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“Moore” Monday #2

SELF-MADE FORTRESSES NOT ONLY KEEP LOVE FROM GOING OUT, THEY KEEP LOVE FROM COMING IN. 

 WE RISK BECOMING CAPTIVES THERE.

Faithful, loving Lord, according to Your Word, two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; if one falls down, his friend can help him up.  But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!  (Eccles. 4:9-10, 12)  Help me to form healthy relationships and find support in those who encourage me to get back on my feet and walk with You when I fall.  Between You, me when I’m willing, and a good friend to hold me accountable, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken. 
You warn us, “He who separates himself seeks his own desire; He quarrels against all sound wisdom” (Prov. 18:1, NASB).  Help me to be very careful not to isolate myself. 

Another daily devotion from Beth Moore’s Praying God’s Word Day by Day.  I can relate to this one in particular because I have someone who tends to shut me out.  I am an emotional person, so I take this personally, when sometimes it isn’t.  That tends to make me shut that person out as well, just so my feelings don’t get hurt.  I then become captive  and isolated, thus separating myself from God and others around me. 

GRACE

My pastor has a great definition for grace– God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense.  Dictionary.com has 20 listed definitions for grace.  A few of the first seven are, elegance or beauty of form, favor or good will, mercy, clemency, or pardon.  Number eight begins with Theology, and contains the freely given, unmerited favor and love of God, the influence or spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or strengthen them, a virtue of excellence or divine origin, or the state of grace is the condition of being in God’s favor, or one of the elect.  I like the unmerited favor and love of God, because it reminds me that I do not deserve it, but He gives it because He loves me, even when I don’t deserve it.  That’s unconditional love, and we don’t often see that in our lives. 

That all leads up to a story about perfume.  A few weeks ago when Brooke and I were shopping, we came across inner grace.  I loved the name of it, so picked it up to try it.  It smells beautiful as well.  On the packaging it has philosophy, and I’m not sure if that is part of the name, but we found it in JCPenney, in the Sephora section.  I keep meaning to check it out online, and haven’t yet.  Anyway…  the perfume box says” philosophy:  to know peace is to know God.  within the context of peace we can know joy, love, and happiness.  in the absence of peace, we own nothing but the turmoil of our minds that jump from one thought to the next.  to find peace you must shut off your mind and open your heart to the only thing that matters; the gift of the present moment, it is peace personified.”  The body spray says “philosophy: top achieve inner grace you must practice acceptance.  surrender to a power that is greater and more loving than your own.  inner grace is eternal.  inner grace is immortal.  inner grace has no beginning and no end.”  Finally, the lotion says “philosophy:  God is love.  God is peace.  God is trust.  God is joy.  God is family.  God is friendship.  God is fearless.  God is breath.  God is life.  God is wisdom.  God is eternal.  God speaks in whispers.”  It gives me something to ponder every morning, and strive for each moment. 

Stranded

Today I felt so small and inadequate.  It was the worst feeling.  As Brooke, Matthew and I were leaving for church this morning, the car was  slow to start.  I thought at that time that I needed to get a new battery, so we wouldn’t be stranded.  Helpless.  And then it happened.  We came out of church, and were talking to Matthew about his class, and as I turned the key we heard nothing but a click. In that instant, it is amazing how many thoughts can run through your mind.  Matthew was telling me I needed to look under the hood, and Brooke was starving and concerned about getting Arby’s for lunch.  Brian and Zach were gone, so I knew I couldn’t call them.  Luckily, we were at church, and lots of people wanted to help.  Two guys went into the church barn and looked for some jumper cables, with no success.  One of them said he would run and buy some, and his wife offered that they would drive us home.  I ended up callng my father in law, he came, and within minutes we were running.  (Straight to the auto parts store!)  I don’t ever want to be in that position ever again.  Not only did I buy a new battery, but also a battery charger.  I guess it’s like jumper cables but you don’t have to hook up to another battery.  Self sufficient!  That’s what I like. 

Sunday Scripture 3

Sunday-Scripture

Today I chose Psalm 126:3
The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.
It’s very simple, and a great reminder. We do have so much to be thankful for, and it all starts with God. I just pray that in this week of Thanksgiving, you remember why you have what you do. Try not to focus on the things, and put your focus instead on God. Without Him, we have nothing!

Sunday Scripture 2

This is my second Sunday Scripture post, following after Amy.   Please check out her scripture as well!

I started this post a couple of hours ago, and a lot has changed since then.  Sometimes it seems like the walls are falling down around me, but God brought me back to this.  It is found in Philippians, and the lead in to these verses is Imitating Christ’s Humility.  Verfses 2 and 3 are my favorite, but I’ll lead you in with verse 1.  So Philippians 2:1-3 says this. 

1.  If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.  3.  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 

To be humble means that we are conscious of our weaknesses and are quick to give credit to God and others for what we accomplish.  We are dependent on God, we NEED God, because we are sinful by nature, and we can do nothing without the help of God.  And sometimes other people can help us when they are humble.  The bible has a God-centered view, and we need to have that view also. 

Ok, I have to go on and finish this.  Philippians 2:4-11Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.  5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.  6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross!  9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 

So let’s dissect that a little, because it is so good.  Jesus is our example, and we should put others first.  That’s what He did for us, isn’t it?  Our attitude should be the same.  Jesus was so humble that He left glory in heaven and made himself nothing, a servant, and was obedient to death for the sake of others.  For the sake of us, you and me.  He was made fully human, and had all the humanly temptations that we have, yet remained sinless.  He humbled himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross!  For you and me.  He came to serve us, and He came to sacrifice for us.  I know I need to be more Christ like, and adjust my attitude to put others first, and be humble to the point of a servant.  I pray that God will lead me in this journey, and show me the way. 

Hello world!

I have moved!  Not really with a lot of thought, but just kind of on a whim.  The allure of all the bells and whistles won me over.  Now I just have to learn how to do all this stuff.  Visit me often! 

A different experience

There’s something that’s been bothering me since Sunday. I just need to get it out, and I have prayed about it, but I also want your oppinion. Let me start off by giving a little family background. My maternal grandparents took me to church when I was a kid, and I was baptized around age 9 I think. My mom would attend sometimes. During my teen years I went to a much smaller church with my best friend. We were active in the youth group there. I went off to college and strayed away from church. (There are two branches to this tree, so bear with me please. ) The first branch is my husband. I actually met Brian at college. I shared an apartment with two friends, one who left me way too soon! Love ya Stace!! Brian also had an apartment two doors down. It was my first year, and his last. He graduated and went to Purdue for two more years. I finished college and moved back home to start my nursing career. I was working crazy hours, and church never seemed to fit into my schedule. Brian proposed on Christmas day, and we were married in July after he graduated. We didn’t have a church, so we picked one that was about halfway for both our families to drive to. We met with the pastor, and had one session of pre-marital counseling. It was really good. We later received a phone call that the pastor had left, no details, but if we wanted to get married, we needed to provide a pastor, or take their fill in. We chose my uncle, and he flew in and performed a beautiful ceremony.

Skip forward about 8 years. This is the second branch, and it involves my dad. I don’t recall him ever attending church when I was little. My mom’s dad told him he had to be baptized to marry my mom, so he did that, but wasn’t much of a follower. He believed in God, but wasn’t living it. Long story short, I wish you could meet him and hear his testimony. He is filled with the Holy Spirit, and it flows out of him when he speaks. Dad was at a low place, and he cried out to Jesus, and instantly dad felt His presence. From that moment on, he has been an inspiration to me and many others. So Brian and I started taking the kids to church. A really big church, where it is easy to get lost in the crowd. I joined a small group for a bible study, but Brian wouldn’t go because it’s not his thing. He was baptized 4 years ago, on the same day as his brother.

This is where the story gets hard. I feel like just attending church on Sunday is not enough, and he has a different view. I have tried many times to initiate a bible study with him, and failed. I pray for him, and I try to be the good example for him, but it seems like everywhere else he goes, there is more darkness than light. He is in a constant struggle in the sand, and it is very hard for us both. Well racing has taken quite a few of our weekends, and church attendance has not been up to par. This past Sunday was the first time we had been in 3 weeks, I think. The sermon series is on the “one anothers” in the bible. Love one another, forgive one another, be compassionate to one another, and this week was about Colossians 3:16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. So we sang, we praised, and we worshipped for the whole hour. It was amazing, and I could feel His presence with us. It was powerful and moving. I could not stand still. Deep down I knew that the only One who hears me singing and thinks it is a joyful sound is the Lord, but it didn’t matter. I just can’t describe to you how great it was! Now, Brian was standing right next to me, but the only time I really noticed him was when I heard his big sighs. I was filled with joy and gratitude. My feeling lasted until later that night when I was trying to talk to Brian about it. I wanted to know if he felt it too. I was disappointed to hear that he had a different experience. He doesn’t like to sing, and was bothered that it lasted the whole hour. He was irritated that he didn’t see the pastor, and so self focused that his back and feet were hurting. I know that the experience was different because my heart and eyes are open, and his aren’t. That doesn’t make it any easier. My dad has told me that I can’t push Brian, he has to come to it on his own, and that is so hard. I wanted to tell him that God was in that place, and maybe if he wasn’t so self absorbed in his own thoughts, he would have noticed. I just keep praying for him to open his heart, and for the Holy Spirit to fill him with such force that he knows what an awesome gift we’ve been given. I know I can only continue to pray, and I will, because I love him, and want him to be the spiritual head of our household. If anyone has any suggestions, or could just pray for Brian as well, I would greatly appreciate it.

A terrible loss…

As many of you know, I love to scrapbook, and I love Creative Memories. I sell the stuff because I love it, and I love the company. The consultants are a close knit group, and I love the support they provide. I received an email requesting prayer for an upline who lives in Florida. Her 19 year old daughter contracted bacterial meningitis at college. She was on a bus trip Thursday, and Friday in a coma. They were pumping her with antibiotics, and wanted everyone to pray. When I checked my email tonight, I learned that she had passed away. Rachel was only 19, she has two brothers, and she had a love for life and dance. The email had a few pictures, and as I read I was crying. My daughter was sitting beside me, and profoundly, said ” God has something bigger planned for her in Heaven.” We may not understand it, but Brooke is right. God called her home, to be with Him. This place is only a temporary residence, our eternal future is with God. Rachel is dancing in Heaven, and she feels no sorrow. Please pray for her family, that they will find peace and healing in this painful time, and that they will cling to God for strength. Now thank God for all He has given you, and go kiss your kids one more time tonight.

Prayer request

Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing…
Live in peace with each other. And we urge you, brothers, warn those
who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.
Pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for
you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:11, 13-14, 17-18.

I have a sister in Christ, a fellow blogger, and a friend I’ve never met or spoken to other than by means of the web. I try to keep up on her daily life by reading her blog, and sending emails. She gave me a wonderful idea a few weeks ago, and I have still not done it. I need to move it to the top of my list! Anyway, she inspires me, and she needs prayer. She is having some trouble with her feet, and I told her I would pray for healing. She is also suffering from excessive fatigue over the last couple of days. Kind of like the flu, but she doesn’t feel ill. She specifically mentioned spiritual warfare, and it struck me. I have been feeling like that as well. Not really sick, but tired and lazy. I told Niki I would pray for her, and I am calling out to all you prayer warriors out there to do so as well. So I pray for Niki, and anyone else who is suffering right now.

Dear Heavenly Father, I come to You with a heart full of thanks. You are my comforter, and my healer. You love me to the fullest, and bless me with Your favor. Thank You for loving me enough to die for me, and for always being here to listen. Lord, I lift up Niki tonight. She is in pain and weak and weary. I ask that you fill her with your Holy Spirit so that she can feel your presence and love. I pray for You to heal her from this pain, and remove it from her life. Return her to her normal, loving, nurturing self. I ask that You equip her with whatever she may need to win this spiritual warfare she is facing. We stand up and rebuke evil in Your name, and cry out to You in victory. Protect her, guide her, comfort her, and bless her. May she continue to seek You and praise You for the miracles in her life. In Jesus name. Amen

Prayer is a simple thing, yet so powerful. I am thankful that I have friends and family praying for me daily, and am glad to be able to return the gift anytime. God Bless you Niki, and anyone else who needs lifted up.



One of those…

I am having one of those days. You moms know what I mean, but I will elaborate anyway in hopes that I will feel better when I get it off my chest. OK, yesterday was the first day of school. That itself has me out of sorts. My daughter started middle school, ugh, and my oldest son third grade. They are in different schools. She has to be at school at 7:30 am, and he has to be there at 8:45 am. At 12:30 I had to take my hubby to the airport, and I will pick him up again Friday night. (He is in Texas enjoying the tropical storm.) So at 1:30 pm, I had dropped 3 of my loved ones off at different locations, and explained to my 3 year old at least 30 times why daddy would not be “right back.” I was going by the middle school, which by the way, our house is a mere 3 miles from, and on the same road, but they are widening the road and it is closed right before the school, so we have to enjoy a detour four times a day. I digress…anyway, driving by and thinking it’s almost time to pick her up. Do I really want to detour to get home for 30 minutes, and detour back? We opted to sit in the parking lot and watch the newest installment of Veggietales. The chill time was needed by both of us. My daughter had a great day in middle school, and I hope she continues to enjoy it. Third grade was “good” for Zach too. It’s funny, Brooke told me every little incident about her day, and Zach says “good” and that’s all I get. I tried asking him questions, and he was a good sport for a few of them, and then he grew tired of it. We came home, and then ran Brooke to dance, ran to McD’s for the boys, home to eat, back to dance to video tape choreography, back home, back to dance to video and pick Brooke up, back home and finally to bed. We started over again this morning, but I did have a wonderful friend take Zach to school. He had hesitations at first, but he doesn’t really like change. He informed me when I picked him up that he wanted to ride with Andrew all the time. I don’t feel like super mom, and I don’t feel the love right now!

I am such a home body, and I cherish the time that we have together with nowhere we need to go. Tonight was one of those nights. I was so excited, and ready to snuggle up with the kiddos and read, watch TV, and have fun. I’ll start with the disclaimer that those were pretty wide hopes for 3 tired kiddos. The boys had pent up energy and were wrestling around. Both ended up in tears and I was ready to pull my hair out. Brooke was whining, she wants a laptop for Christmas, but she wants it now…she doesn’t want to eat leftovers…she wants a computer for her room and she will be happy…whine..whine..whine.. The boys have one of those nerf dart guns, and Zach thought he would shoot Brooke, and she would stop annoying him. Then Matthew took the gun from Zach, and he was going to shoot her while Zach held her. Brooke pushed Zach away, he ran over to her and punched her, hard, and started to scream at her as he ran away. It was at this point, 7:45 pm, that I had reached my limit. I asked Zach to go to bed, as he had been warned already. He is immediately repentant and refuses to go upstairs until Brooke has to as well. Brooke goes, but I spend the next 45 minutes asking Zach to please stop talking and go to bed. He just wanted to talk…He was sorry..I am a dumbo…he’s gonna get Brooke, it’s all her fault.. I start taking privileges away..he tells me to shut up..this is not going well..he takes his glasses off and throws them to the floor..they are broken..my hubby calls me back and I don’t want to immediately go off on him so I ask how the meetings are going. No real answer, and I am trying not to complain that he was supposed to call me around lunch time and didn’t, when he tells me his phone is about to die. And it does…

That is the day I am having. I know some of you can relate, and I sypathize with you. I am feeling your pain right now.
I pray for all the moms out there, Lord, I just ask that you bless us with your favor, and fill us with the Holy Spirit. Forgive our sins and help us to start clean with You every day. Our mercies are new with You every morning, and I am so thankful. You give me strength when I am weak, refresh me when I am tired. Please help me to use the opportunities that You give me, so that I grow in You, and teach those around me as well. Help me to lead my children into Your light, and train them in Your ways. Thank You for the peace given to me.