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The nation’s thrill; a mother’s terror #PrayforBoston

April 20, 2013 By

pray hard 300x225 The nations thrill; a mothers terror #PrayforBoston

When news came of the Boston Marathon bomber suspect finally being apprehended last night, there was a thrill that came over the nation. I can only imagine that Bostonians in particular experienced a sense of relief that this terrorist had been caught and a sense of peace in knowing the lockdown has finally ended.

But for one mother, her terror is just beginning.

This terrorist is only 19 years old. Not only is he barely an adult himself, he is someone’s child.

He is a brother, a nephew, a friend.

And the reports from those who knew him all echo the same sentiment:
“We would never have imagined he could do such a thing.”

He was described as “funny”, “nice”, & “a good athlete”…not “isolated”, “withdrawn” or “brooding”.

So what now for this family who has to face their own terror that is just beginning? Their world has been equally turned upside down by their sons’ (alleged) actions, yet I can guarantee they will not have the privilege of fighting this battle in private.

When I first learned how young the suspects were and that they were brothers, I posted this update to my Facebook wall:

In shock over the new developments in Boston. Brokenhearted to hear the new ‘WANTED’ suspect is only 19 years old. Imagine what could have happened if someone had poured peace and grace into his life instead of anger and hatred… 

I have no answers to you in writing this (not that any of us do), but I have a prayer I’d like you to join with me in praying. As you pray for the families in Boston today and everyone around the country who’s been affected by this horrific act, please consider praying for the suspects’ family as well. Pray for justice to be served, but for a path of peace to be laid as a result.

God bless America.

 

Image sourced from Google Images/RunEatRepeat.com
Filed Under: Articles, Faith, Forgiveness, My Story, Parenting, Peace, Prayer Tagged With: , , , , ,

Access

April 9, 2013 By

Have you ever seen a picture of random celebrities together and thought, “They have no business knowing each other except that their both famous!”

I have.

And then the next natural question becomes, “How did they even happen to get to meet each other?”

There is a very simple answer: Access

A singer likes a certain TV show, so his people call their people and boom, he gets to meet the stars. Perhaps they’re both presenting at an awards show together. Or maybe they’re both hanging out in the same VIP lounge at Target (surely Target has a VIP lounge the rest of us normal folk don’t get to see, right???).

(From Dierks Bentley on WhoSay…P.S. If you can name all the people in this picture, I’m impressed – I couldn’t!- though Dierks, if you’re reading this, you are the ONE country singer I’d like to meet…but I digress)

So I may have a skewed view of celebrity and fame, but the answer stays the same: Access.

I remember a time years ago when I was absolutely convinced that Rachael Ray and I would be best friends…if only we could meet! This wasn’t when everyone knew her name and loved her, it was just me….well, just me and my then toddler. I remember feeding a newborn baby in my arms and having my 19 month old jump up and down at the TV screen saying “Wachael Way! Wachael Way!” As someone who didn’t consider themselves a pro in the kitchen (and still doesn’t!), I resonated with her humility and quirkiness.

I had a dream that we happened to be getting our hair done next to each other and my hairdresser said to her hair dresser that she thought we should be friends and POOF! That was all it took…but the dream never became reality. In fact, as is typical of my life, once everyone else starts liking something, I usually back away from it. So, alas, the world will never know the powerhouse duo that Rachael and I could have become.

But do you know who we do have full, unlimited access to? God
“For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household” ~ Ephesians 2:18-19

When I worked at the Olympics in Atlanta back in 1996, I had an infinity level pass. That meant that even when I wasn’t working an event, I could pretty much get in wherever I wanted: the floor level of the gold medal women’s gymnastics event, the back halls of the tennis venue, even next to the Vice-President of the United States during the closing ceremonies (well, I think that one was a fluke, but once I was past the metal detector, I was in!).

I think that gig had something to do with the fact that I was young, diligent and spoke French (or just a brilliant stroke of good luck for me and my friends who also got the gig). Do you know what it takes to get an infinity level pass to God? Faith.

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we[b] boast in the hope of the glory of God.” ~ Romans 5:1-2

It’s that simple. When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, you gain an infinity level pass to His kingdom for eternity! How cool is that?

There’s not test. You don’t have to be famous. And God knows you don’t have to be perfect!

That’s the beauty of it. With faith comes access to God’s grace, mercy and unconditional love.

So the next time you feel like you’re being left out of the coolest VIP lounge (hint, hint Target…), just remember, we all have the potential for infinity level access to the ultimate heavenly lounge.

All you have to do is ask…

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. ~ Hebrews 4:15-16

Filed Under: Devotions, Faith, Faith in Action Tagged With: , , ,

Almighty Ruler

April 2, 2013 By

measure expectations get disappointed Almighty Ruler
“If they only knew…”
“You can’t possibly understand…”
“No-one feels my pain…”
Have these words ever permeated your thoughts after speaking to someone? Do you know who could ever truly understand your unique position and circumstance?

Only Jesus can.

Now that I have children, I have an additional repertory of experiences that I could never have appreciated before being a mom. Looking back, I specifically remember several situations where I demonstrated insensitivity to those with children simply because I had never walked a day in their shoes.

By no means was I trying to be malicious, I just honestly had no clue about everything that needed to be considered in those circumstances.

When we measure our expectations against others, we ultimately get disappointed.

Likewise, we may assume that someone is being selfish when, in reality, we are the ones who are self-centered. God is truly our only measure. He is the Almighty Ruler over our lives, both in terms of who we answer to and in terms of the standard we measure our lives against.

While this may seem like an impossible standard to live up to, it’s actually quite freeing to know that there is a consistency in Christ that no single human being can ever provide. Once we cease expecting people to fill the role only God can, relationships can finally begin falling into their proper place.

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Filed Under: Christian Living, Devotions, Faith

I Give Up Lord

April 1, 2013 By

780737 born to pray I Give Up Lord
The other day, I was praying and confessing to God and said, “Lord, I want you to remove ____ from my life”…to which He quickly replied, “I want YOU to GIVE IT UP!”

Our God is not intrusive.

He is a gentleman. He is not invasive, yet meets us where we are. He calls us not to be passive Christians, but active in our faith.

Just as when we first come to Christ, we cannot ask Jesus to come into our hearts until we first confess our sins and iniquities. God is present and might to save, but He needs believers that are strong enough to admit their need, while weak enough to know we cannot do anything without Him!

The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. ~ Zephaniah 3:17

Looking to go deeper? Why not watch church online right now? I have several options for you…

468x60 easter I Give Up Lord I Give Up Lord

Filed Under: Devotions, Faith, Faith in Action, Prayer Tagged With: , ,

God Ate My To-Do List (Living Beyond Yourself Week 2)

March 11, 2013 By

God Ate My To Do List (Living Beyond Yourself Week 2)

God ate my to-do list today.

This morning as I sat down to listen to Beth Moore teach session 2 of our “Living Beyond Yourself” study following our week titled “To Live By the Spirit”, I had a heavy heart. A big change is taking place in our lives today, that although I feel very strongly about (in a good way) and helped make it happen, it does not negate the fact that it’s scary.

So I thought it ever-important to really start today right. Not in a ‘turn over a new leaf’ kind of way, but more of a ‘do what you’ve always known what you’re supposed to do’ kind of way.

You know what I mean, right?

When you go through your day, don’t you get those nudges of what you feel like you should do, but you don’t do them for whatever reason (too tired, too busy, not convenient, etc). Or better yet, you sit in your bed on a Sunday night pledging to God, “This week will be different.” You say you’ll get up early, read your Bible every day, make time for your kids when they come home from school, start a regular cleaning schedule, stop watching “Real Housewives of …”, clean out the fridge of crap & start juicing, pull out the P-90X DVD that’s been sitting in its case since Christmas…

Should I continue? (Just PLEASE tell me I’m not the only one who does this!)

Anywhoooo…

So this morning I finally did what I knew I needed to do. Well, I didn’t get up as early as I’d hoped. But I did work my way through my essential morning routine and then sat down to listen to Beth teach me before starting my work day.

I’ve also learned, as someone who has a brain that never stops, that I need to keep a piece of paper or a notebook nearby whenever doing something like this to jot down the random thoughts that inevitably pop in my brain.

I had been keeping said piece of paper in my Bible, but if you’ve ever done a Beth Moore study before, you know she makes you flip back & forth finding verses in that Bible like you’re fanning yourself in a Mississippi church that doesn’t have A/C in July!

God Ate My To Do List (Living Beyond Yourself Week 2)

At some point during the hour-long lesson, I misplaced that square piece of paper keeping track of what I needed to do once this was over.

I flipped through all the pages and even held my Bible open upside down. Nothing.

I thought to myself, “Well, maybe God ate it! I guess that wasn’t supposed to be what I focused on today.”

Yet all through her teaching, I felt a nudge.

Now would be a good time for me to confess that I’m a bit of a TV addict. Not a sit down and become a zombie in front of the screen kind of way, but a “I have to have constant noise running in the background of my life” kind of way. I rarely do ANYTHING at home without the TV on and if I do, it’s the result of a very conscious choice and a strong effort of my will.

So that nudge was telling me to forsake my end-of-the-night programming that ‘helps me fall asleep’ and instead replace it by ending my evening doing my Bible study homework. Not exactly what I wanted to hear, but do-able. After all, I can sacrifice half an hour for God, right?

But then the nudge got stronger: I felt like while someone else was making a sacrifice in our family this week, I should match it by fasting TV all week.

WHOAAAAA – hold on there God…doesn’t that seem a bit extreme?

I mean, come on – I’m just trying to support what you’re doing in this person’s life, but you don’t have to punish me too!

But then it hit me: what could he accomplish in me if the noise of the TV was turned off and I was more in tune with His Holy Spirit. What could I hear? How much more productive could I be? What would I learn?

My initial freak-out turned into a peace that washed over me, quelling the PANIC I’ve been allowing to creep into my life.

In that instant, I got up, walked over to the armoire where our TV is housed in our bedroom and shut the doors on it. A literal and symbolic step saying that not only am I not going to allow you to dictate my time and my thoughts, but even more so a step of obedience to God saying that I choose you to fill me over the garbage that my enter my life through this screen.

As soon as I walked back to where I had been sitting and listening to Beth, I found it.

My to-do list was literally at my feet.

I don’t have many of these moments in my life, but it was almost as if I heard God audibly speak to me. Once I was obedient, He allowed me to move on with my day. But sometimes we are so stubborn in what we think is right and ought to happen, that we allow no room for Him to come in and impact our lives, much less our to-do lists!

Now that I’ve found it, I’m not sure it is in fact what I need to spend my time doing today. But regardless of whether or not I accomplish the things on that post-it note or not, I do know what I need to spend more of my time doing:
Inserting quiet time into my life that will not only allow the Holy Spirit of God to speak into my life and my decisions, but that will permit me to be still enough to hear Him when He does!

So I have two questions for you today:
1. What are you doing in your life that me be keeping you from what the Holy Spirit truly has for you?
2. Will you pray that I make it through this week without my TV crutch? I’d be ever so grateful…

Filed Under: Bible Study, Busyness, Faith, God's Will, My Story Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Teaching Kids Psalm 23 – Scripture Memorization

March 5, 2013 By

teaching kids memorize psalm 23 Teaching Kids Psalm 23 Scripture Memorization

In the scripture memorization videos below, I’m teaching my kids Psalm 23.

Psalm 23. It’s six verses and typically I recommend teaching your kids one verse a week, but you can teach this to your kids in a month if you work on it at different times throughout your day. There is no tune to this, and feel free to make it your own as you see fit. Be sure to explain to younger children what the words mean that they may not understand so they can begin to form their own word pictures in their heads.

(Forgive my appearance in this week’s video, I just got over having pink-eye last week, so no makeup for me!)

Here are my kids reciting Psalm 23. First Kariss (age 4):

and Britton (age 3) in a slightly more humorous version:

Filed Under: Devotions, Faith, Kid Tip, Kids, My Story, Parenting, Scripture Memorization Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Why are men expected to make more sacrifices than women?

February 6, 2013 By

boho rick sami cone 300x199 Why are men expected to make more sacrifices than women?
Why are men expected to make more sacrifices than women?

Now ladies, hear me out.

I’m not saying that men do all the work and we are worthless. After all I am a woman; I know everything that we do. But I do think sometimes we set the bar a little too high for our guys without having equal accountability for ourselves.

Case in point:
We lent friends our car the other day after their car was in a wreck. The wife drove off in their good car and the husband ended up in our old car, which got me thinking, “Why are men always expected to be the ones making the sacrifices?”

It was just assumed that the wife would get ‘the better end of the stick’, shall we say, just like we expect our guys to watch what we want to watch, eat what we want to eat and go where we like to go.

Some may call it chivalry, but if the sacrifice is always only one-sided, problems are sure to arise.

I believe a lot of relationships suffer because ultimately, we as women, and especially wives, always expect our men to “take one for the team”.

Think about it. We want our cake and we want to eat it too.

When I put it down on paper like this (or computer screen in its current version), it’s no wonder we can often be hard to figure out!

From the beginning of time, men have literally been cursed to work the land as a result of Adam’s sin. I’m not saying Eve left us ladies in any better of a situation with labor pains, but it shouldn’t diminish the role our men serve in this world.

Don’t get me wrong, I want my man to keep treating me like a princess, but I’d be a fool to think that he would wait on me hand and foot for the rest of my life without receiving any love and respect from me.

So this Valentine’s Day ladies, don’t put all the responsibility on your guy. If your relationship is 50/50, then you should be willing to put yourself out there and WOW him too!

(And don’t even get me started on celebrating valentine’s Day on days OTHER than Valentine’s Day, but I digress…)

Filed Under: Love, Marriage, My Story Tagged With: , , , ,

Hurting during the Holidays (aka Crying at Christmas)

December 24, 2012 By

172649 crying angel Hurting during the Holidays (aka Crying at Christmas)

Photo Courtesy of Oziris


While most of us know Christmas as the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year”, I would venture to guess there is a much larger population than we think who are hurting during the holidays.

I recently heard Mandisa’s new song, “Christmas Makes Me Cry” and it made me realize just how difficult of a season this can be, even for those of us who celebrate the joy of Jesus’ birth.

For one reason, I’d say it’s simply because we stress ourselves out.

So many of us look forward to Christmas for so long that once it’s here, we put unrealistic expectations on ourselves to create the ‘perfect’ month for everyone.

Secondly, and a close follow up to reason #1, no-one is perfect. So to think we can create the perfect anything is absurd. Even when nothing else is going wrong around you, people are still people, and face it: we disappoint each other.

Thirdly, most of us do have broken relationships in our lives, whether through death, separation or even just family fall-outs. Regardless of where you stand in this spectrum, this season that centers around family will make those relationships ever-more present in your mind and can make your celebrations slightly bittersweet.

I for one spent most of our Christmas Eve service crying my eyes out. I grieved over most of the reasons I just listed…and then was mad at myself that I couldn’t ‘move on’ and stay focused on the reason I was sitting in church in the first place.

I’m especially thankful to my friend Trish (who, with her husband, wrote an amazing book on relationships that JUST came out, “Beyond Ordinary“…everyone needs to pick this one up!) who let me cry on her shoulder and reminded me that not only is it impossible for me to control anyone else’s behavior, it’s OK for me not to have all of my own pieces perfectly put together all the time either.

Of course, there are the plethora of other valid reasons why crying at Christmas is more prevalent than we might think:
*Families separated because they are separated by members serving in the military
*Family members in the hospital or assisted-living centers who can’t be at home
*Families torn apart due to a recent tragedy, whether it’s a car accident, an affair or anything in between
*Foster children who have been bounced from home to home and find themselves, once again, without someone to love them
*Family members who desperately want to get home to each other, but can’t afford to travel
*Children with parents in prison
*The homeless who don’t know where to go to get a hot meal on Christmas

I could go on and on, and still may not even have touched on what you’re experiencing this Christmas.

I bring this up not to depress you, but rather to say you’re not alone. And as much as I love this time of year, I think I may have been living in a bit of ignorance to think that just because the calendar says it’s Christmas, everyone should therefore be happy.

But I’m reminded of song lyrics that say, “Though the sorrow may last for the night, His joy comes in the morning” and God’s promise from James 1:2-3 that tells us:
“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.”

My tear-fest yesterday reminded me of what my Christian walk is all about: I’m not promised happiness on a day-to-day basis, but I can Choose Joy. In Kay Warren’s book with the same title, I learned that “Joy is deeper than happiness, lasts longer than excitement, and is more satisfying than pleasure and thrills”.

So if you’re hurting this holiday or crying this Christmas, just remember, we worship a Savior who Himself experienced the ultimate pain and humiliation: a criminal’s death on a cross. Reach out to Him with your troubles while also reaching out to those around you. Chances are if you’re harboring hurt, they just may be too, and you can comfort each other while challenging each other to choose joy this Christmas.

Wherever you are and whatever you may be going through, I pray the peace of Christ Jesus falls on you and your family. Merry Christmas!

Filed Under: Faith, Joy, My Story, Sorrow Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Radiant Glory

October 24, 2012 By

IMG 6471 225x300 Radiant Glory

So often we brush right past people that God put in our way for a reason. If God created everything, and everything He created reflects His glory in some way, then we should be able to find that radiance in every person we encounter!

This is one of the most difficult concepts for me personally as I truly struggle with understanding how to be genuine with people I don’t get along with. (Can I get an Amen?)

However, I once approached our pastor’s wife at our former church with this quandary, since she seemed to get along with everyone.

She confessed that her spirit was not always that way, but that her husband (our pastor) taught her that there is always something positive you can find in everyone and to simply focus on that until you can develop a relationship that leads you to uncover something else.

“For I was hungry and you fave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. ‘The King will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’”
~ Matthew 25:35-36, 40

God commands us to love one another as He has loved us (John 13:34). Therefore, by loving our fellow man and looking beyond the external, we are loving God and giving Him glory!

We need not be quick to judge based on external appearances. Instead, we ought to learn to recognize the radiant glory of God and look for it in everyone we meet.

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. ~ 1 John 4:11-12

Filed Under: Devotions, Faith, Faith in Action Tagged With: , , , ,

The difference a day makes

September 8, 2012 By

20120908 070047 The difference a day makes

“God never tells us to do anything without giving us the ability to do it.” Joyce Meyer

Yesterday I took a walk.

It was the first walk I had taken a long time.

I’m not saying a walk on the treadmill or just walking to and from the mailbox. I mean a walk around the neighborhood for the sole purpose as getting a little fresh air & some exercise.

You see, since we’ve come home from Florida, I’ve felt paralyzed. We haven’t even unpacked yet, and to be honest, I don’t know where to start.

I feel like we didn’t get to spend a lot of time with the kids over the past two weeks, so I’ve tried to be there for them more both at home and at school these past few days, but that also means that our house is a small disaster and my work is falling behind too.

When I went outside for my walk yesterday, I realized it wasn’t only the inside of my house that needed help, but also the outside. As I walked the neighborhood, I saw that our lawn had become so over grown, it was obvious it hadn’t been tended for awhile.

Well I coveted some of our neighbor’s lawns, it also made me realize that just because something is beautiful on the outside, doesn’t mean there aren’t issues on the inside.

Because we are new homeowners, we don’t yet have a lawnmower, so I called my friends at Time Dog and they were able to screen a number of lawn care professionals for me. I’m glad they were the ones doing it, because as it turns out, there were many wrong phone numbers, no answers, straight to voicemail, and people that were not the nicest to deal with. Yet another reminder that just because you ask for help doesn’t mean it’s always that easy!

Finally, at 3:30 yesterday, a kind man and his wife rode in on their trailer to take care of our lawn. I wish I had a before picture, but here is the after picture.

20120908 065654 The difference a day makes

Sure, the shrubs still need some tending, and there are some brown spots from where the grass got scorched from the sun, but as I walk through the neighborhood this morning, it reminded me that we are all given a chance to start anew every day.

Just because something seems overgrown and insurmountable in your life doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. I went to bed early last night because I wasn’t feeling well and when I woke up early this morning, I felt inspired to get back on my routine and start tackling things one at a time.

As I listened to Joyce Meyer on my walk, I was reminded that what God calls us to he will equip us for.

I would offer you this simple encouragement today: don’t give up! I know this life is not easy, but I also know that we are not guaranteed anything past today. So the best we can all do is to get out there and give it our all.

Go ahead, see what a difference a day can make.

His mercies are new every morning.Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ~ Lamentations 3:22-23

Where in your life can you make a difference today?

Filed Under: Christian Living, Devotions, Faith Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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