My daddy :)

Found these old pictures of my daddy...aww love it!!! Pictures really are worth a thousand words. Memories and pictures sometimes seem like all I have left of him, but his LOVE is still alive and his spirit in heaven. The memories and pictures are precious to me :-) but they don't replace or even come close to the LOVE in my heart.

Surrender

"A life of significance is most often preceded by a heart eager to surrender to God's will regardless of the cost."-DB Joe Stowell


Mary finds herself at a crossroads, when the angel Gabriel comes to her to tell her she has found favor with God and was chosen by him to birth the Son of God. She can submit to God's will and surrender all of her plans, dreams and ideas and just trust Him. Or she can continue on her merry way and go with her plans. We see that Mary does not hesitate. When facing the "devastating interruption that her pregnancy would bring to HER plans," she cheerfully and humbly accepts this honor. For she knew to whom she belonged, that her life was not her own, it was an offering of worship-a living sacrifice for her Almighty God. This does not mean that the cost was not high and the risk was not big, but she knew that "reputation is not Lord, worry is not Lord, money is not Lord..." Jesus is Lord and she follows HIM alone. "'I am the Lord's servant,' Mary answered. 'May it be to me as you have said'" Luke 1:38.

Fully surrendered. Her plans and dreams laid at His feet so that she can fulfill the calling, purpose and plan that God has for her. Mary continues to inspire me daily. She replaced worry with worship. She had everything to worry about, but she chose to worship through everything. She surrendered to the assignment, and how grateful I am that she did. Nothing made logical sense, her family and friends would think she was crazy, her fiance Joseph might think she cheated or was lying, not to mention the nosy neighbors in the small town of Nazareth calling her a harlot. But she pressed on, persevered, endured for the sake of Christ. Knowing full well that this life would not be easy for her, but knowing all the more that GOD knew this life would not be easy for her and he had her back. He found favor on her. "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God" (v.30). Against all odds, she trusted and followed her Lord.

"Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" Luke 1:45

Sometimes nobody else can "see it" but us and God...and that is enough, more than enough. Because then we must really rely on faith and our personal relationship with Him. Sometimes when I notice I am looking for outside circumstances or people to tell me that "I am okay" or "good enough" I realize that the only ONE who can tell me that-that really makes a difference-is God. He is the only ONE that can fill the void, calm the anxiety, and speak directly to my heart to ease the fear. His perfect love casts out all fear. No one else's love can do what His love can. In fact, just recently I was having one of those moments and feeling like I needed someone to tell me that I was okay and God just whispered in my ear that He was the only one that really counts. My mom could tell me the perfect thing over and over and it would never be enough until it came from God Himself. So I went alone into my room and just cried out to Him and let Him tell me exactly what I needed to hear. Sometimes circumstances won't change and sometimes they will, but the good news is that God never changes and His love endures forever.

Leaving a memory of LOVE

Our time here, each and every minute is a gift...we are on borrowed time from God. Just went to a memorial service of a high school friend named Sam. He was born on 1-22-86 the same exact birthday as me. He would have been 25 in about about month. It took my breath away as I walked into the service and saw all these old friends from high school. The room was packed out for Sam. This says a lot about the person that he was...he loved EVERYBODY!!! No favoritism, no discrimination...just LOVE all around. He was born with a heart defect and it was actually a miracle that he even survived birth let alone 24 years of life. Sam must have been so happy to look down on us in this room full of people that he loved, that love him...knowing he brought us all together to celebrate life!!! He was all about unity, and he definitely re-united many people today.

God sends people into our lives, on our paths and on earth for a short time sometimes. These special chosen ones, are often reminders to those around them of the fragility of life. The gift of life. To cherish every moment and to LOVE LOVE LOVE. Love is the only thing that remains when our earthly bodies do not. The room was filled with love today. Accomplishments, accolades, money, "success" none of it mattered...Sam can't take any of that with him to heaven...he leaves his love behind and his spirit carries it with him always. It lives on in our hearts. I don't want to leave behind earthly riches, I want to leave behind LOVE that lasts eternally. His message was that of Jesus' message reminding us of what's really important. Giving us God's perspective more than our own. He was a light for God and was a gift to us. For 24 precious years, God shared Sam with us. : )

I pray that Sam's death moves in the hearts of those that God specifically placed in his life...reminding them of the importance of life and that the pain would draw them closer and closer to the sacred heart of Jesus. Closer and closer to HIS abounding love. IN Jesus Name I pray!

Really Listen : )

Fear- False Evidence Appearing Real

Mary replaced worry with worship. Joshua did it even though he was afraid. We will face fear, we will have worry...these are both spirits that produce feelings that want to hold us back. F.E.A.R.- False Evidence Appearing Real. "Fear is just a crutch that tries to hold us back and turn our dreams to dust, all we need to do is just TRUST."-Fireflight. Dream anyways, love anyways, speak anyways, go anyways, live anyways, DO what God is calling you to do anyways!!!! Don't lose heart, don't give up beloved! "Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than the fear that stares you back right between the eyes." It is not that Joshua never felt fear so God used him; Joshua felt fear so he had to rely on God' strength even more in the face of fear. We cannot wait to not feel fear...courageous people feel fear they just do what they are being called to do anyway. Esther faced her fears and did what God was asking her to. "I came to you in weakness and fear and with much trembling" 1 Cor. 2:3. I can relate to Paul very much here. I feel that I God has sent me into mission fields, weak, fearful and trembling. I felt very ashamed about this fear and "not good enough" many times, but His truth revealed to me that in my fear He is all the more glorified. "so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power." 1 Cor. 2:5. Often times my insecurities do make me fear men, but my reverence for God and His holiness far outweighs this earthly fear. I put no confidence in the flesh and I shall boast of my weaknesses so that my God gets all the glory and His strength is known to all. "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong"(v.27). I hold on to this hope and truth. Not perfectly...but it's progress not perfection. Not perfect, just forgiven-as Matt always says. : )

Fear is going to try to keep us from having the victory. I will not fear, because God is with me. He is greater than anything that comes against us.

Whatever you are lacking, God will be that for you. In fact, the more you lack, the more His power rests upon you and is glorified in you. "No matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ" 2 Cor. 1:20.

"God is telling Joshua, 'You are not going to get where your going, unless you make God's word the focal point of your life'"-Joyce Meyer. My friend Liz explained it like a ballerina who must keep her spot to stay balanced while spinning. Her eyes must stayed fixed on her spot in order to stay balanced and accomplish the goal/task at hand. It gives me peace of mind to know that others have questions and concerns and even worry. "The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts" Luke 3:15. It is normal, and that awareness will help us in the fight against darkness. They can be used against us as distractions, so it is very important to be conscious of the movements of our heart and mind. Hold captive every thought and make it obedient/in right alignment with God's word. If we are not conscious of these movements, it is much harder to dispel the lies and fears...they become white noise in the background...leading to oppression. Keep our eyes fixed on the prize. "Run in such a way to get the prize...Therefor I do not run like a man running aimlessly" 1 Cor. 9:24, 26.

I thank God for His truth and His word; without it I would be lost, a slave to my unsteady feelings. I long to be more and more of a slave to His Holy Spirit...in His freedom I will live. I continue on, running this race, not for me, but for my Father and what He has willed. What an honor to be a part of His plans and His purpose. That He would entrust even a little to me, blows me away. Mary and David both thanked God, He knew them as they were...through and through. Searching the heart and mind and soul for every anxious thought and offensive way, and yet He called them a "somebody." Luke 1:48 (Mary) and 1 Chronicles 17:17 (David) WOW! Brings me to tears.

Advent

During this season of Advent I want to carve out extra extra quiet time to prepare my heart, be attentive as I work actively for His coming in my heart. Invite the sacred into your life. Make time and space for a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. It's not about piling more tasks on our Christmas to-do list. It's about giving ourselves and others permission to love God in a renewed way. This is a compilation of several different books, and sources I have been reading about Advent season as well as some verses the Lord has illumined to me. "Deep calls to deep" Psalm42:7. "Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me." Psalm 43:3

Time in His presence is irreplaceable; He is the source of our impact in & on the world.

An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream (Matt.1:18)...We discover in all five dreams that obeying God's will takes courage, dedication, and real love for people and the mission God has placed in our care. Mary and Joseph obeyed God's will, and so must we.

Instead of shouting to us from the sky in frustrated anger, our God knows how to quietly and gently show up even in the earthquakes, winds and fired of our lives. In response to our noisy frantic, self-exhausting ways, our Lord say, "Be still and know that I am God" Psalm 46:10

The prophet Elijah experienced the voice and gentle touch of God at one of the lowest moments of his life. Exhausted by his efforts to run from the death threats of Jezebel, queen of Israel, Elijah came to the point of feeling so alone and so disillusioned that he wanted to die 1 Kings 19:4. Those feelings of despair, however gave God an opportunity to show His wisdom.

First strengthening him physically...The Lord renewed His servant's physical strength by giving him sleep, food, and water (19:5-8). Then God renewed Elijah's spiritual perspective by speaking to him not in a howling wind but in a "gentle whisper" (19:9-12).

What Elijah heard in the calmness of God's voice was also experienced by other men and women. Troubled people like Abraham, Job, Ruth, Rahab, Joseph, and Paul all discovered that even in their worst problems, God was gently using the voice of His wisdom to get their attention, surrender and trust. Agur is quoted by readers of Proverbs as an exceptionally wise man (30:8-9). Agur, however, had a different view of himself. Overwhelmed by how foolish he felt in the presence of his Creator, Agur wrote "Surely I am more stupid than any man, and do not have understanding. I neither learned wisdom nor have knowledge of the Holy One" Prov. 30:2-3. He felt clueless in his own understanding after listening to what his Creator was quietly saying to him.

By seeing and admitting what he couldn't understand on his own, Agur came to the place of wanting to treasure every word of God more than his own understanding (Prov. 30:5-6). So the wise man prayed, "Two things I request of You (deprive me not before I die): Remove falsehood and lies from me; give me neither poverty nor riches-feed me with the food allotted to me; lest I be full and deny You and say 'Who is the Lord?' or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God" Prov. 30:7-9.

By reminding us that we are not our own, Agur brings the wisdom of the where we stand in relation to our own Owner, Provider, Protector.

Only Hope! : )

There's a song that's inside of my soul.
It's the one that I've tried to write over and over again
I'm awake in the infinite cold.
But you sing to me over and over and over again.

So, I lay my head back down.
And I lift my hands and pray
To be only yours, I pray, to be only yours
I know now you're my only hope.

Sing to me the song of the stars.
Of your galaxy dancing and laughing and laughing again.
When it feels like my DREAMS are so far
Sing to me of the PLANS that you have for me over again.

So I lay my head back down.
And I lift my hands and pray
To be only yours, I pray, to be only yours
I know now, you're my only hope.

I give you my destiny.
I'm giving you all of me.
I want your symphony, singing in all that I am
At the top of my lungs, I'm giving it back.

So I lay my head back down.
And I lift my hands and pray
To be only yours, I pray, to be only yours
I pray, to be only yours
I know now you're my only hope.