writing on here again after taking some time away, but it feels good too. It feels right and I believe it is what I should be doing. Whoever chooses to follow me on here is in for a little bit of a ride. The ride could be bumpy, hit a dead end or be a smooth ride, only time will tell.
I am changing up the format a little and will be writing about the 4 things that are most important in my life: my faith in Christ, my family, food and fitness and friendships.
God has really been working on my heart that if I sow the proper seeds, then I will reap the goodness of that harvest. And that is my desire, to sow good seeds.
A good harvest usually doesn't come quickly. It takes several things to reap a good harvest: prayer, time, patience, self-control, faith, hope, love and gentleness. Those are just the top seeds to plant in order to reap anything that is worth reaping.
If I want to reap a stronger relationship and faith in God, then I need to take the time to talk with him and study His word. I need to be obedient to what I feel He is leading me to. I also need to share my hope that I have through Him with others, leading other towards Him.
The same things apply to reaping a harvest in my family, friends and my health. I must pour good seeds into those areas, such as time, self-control, love and gentleness to name a few.
I will close with a scripture that is my inspiration for this blog and my harvest. "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9.
Let us not give up, let us march forward strong and steadfast.
Friday, August 16, 2013
Advocate
At a women's conference I attended, I received a scripture card that said God was my advocate. I wasn't sure what that meant, so I did a little research on it. An advocate is defined as being a comforter, counselor, mediator and helper. There are several scriptures that tell us that Jesus is our advocate, here are a few.
Proverbs 18:10 "Let the Lord be your advocate. He has made your enemies your foot stool. He is your hiding place. He will direct your steps and protect you from trouble. Trust in Him. He is a strong tower run to Him and be safe".
Jesus tells us in John 14:26-27 "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do no let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid".
In 1 Timothy 2:5-6 "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men".
I got the following from biblestudyguide.org - Jesus is our Advocate and mediator. Jesus is our Comforter and Helper in heaven, pleading our case before God, making intercession for us as our Advocate. Jesus' advocacy is only possible because He's also our mediator, our go-between, whereby we have peace with God, having been purified from our sins with His blood, in the covenant relationship He mediated on our behalf. Thanks be to Jesus Christ, without whom we'd have no chance of salvation.
Our God is so faithful, he loves us so much that he takes care of us in ways that we will never understand. He is there waiting for us to go to him, to seek counsel and to let him comfort us when we need it. He will guide us if we ask him, he will defend us and is always on our side. It is so reassuring to know that I can cry to him and talk to him when I am sad, mad, scared and heartbroken and he will comfort me.
When we feel there is no one else to turn to when we need someone, Jesus is there. He is always there wanting to give us what we need when we need it most. He can heal our broken hearts and help us to walk out of our brokenness. We can go to him and let him wrap his arms around us and pour his peace all over us.
He will fight for us. There is no enemy that can stand against us. It may seem that the enemy is winning, but we have already received our victory through Christ and he will not let us be defeated. God is bigger and he is for you and for me. I can't imagine a better advocate to have.
Proverbs 18:10 "Let the Lord be your advocate. He has made your enemies your foot stool. He is your hiding place. He will direct your steps and protect you from trouble. Trust in Him. He is a strong tower run to Him and be safe".
Jesus tells us in John 14:26-27 "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do no let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid".
In 1 Timothy 2:5-6 "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men".
I got the following from biblestudyguide.org - Jesus is our Advocate and mediator. Jesus is our Comforter and Helper in heaven, pleading our case before God, making intercession for us as our Advocate. Jesus' advocacy is only possible because He's also our mediator, our go-between, whereby we have peace with God, having been purified from our sins with His blood, in the covenant relationship He mediated on our behalf. Thanks be to Jesus Christ, without whom we'd have no chance of salvation.
Our God is so faithful, he loves us so much that he takes care of us in ways that we will never understand. He is there waiting for us to go to him, to seek counsel and to let him comfort us when we need it. He will guide us if we ask him, he will defend us and is always on our side. It is so reassuring to know that I can cry to him and talk to him when I am sad, mad, scared and heartbroken and he will comfort me.
When we feel there is no one else to turn to when we need someone, Jesus is there. He is always there wanting to give us what we need when we need it most. He can heal our broken hearts and help us to walk out of our brokenness. We can go to him and let him wrap his arms around us and pour his peace all over us.
He will fight for us. There is no enemy that can stand against us. It may seem that the enemy is winning, but we have already received our victory through Christ and he will not let us be defeated. God is bigger and he is for you and for me. I can't imagine a better advocate to have.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Being Obedient
I will admit that it is sometimes hard for me to be obedient. It wasn't always easy as a child to obey my parents or the adult in charge and sometimes it is hard as an adult. But God is calling us daily to be obedient to his will and his commands. Some things that I feel God has called me to are scary and cause me to step out of my comfort zone and it is a test of my faith whether I choose to obey or not. Sometimes he calls us to say yes and sometimes he calls us to say no to things.
I believe that we are all called for a purpose in this life and that we are to look to God to help us understand his purpose for us. In looking to God to lead us down his chosen path for us and to lead us in his will, we will be led in the way he wants us to go. We have all been given different talents and gifts, life experiences, personalities, testimonies and victories. I believe that God calls each of us at the appropriate time to use the things that we have been given to bring him glory and to save his people. "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men" 1 Corinthians 12:4-6.
We have all heard our pastor or someone say "God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called". I believe that is true and have witnessed it in my life as well as read about unlikely heroes stepping up in the bible. Some of the people that God chose to use in the bible look like odd choices, but he always supplies them with what they need. Let's look at Esther, no one could have imagined that she would become queen and through that end up saving her people. I love in Esther 4:14 when Mordecai says to her "and who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this". She was fearful, she could have been killed along with her people, but she followed the plan set before her and saved them all.
To be obedient is to obey, to be submissive to someone and to show behavior intended to please. I want to please God and walk in the way of his will for me. 1 John 5:3-4 "This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith". It is scary to step out in faith and trust that God will supply us with what we need. But I do believe that if he brings you to it, he will see you through it! Sometimes to obey God is to say no to things brought your way. Just because it is a "God thing" doesn't always mean it is something you are to do. So there are times that in obeying God and his will, we have to step away from things or opportunities.
Writing and sharing this blog is a scary thing for me. I feel that many years ago God put a desire in my heart to write a book and I have been too afraid to move forward with that. In discussing this with some dear sisters, they suggested I start with a blog and see where that leads. So after that conversation and some prayer time, this blog began. It is big for me to put my heart and thoughts out there for all to see and to try not to worry about how I will be perceived. But my motto at this moment of time in my life is FAITH OVER FEAR! I have been afraid for so many years, afraid of what others think of me, afraid of failing, afraid of being a disappointment. I don't want to live in fear anymore, I want to live in freedom and know that I really can do all things through Christ who gives me strength as it says in Philippians 4:13.
So I will start listening more to the whispers that I hear in my spirit and the desires that God puts in my heart. I will pray that I can be a woman who walks boldly in faith and follows the path that God has set before me. I pray that I will be obedient and pleasing to my Heavenly Father and trust that he will provide me with all I need. I will be praying that for all of you as well, let's choose faith over fear.
We have all heard our pastor or someone say "God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called". I believe that is true and have witnessed it in my life as well as read about unlikely heroes stepping up in the bible. Some of the people that God chose to use in the bible look like odd choices, but he always supplies them with what they need. Let's look at Esther, no one could have imagined that she would become queen and through that end up saving her people. I love in Esther 4:14 when Mordecai says to her "and who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this". She was fearful, she could have been killed along with her people, but she followed the plan set before her and saved them all.
To be obedient is to obey, to be submissive to someone and to show behavior intended to please. I want to please God and walk in the way of his will for me. 1 John 5:3-4 "This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith". It is scary to step out in faith and trust that God will supply us with what we need. But I do believe that if he brings you to it, he will see you through it! Sometimes to obey God is to say no to things brought your way. Just because it is a "God thing" doesn't always mean it is something you are to do. So there are times that in obeying God and his will, we have to step away from things or opportunities.
Writing and sharing this blog is a scary thing for me. I feel that many years ago God put a desire in my heart to write a book and I have been too afraid to move forward with that. In discussing this with some dear sisters, they suggested I start with a blog and see where that leads. So after that conversation and some prayer time, this blog began. It is big for me to put my heart and thoughts out there for all to see and to try not to worry about how I will be perceived. But my motto at this moment of time in my life is FAITH OVER FEAR! I have been afraid for so many years, afraid of what others think of me, afraid of failing, afraid of being a disappointment. I don't want to live in fear anymore, I want to live in freedom and know that I really can do all things through Christ who gives me strength as it says in Philippians 4:13.
So I will start listening more to the whispers that I hear in my spirit and the desires that God puts in my heart. I will pray that I can be a woman who walks boldly in faith and follows the path that God has set before me. I pray that I will be obedient and pleasing to my Heavenly Father and trust that he will provide me with all I need. I will be praying that for all of you as well, let's choose faith over fear.
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