I just want to share the wonderful moments I just shared with my youngest son. He is about to turn 10, and hasn't yet committed his life to Jesus... although I know he wants to! Anyway, he was just getting out of the shower, and I was RE-watching an amazing sermon from last night in Maryville, TN called the focus factor (I highly recommend it... click here and go to archives... Sun. evening service 3-29-09). Anyway, the message caught his attention and he sat down beside me. Mind you, it's after bedtime.... but he said, No mommy, I want to hear it, I'm interested in what he's saying. So, we watched. He was CLEARLY being dealt with in his spirit, and processing this message. I had to push pause a few times as he asked questions and posed "what if" scenarios... too bad there is not a PAUSE function during live preaching so you can process what was just said!! Anyway, he was so open and sensitive to the Spirit... I am excited to see God at work in our youngest son's heart!! Maybe soon he'll be able to call himself my "rapture buddy" as the preacher mentions in the message! Praise God!!!!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Infuriating!!
To my Vermont readers...
PLEASE watch this video!!! And then call our VT legislators and tell them to vote NO on the same sex marriage bill.
If this bill becomes law, it will mandate that schools teach children that the union of two men, or two women is completely equal to the marriage of a man and a woman, that there is no difference between these three distinct family types, and that dissent is bigotry. This has already occurred in Massachusetts, where a father of a five year old kindergartner was jailed for objecting to blatant indoctrination of his child, incurring $200,000 in legal costs to defend himself and his family. I personally don't want to have to go through all this, just because the special interest folks are pushing this bill through at lightning speed to avoid a referendum, which would clearly reveal that the majority of Vermonters do NOT support this bill.
PLEASE watch this video!!! And then call our VT legislators and tell them to vote NO on the same sex marriage bill.
If this bill becomes law, it will mandate that schools teach children that the union of two men, or two women is completely equal to the marriage of a man and a woman, that there is no difference between these three distinct family types, and that dissent is bigotry. This has already occurred in Massachusetts, where a father of a five year old kindergartner was jailed for objecting to blatant indoctrination of his child, incurring $200,000 in legal costs to defend himself and his family. I personally don't want to have to go through all this, just because the special interest folks are pushing this bill through at lightning speed to avoid a referendum, which would clearly reveal that the majority of Vermonters do NOT support this bill.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Sincerely....
Okay... tonight was mid-week Bible study. I cannot go to bed without blogging about part of tonight's lesson. We are doing a series on the Tabernacle, and it is really good (the Tabernacle is one of my FAVORITE Old Testament topics of study). However, in the middle of his lesson, Pastor made a very powerful statement that I just have to share before going to bed... because I know I won't sleep tonight if I don't "get it out there". He was talking about the brazen altar and made reference to altars that were not built according to the way the Lord wanted the altars built. And then he made an incredible statement....
It doesn't matter how sincere a person is about serving God. If they are doing it the wrong way, then they are SINCERELY WRONG. They may be the nicest person in the world, the most spiritual person in the world, etc. But if they are not doing it (serving God) according to the Book (the Bible), then they are wrong.
Wow... that was serious meat to chew on... but then he went on!! He said,
This whole concept that we can be approved by God because of our sincerity is a relatively new notion. These days, it doesn't matter if you get the right answer, as long as you feel good about it and you tried your best. That doesn't fly with my stats professor! I can "feel good" about my answer, and sincerely believe I got it right, but if it's not right, he marks it off 5 1/2 points!
Anytime we begin to judge what is true by how we feel about it, we are setting ourselves up for the distinct possibility of being deceived. Deception is one of the major spirits in this end time age.... and NO ONE IS IMMUNE! If you think it could never happen to you, then you are in dangerous territory! It is a very dangerous place to be when your feelings become the barometer of what IS truth and what IS NOT truth. I hope you don't always feel good about the truth! I hope it cuts a little, I hope it stings a little, it's supposed to !! The lies and deceit will BIND you, but the truth will SET YOU FREE!!!
There. It's out. I want you to think about this! The Bible says that those who are deceived DO NOT KNOW they are deceived. How scary is that? We need to be praying, "Lord, please do not let me be deceived!" I love the Lord, and I love His truth. Lord, keep me in the light. Amen.
It doesn't matter how sincere a person is about serving God. If they are doing it the wrong way, then they are SINCERELY WRONG. They may be the nicest person in the world, the most spiritual person in the world, etc. But if they are not doing it (serving God) according to the Book (the Bible), then they are wrong.
Wow... that was serious meat to chew on... but then he went on!! He said,
This whole concept that we can be approved by God because of our sincerity is a relatively new notion. These days, it doesn't matter if you get the right answer, as long as you feel good about it and you tried your best. That doesn't fly with my stats professor! I can "feel good" about my answer, and sincerely believe I got it right, but if it's not right, he marks it off 5 1/2 points!
Anytime we begin to judge what is true by how we feel about it, we are setting ourselves up for the distinct possibility of being deceived. Deception is one of the major spirits in this end time age.... and NO ONE IS IMMUNE! If you think it could never happen to you, then you are in dangerous territory! It is a very dangerous place to be when your feelings become the barometer of what IS truth and what IS NOT truth. I hope you don't always feel good about the truth! I hope it cuts a little, I hope it stings a little, it's supposed to !! The lies and deceit will BIND you, but the truth will SET YOU FREE!!!
There. It's out. I want you to think about this! The Bible says that those who are deceived DO NOT KNOW they are deceived. How scary is that? We need to be praying, "Lord, please do not let me be deceived!" I love the Lord, and I love His truth. Lord, keep me in the light. Amen.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
A cool little moment!
Our family has been having some fun this past week, going outside in the evening to watch the visible passes of the Internation Space Station over our house. It is amazing to think that this bright "dot" that looks like a star is carrying human beings at speeds of 17,000 mph around our globe. And to add to the excitement, the space shuttle was docked there, bringing the total number of people aboard to ten. Anyway... last night, we went out to view it one last time. We spotted it, and then Nick said, "Hey, there's another satellite traveling right in front of it." I said, "Quick, go ask dad to look on the NASA website and see if the space shuttle is detached from the space station yet. " Sure enough, it had detached just 4 hours earlier. We could clearly see BOTH the shuttle and the ISS, travelling separately in orbit. It was just a neat thing for us. The little things you aren't expecting keep life fun and interesting.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Thank you Lord!
Despite my emotional upheaval of a week, God is still awesome, and tonight at the end of our church service, God filled James (a young man at our church) with the Holy Ghost, speaking in tongues and overflowing with joy! It was the coolest thing, because in my rejoicing with James, the burden of my week was lifted from me, and I just feel so refreshed! I love living for God... in the tough times as well as the good times. There's no better way to live. :) Thank you Jesus for the newest member of the body of Christ! You are awesome!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
abundant life revisited
Well, back in October of 2008, I created a post entitled "abundant life". You should click here to review the little diagrams I created so you will understand what I am about to type. Click on the "abundant life" link below:
Abundant life
So.... this week has been a week of incredibly abundant life, so much so that I have wondered how I would survive the mental stress of the week. My husband was in a car crash that totalled his vehicle and sent the lady he hit into the hospital. We had negative equity in the truck, and after all our VERY HARD WORK over the last year and a half to pay off over $10,000 in debt so we could go for a mortgage, in one moment of time, we found ourselves back in debt $7,000 the DAY BEFORE our meeting with the mortgage officer at the bank. I cannot tell you the weight of discouragement that overcame us that day. We have been reeling for the past few days, coping with the consequences of this accident, and wondering where we go next. Therefore........ I cannot tell you how much I have LOVED this day!! It started with humble service to my fellow man...serving at the local community food shelf that my husband and I are involved with. I talked with people there who had situations that were far worse than mine, and I was able to encourage them and lift their spirits, if only a little. Then, I gathered up my son and his friends (churched and unchurched) and we headed up to our church for youth fun day. We played board games, ate pizza and m&ms (oh my word!!!), jammed on the keyboard and drums, and THEN....... we sat down and watched Louie Giglio on the BIG projector screen give his message about the enormity of God and his intense love and care for us.... and it ministered to me so much! I have it posted on my blog, and to watch it you can click the LAMININ link below... you REALLY SHOULD watch it... even if you've already watched it! It blessed me so much.
Laminin
And the cool thing? Adam's best friend from school was describing it to his mom when I dropped him off, and he was pointing to his heart and saying, "Yeah, it does something to you deep down inside when you listen to him." PRAISE GOD! He was feeling the tug of God on his heart, and that is exciting!
So...... I have a big God who loves me and knows my needs. He knows my heart, and will give me the strength to face this new uphill battle. None of this takes God by surprise, and He has a plan that will put us right where He wants us to be. Thank you Father for your incomprehensible, mind-blowingly intense love for me! I love you more than words can say!!!
Abundant life
So.... this week has been a week of incredibly abundant life, so much so that I have wondered how I would survive the mental stress of the week. My husband was in a car crash that totalled his vehicle and sent the lady he hit into the hospital. We had negative equity in the truck, and after all our VERY HARD WORK over the last year and a half to pay off over $10,000 in debt so we could go for a mortgage, in one moment of time, we found ourselves back in debt $7,000 the DAY BEFORE our meeting with the mortgage officer at the bank. I cannot tell you the weight of discouragement that overcame us that day. We have been reeling for the past few days, coping with the consequences of this accident, and wondering where we go next. Therefore........ I cannot tell you how much I have LOVED this day!! It started with humble service to my fellow man...serving at the local community food shelf that my husband and I are involved with. I talked with people there who had situations that were far worse than mine, and I was able to encourage them and lift their spirits, if only a little. Then, I gathered up my son and his friends (churched and unchurched) and we headed up to our church for youth fun day. We played board games, ate pizza and m&ms (oh my word!!!), jammed on the keyboard and drums, and THEN....... we sat down and watched Louie Giglio on the BIG projector screen give his message about the enormity of God and his intense love and care for us.... and it ministered to me so much! I have it posted on my blog, and to watch it you can click the LAMININ link below... you REALLY SHOULD watch it... even if you've already watched it! It blessed me so much.
Laminin
And the cool thing? Adam's best friend from school was describing it to his mom when I dropped him off, and he was pointing to his heart and saying, "Yeah, it does something to you deep down inside when you listen to him." PRAISE GOD! He was feeling the tug of God on his heart, and that is exciting!
So...... I have a big God who loves me and knows my needs. He knows my heart, and will give me the strength to face this new uphill battle. None of this takes God by surprise, and He has a plan that will put us right where He wants us to be. Thank you Father for your incomprehensible, mind-blowingly intense love for me! I love you more than words can say!!!
Monday, March 09, 2009
This is great!
Ok, I just had to share these with you! This is my brother... his department purposely burned a barn down, and there were many photos taken. But the next one is my favorite....
This is my brother in a recliner, watching the remainder of the barn smolder. HA HA HA! Tax dollars at work! Just kidding, he's doing exactly what he's supposed to be doing! Just thought it was funny, and wanted to share. I am VERY proud of my brother! He's an excellent firefighter. GO TIM!
This is my brother in a recliner, watching the remainder of the barn smolder. HA HA HA! Tax dollars at work! Just kidding, he's doing exactly what he's supposed to be doing! Just thought it was funny, and wanted to share. I am VERY proud of my brother! He's an excellent firefighter. GO TIM!
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