Less than a week left until [RE]volution YOU is released as an e-book! I’m so excited to share this with you all so soon!
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How Water Baptism Changed My Life!
Hello! How was your weekend? Great? Mine was better than great. Why? Because I got baptized on Saturday night at Gateway Church! It’s been something I’ve wanted to do for quite awhile, but just never took the opportunity to do until this weekend. And what’s more, my husband, James, was able to be the one to do it! It was so amazing to be able to share this experience with him – it is something I will definitely never forget!
Quite honestly I had a long list of excuses and reasons not to get baptized in my head, but I finally decided to ignore those negative thoughts and [quite literally] take the plunge! Baptism isn’t a means for salvation – that only comes through a personal relationship with Christ – but it is so very important to living a Christian lifestyle.
Your Will Be Done.
Hello! Hope you all are having a great Tuesday so far. Can you believe it’s April already? Craziness I tell you. Did you all have a wonderful Easter? James and I ended up going to church on Saturday night instead of Sunday morning–Gateway Church can get really busy on Easter Sunday–and we both really enjoyed the service. It was strange not being in Michigan for Easter with family, but overall we had a great day!
Throughout the days leading up to Easter last week I read Matthew’s account of what happened on those days so very long ago. It was awesome to read what Jesus was going through during those days, and what he ultimately did for us in dying on the cross for our sins. One verse in particular stuck out to me as I was reading…
“He went a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
Matthew 26:39
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Running You Race.
Hello! Hope you all are having a great Tuesday so far. It has been a busy couple of weeks around here lately, and time has really flown! I can’t believe we are already at the end of March…craziness I tell you. Last weekend the temperatures were in the low 80’s, so James and I met up with some friends in Grapevine to walk around the historic downtown area. We had a great time poking into all the little shops, and were even able to watch a ‘glass blowing’ demonstration [a really cool form of art where the artists actually sculpt hot glass by blowing into it and molding it into different shapes—very neat]. On Sunday James’ sister was in town on her way back from a missions trip, so we were able to spend the afternoon catching up with her. It was so great to see her! Overall I am enjoying Texas, but I definitely miss being close to our families.
In other news—last week I found out that I am going to be starting a new job this coming Monday! I have loved working at Starbucks, but I will be moving on to something that is a bit closer to my chosen career path—I am going to be working in the marketing department at Daystar Television Network! I’m a little nervous to start, but also very excited! But don’t worry—I’m not going anywhere. I am still going to be posting regularly here on the blog, and am still going to be making some improvements in the very near future—so stay tuned!
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The Weight of our Words.
Hello! How’s your Wednesday going so far? Mines been a little crazy with work, but overall pretty good! It was an early morning, but now I have the rest of the afternoon to get some stuff done around the house [and hang out with Samson] which is always a good thing:)
I wanted to share something I read from Psalms the other day. I’m sure you’ve probably heard it before, but sometimes you can gain new insight from rereading scriptures you’ve read countless times—it happens to me all the time!
“May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
Psalms 19:14
If you’re anything like me, sometimes you forget to think before you speak. Or maybe think something about a certain person or situation—maybe you don’t voice your opinion, but those thoughts are still there inside your head. It’s not like I do this constantly, but, you know, sometimes you just have a moment of frustration. Know what I mean?
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Encouraging Others.
Hello and Happy Tuesday! Guess what? It snowed last night! Needless to say, I was a happy camper when I woke up this morning. Not that it snowed much, only maybe an inch, but still…I can’t help myself. I just love snow that much:) I was a little afraid of how the roads might be [mainly because of other drivers…I’m quite used to snow driving] but they weren’t really bad at all. Thank goodness.
I wanted to share something I read from Titus this morning that I found insightful and interesting…
“Likewise teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.”
Titus 2:3-5
When Titus says ‘older women’, that doesn’t necessarily mean just those older in age. It can also refer to women who are more mature in their faith than others. What would our lives be like it we all had an older, mature Christian women guiding us, loving us, and living life along side us? Some of you may have had this sort of leadership in a mother or Christian mentor, but there are many women out there who have never had a positive role model in their lives.
If every older [mature] woman took this scripture seriously, and made a point of guiding the younger women in their lives, I’m convinced our society as a whole would be a better place. I think we would see fewer broken homes and more solid marriages than we do today. I think it would be easier to stay on the track God has called us to if we all received the proper encouragement and support along the way. The concept of older women mentoring younger women was important enough to be included in the New Testament, so it must be worthwhile for us today as well.
Is there someone in your life who has been a mentor or positive role model to you? Or maybe there is someone you have mentored in the past? What did you gain from that relationship? Ask the Lord to highlight those around you who may need some encouragement and guidance—young or old, we can all use a little support now and then. Just something to think about.
Well, I hope you all have a great rest of your day! God Bless:)
Preparing for Rejection.
Good Morning! For some reason, it just doesn’t feel like a Tuesday today, but apparently it is. Ah, well. I guess I am pretty excited that it’s Tuesday, because that means we get to go see Max Lucado speak at our church tonight! He is such a great author, and I’m really excited to hear what he has to say. I’ll let you all know how it was in tomorrow’s post. But, I’m getting ahead of myself. So I know I said I was going to start reading the Bible straight through again like I did last year, but I kind of changed my mind. By all means, if you’ve started reading straight through, keep going! It’s just that for me, I’ve been feeling led to pray, letting the Holy Spirit lead me to the passage of scripture I’m supposed to read for the day. Lately, it’s been 1 John. And there is a LOT to be learned from 1 John. So, here is something I felt led to read and share with you this morning…
“Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.”
1 John 3:13
Well that was simple and to the point. Don’t be surprised if the world hates us. Hmm. As Christians, we were never meant to blend in to the background. We were never meant to conform to the patterns of this world. Quite the opposite actually. Instead of conforming, we have always been called to stand out. To live differently—separate from the patterns from the world. The problem? Living differently isn’t always the most popular choice amongst our peers. They may not understand why we act differently, and this lack of understanding often leads to hatred, or rejection, on their part. Don’t be surprised. They only feel this way because our lifestyle pushes them to conviction in regards to their own lives. As Christians, we can’t let persecution, rejection or even hatred cause us to live within the patterns of the world. We can’t let them affect us, but rather, we must have an effect on them.
If ever you are feeling rejected, persecuted or hated because of your faith, take comfort in the fact that Jesus knows exactly what you are going through. In fact, he’s been there himself. Rely on him, and he will bring you through any trial or circumstance you may find yourself in.
Well, I hope you all are having a great Tuesday so far. I’m off to get a few things done before work. Have a great day, and God Bless:)
No Grey Areas.
Good Morning! Hope you all had a great weekend, and are having an excellent start to your Monday. My weekend was good. I had to work on Saturday, but got to relax and hang out with James and Samson on Sunday—always a good thing:) Anyways, back to Monday. So this morning I was reading in 1 John, and thought I would share this passage of scripture with you…
“God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, purifies us from all sin.”
1 John 1:5b-7
I like the black and whiteness of this passage. There is no possibility for grey area when talking about light and darkness. When light shines, darkness cannot exist. Likewise, where Christ’s light shines, evil/sin cannot exist. We can’t claim to be living for Christ if in actuality our lives are bathed in sin. We can’t pretend to exude the light of Christ on the outside if our actions and lifestyle choices don’t line up with what we claim to believe. Like I said, black and white.
I know this is heavy stuff, but there are so many Christians out there today who really think they can live in the grey areas of life. They don’t understand that Christianity requires death to the old nature—and a new life in Christ. Our society teaches us that it’s okay to compromise. That living a life fully committed to Christ isn’t necessary. The more we listen to those lies, the more blurred the lines become in our minds. We start to see Christianity as a grey area instead of the black and white truth that it is. This, my friends, is a very dangerous place to be. The Bible is very clear that our lives should be separate, or different, from the world. We can’t go on living in sin [walking in darkness] if we claim to be living for Christ [living in truth].
Are you living for Christ? I mean, really living for him? There is no grey area in Christianity—only the black and white truths. Don’t try to live in the grey. Commit to living completely, 100% in the light.
Well, I hope you all are having a great start to your week! God Bless:)
Fix Your Eyes on Jesus.
Hello! Hope you all are having a wonderful Wednesday so far. Mine is going well…it’s windy and cloudy outside, so it feels nice to be cuddled up inside with little Samson next to me:)
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Anyways, I don’t have too much time, so I’ll get right down to what I read this morning from Hebrews.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Hebrews 12:1-3
I have always loved this passage of scripture. But, now that I’m older and reading it at a different time in my life, it has a much deeper meaning to me. The Christian life has never been, and will never be, without challenges. We live in a sin-stricken world, and there is nothing we can presently do about that. Choosing to live a Christian lifestyle requires sacrifice. Commitment. It means giving up on your own agenda in the pursuit of God’s plan for your life. The only way to really succeed is to fix our eyes on the only one who has ever lived a perfect Christian life—Jesus. We are going to stumble and mess up sometimes. We’re humans—that’s just what we do. But, what’s important is that we learn how to pick ourselves back up again, and continue to focus our attention on Christ.
Over the past few years of my life I’ve gone through a lot of changes both spiritually and emotionally. While I have continually drawn closer to Christ, I have also had my fair share of challenges and stumbling blocks along the way. But, each challenge I have faced has shaped me into the person I am today. And that person is strong and confident in the person she is in Christ. I know that I have a lot of learning ahead of me, and that there will inevitably be challenges along the way, but I am no longer afraid. I know God has a plan for my life. All I have to do is fix my eyes on Jesus, and run the race set before me.
What about you? Maybe your going through something right now that just seems too difficult to overcome. Don’t be discouraged. God will bring you through whatever it is that you may be facing, and in the end you’ll be stronger because of it.
Hope you all have a great rest of your Wednesday! God Bless:)
Having Faith.
Hello and Happy Tuesday! For some reason it really doesn’t feel like a Tuesday today…guess I’m just really off in my days. Another thing that just doesn’t seem right is that Christmas is exactly one week from today! Maybe it’s the Texas weather, or the fact that my family is going to be out of town and I won’t be going home, but it certainly doesn’t feel like Christmas to me. Guess that means I’m gonna have to watch a few more Christmas movies and bake some more cookies over this coming week to put me more in the mood:) Shucks.
Today I read a familiar verse from Hebrews that I want to share with you this morning…
“Now faith is being sure of what you hope for and certain of what you do not see.”
Hebrews 11:1
I’m sure most of you have heard this verse before—it’s usually a popular one for Sunday school memorization. But, have you ever really thought about what it’s actually saying? If you’re anything like me, you want all the answers up front. You want God to tell you exactly what is going to happen and why, and you don’t want there to be any surprises. But, if God made everything perfectly clear to us, what would be the point of having faith? If we knew all the answers already, why would we need to trust God to reveal them to us? We wouldn’t.
Christianity is completely based in faith. If it weren’t that way, our testimonies wouldn’t be so powerful. There’s something about being required to have faith that really creates a unique and wonderful connection between God and us. If faith were not required, we wouldn’t trust and respect him as much as we do. Faith is being sure of what we hope for a certain of what we do not see. Even though we can’t know for sure what the future holds, we can be confident that God has a purpose and a plan behind each of our lives. And while we can’t actually see God, we can have faith that he is always with us, guiding us where we are supposed to go.
While it may be frustrating some times not to have all the answers, faith really is a gift and a blessing. Without it, our lives would be completely different, and we wouldn’t truly appreciate the journey that eventually leads to our eternal destination in Heaven.
Just some food for thought. Hope you all are having a great day! God Bless:)