His beauty, even in the storm

I, myself, have not gone through a really tragic time.  I hear about events all around me, but never have had to experience something so tragic like my friends Daniel and Gina have.  I wrote about the loss of their 15 month old, baby girl, Alexa just over a year ago. 

It's been a long hard year for the both of them and their family.

But they've made it and only by the grace of God.  I've always looked up to them, but I look up to them even more now.

They have got through their toughest year yet as a married couple.  I know it couldn't have been easy, but they stuck with each other because they had the help of our most gracious Father.

I captured these pictures as we were out and about at yard sales.  These are the perfect example of how His beauty shows, even in the storm.

Much Love,

Lindsey

Forgiveness

I have started a new weekly get-together on Wednesday mornings with my dear friend, Kati.  She asked if I would like to have a weekly bible reading/study at our local donut shop before our day starts.  I was a little hesitant because I knew I would have to get up twice as early, but I told her yes knowing it would be a total blessing.

This conversation was on a Sunday and the first time to meet up would be the next morning at 6:15.  Well little did I realize then how hard it is to get up on a Monday morning, especially after traveling across the state of Oklahoma all weekend, would be?

I totally stood her up!

But by accident, of course!

I slept thru, or snoozed I’m not sure, my alarm and woke up at 6:26a with a text from Kati that read, ‘Girlfriend’.

Isn’t that the sweetest thing?  She could have totally been rude, because you know that’s the way of the world when you get stood up.

So I replied, ‘I am so so sorry!’

When she replied, ‘That’s ok! I’ll take a quiet devotion in the parking lot of the donut shop any day.’

I was so relieved.

I could tell that she forgave me willingly and without hesitation.

What a great example of how our Almighty God does for us…all of us.

‘But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.’  1 John 1:9

So fellow sinner, don’t hesitate.  Let him show his grace to you.  It will lift a huge burden off of your shoulders, to make it easier to move forward with your relationship with Christ, family member(s), friend(s) or whoever it may be.

‘But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.’ Mark 11:25

Who is God putting on your heart to forgive?  He’s eager for you to forgive that person, so he can forgive you of your sins, in return.

Much Love,

Lindsey

I love His unique ways

It has hit us pretty hard for some reason.  It’s hard having to be so careful.

We know that at the first of the month things are pretty tight, but we usually have something to work with.

This time we have nothing.

I sat down to pay the bills and soon realized the ‘something to work with’ was ate up somewhere along the way.

I didn’t panic knowing things would get taken care of somehow, but was nervous to share this news with my husband.  Once I explained where I think our ‘something to work with’ went, he understood and realized we’d be tight for a couple of weeks.  Phew!  That’s a relief.

But then God started showing up.

We remembered there was money stashed in the house but we weren’t sure how much.  I also found another spot where I had put money back months ago.

And best of all, I remembered that I hadn’t spent the $50 I got for my birthday 2 weeks ago.

That money had good and bad intentions.  I went back and forth on whether to be responsible or irresponsible what that money.  But decided, without really knowing I had decided, to be responsible.

And do you want to know something?  I know He provided for us because we tithe.

When we are faithful to give a part of what He has given us, He’ll be faithful to supply your every need.

When researching online for a good scripture to use for this post, {no I don’t have the Bible memorized} I ran across an article written by Dr. Dale A. Robbins, “The Tithe Belongs to The Lord.”

In it I found this:

Tithing is a test of our stewardship over the property of God, a test of our honesty to return to God what is rightfully His, a test of our obedience to do what He told us to do, and a test of our love and desire to please Him with our lives.

Tithing is a demonstration that we believe in God, and that we acknowledge that He is the provider of all material blessings.  If you haven’t the faith to believe that the tithe belongs to the Lord, neither can you have faith in Him to meet your financial needs.  After all, if you don’t believe that the tenth is His, you must not believe that the whole earth is His either.

What a perfect reason for what we encountered ourselves this week.  I am so gracious to not have the stress of what will happen in the weeks until our next payday, for my God has made a plan for me and my family to get by with what he gave us.

Thank you Jesus for knowing what was going to happen months down the road, that we prepared for without even knowing, but your knowing.

Much Love,

Lindsey

P.S.  If you’re not currently tithing, I hope your heart gets a little tug from The Man above. J

Anger

Yesterday at church, Pastor Rick preached on Anger.  I’m so glad that we were there to hear this message. 

It was just that morning that…

We slept in until 8:30a

Gathered in the living room and at cereal

I jumped in the shower w/ 1 hour til we needed to leave

When I get out of the shower, my husband is upset that he can’t find a pair of shorts that he wants to wear

He then asks me where they are, and I replied, “I don’t know.”

I suggest a couple of places, but they’re not there

By now he’s even more upset

I keep thinking to myself, ‘They’re just shorts. Can’t you find something else to wear?’

But he was determined, so I knew the answer was no

He then starts in on how the laundry, ‘should get done faster and this wouldn’t happen,

It just sits in baskets for days when it should be hung up or put away.’

It’s a common thing in our house for something to be missing.  We swear up and down that we set it on the kitchen counter, when actually it’s in the laundry room cabinets. 

We both have bad habits of laying things down where they don’t go and the other person will come along and put it where we think it should go.

And so, when we can’t find something, we…

Blame anyone but ourselves

We get frustrated

Angry

Short tempered

Say things that are hurtful

So with all the blame put on me, I give him the ‘silent treatment’.

But is that what we should really do?

No.

Pastor Rick gave us these 3 bits of information of what anger can do in your relationship(s).

1.      Anger leads to losing your temper, losing your temper hurts the relationship.

a.       Psalm 37:8 Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper it only leads to harm.

2.      Anger causes us to withhold from relationships.

a.       Luke 15:28 The older brother was angry and wouldn’t go in.

3.      Anger gives the devil access to our relationships.

a.       Ephesians 4:27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.

When angry with something or someone, it affects everyone around you, whether it’s geared toward you or not.  A person’s reaction may be to be angry back or simply give them the ‘silent treatment’. 

But what we need to realize when in the middle of something like this, is the devil is the one steering the anger and does what he can to accelerate the argument so that it may cause you to hate that person and refuse to forgive them.

Pastor Rick also gave us 2 ways on what to do about anger.

1.      Resolve it quickly.

a.       Matthew 5:24 leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.

2.      Crucify it and follow God’s Spirit.

a.       Galatians 5:24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

Now I’m happy to say that before the service was even over, he apologized to me and showed me that he really meant it.

I know these trials will only make our relationship stronger, as long as we seek God and take in his teachings to better our lives and our family.

May you be able to keep your anger from accelerating and hurting the relationships of those that mean the most to you.

Much Love,

Lindsey

What once was mine, turned into God's plan

I have to share what I experienced on my lunch hour today.

I went to McDonald's to 'steal' their WiFi.  Now, it's not actually stealing, but that's what I like to call it since I'm too cheap to use the internet on my phone.  Plus I'm over my average usage by 38MB and I do NOT want to go over again...EVER!

I pull in the parking lot and immediately realize that it's Spring Break this week and that this place is going to be crazy!  But I was thrilled to see that there was an open parking space at the front, right by the door, so I took my chances.

I get inside and see 3 of my coworkers and 2 families that I know from Chelsea.  I get in line next to one of the families and we both are like, "Hey!"  She went on about how she had to get out of the house and go somewhere where the kids can play.  I then said that I was glad to have a job to go to, while Addam was home with the kids this week. {Just kidding babe, I would love to be at home with you remodeling the bedroom. {Oh wait...I'm kidding about that too} Hehe}

So I order my Caramel Hot Chocolate and found my seat where it was less crowded and less noisy.  I start in on my WiFi 'stealing' and sipping my hot beverage, when the 2 families get up to leave.  We exchange our 'goodbye's' and I bury my nose back into my iPhone. 

The mother of the 2nd family comes back to where I'm sitting to ask if they could use my car to jump hers.  So we head out to the parking lot, when she asks me where I'm parked and I told her that I was parked right by the door.  Well then she shows me that she is parked right next to me.  At this point, I was amazed and super ecstatic.  That is so a God-thing!  So she grabs her jumper cables and we get to jumpin'.  After we got her car started, she was overflowing with gratitude and gave me a hug and said how happy she was that I was there and able to help. 

And so was I!

What was once just a trip to the local WiFi hotspot, turned into such a blessing.

What was once my own desire to get on Blogger and Facebook, could have very well been God guiding me to be of help to someone.

I myself am filled with gratitude.  I mean the Lord chose me to be of help to someone.  I LOVE it!

It was just this morning that I was reading my Joyce Meyer devotion on my YouVersion app, that I requested God's Holy Spirit to be alive in me.  I've been longing to hear his voice more and more, that I may feel Him more, hear His voice, and be able to take on new things knowing that He has went ahead and planned this for me.

Well it only took 6 short hours and He showed himself to me.  He can show himself to you as well, you just have to ask!

Here is a small portion of what the devotion said this morning.

When you spend time with God daily and receive His Holy Spirit, you're not signing up for a scary, weird experience. You are simply receiving His power to be more like Jesus and His wisdom to walk through ordinary events.

Much Love,

Lindsey

Good Samaritan

I was just given a KJV (King James Version) Devotional Bible from a frequent customer of the bank while on my way out of the restroom.  At first, I have to be honest, I wondered 'Why me? Why not someone who actually needs to hear Gods Word and doesn't have a relationship with him?'  And as soon as I stopped asking the 'Why's', I realized it's the thought and action that this man took to do something that God had laid on his heart to do.  I have been talking with God lately more than ever before and an action like this is what my heart needed.  I myself need to step out in faith and God is preparing my heart for something that he wants me to step out and do for him.  I'm so excited to see what he has in store and I pray that I recognize Him when approaches me.

Today's Devotion

I read a devotion from YouVersion.com and I just had to share what it says for today, Dec 21, 2011.

Colossians 3:10

10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.

"What does it mean to "put on your new nature"? It means that your conduct should match your faith. If you are a Christian, you should act like it. To be a Christian means more than just making good resolutions and having good intentions; it means taking the right actions. This is a straightforward step that is as simple as putting on your clothes."

We as Christians need to be reminded of this if not a daily basis at least a weekly basis.  It is so easy to slip away from God and how he wants us to live.  I pray that I show God through my life everyday.

Ephesians 1:7-8

Grace is God's voluntary and loving favor given to those he saves. We can't earn salvation, nor do we deserve it. No religious, intellectual, or moral effort can gain it, because it comes only from God's mercy and love. Without God's grace, no person can be saved. To receive it, we must acknowledge that we cannot save ourselves, that only God can save us, and that our only way to receive this loving favor is through faith in Christ.

Never take for granted

 "...and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.  But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs." Matthew 24:7b-8

We have had so many crazy things happen this year that it really gets you thinking about God and His plan.

In February, we had record breaking temperatures and snow accumulation.  Through the months of May and June are our usual spills of tornadoes.  This past summer we had record breaking temperatures exceeding 110+.  And now within the past week we've been having earthquakes and the aftershocks.  What's next??

I am so thankful to have a personal relationship with a Father that is always watching over and protecting those that seek Him.  I could not imagine not knowing where I am going if there is no tomorrow.  Yes I'm ready, but I also want the opportunity that most Americans want and that's to watch their kids grow up. 

It is this promise that we as Christians are to stand on, "But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved." Matthew 24:13.

May we never take life for granted.