I Must Be Tired

I went in to work very early this morning, but my manager let me leave early today. YAY!

I came home and was motivated to start my decluttering project and tackle the laundry room, which doubles as a storage room, and triples as an extra guest room. It's complicated. Regardless, it's a mess and I get stressed out just knowing that room is attached to the house.


So I started in on it.

After working on it for a couple of hours, moving a rocking chair and filling one entire large trash can, I took a "short" break. Thing is I just found myself awakening from a nap.

I was seated in my chair and my head was on my desk in front of this computer which was blaring music...the "motivational" kind, you know, to clean by. I normally don't do naps, but this one was not intentional!

Hmmmm...I must be tired. After the last load I'm going to bed!

How He Loves Us

I challenge you to watch this all the way to the end.

We are never the same after we encounter the love of God.

Kim Walker "How He Loves Us"

Proud Mom and Son

Katie kept her composure during the commencement ceremony until the one unexpected moment when the principal of JCS asked the three young men who have committed to the armed services stand.

Justin is in the Navy now and when he and the other two young servicemen in his graduating class stood, they received a standing ovation from all those in attendance at the ceremony. The place roared with applause and it was a very moving tribute to these young men who will soon be trained to serve our country. It was really a neat experience that had Katie swelling with pride, and deservedly so.

I had to pass the box of Puffs to her because it was then that she lost it.

Congratulations Justin and thank you for commiting to protect our country. We are all so proud of you!

To see more pictures of some of the day's events, click HERE.

Congratulations Justin!

We are sooooooooo proud of you Justin!

Congratulations!

To see more pictures of some of the days events click HERE.

Prayer - An Offensive Weapon

I worked on preparing a lesson one night. A few years ago each member of our SaLT group was assigned to do a lesson one of the parts of the Armor of God. I said "I want an offensive weapon!" (they asked, "why, because you are offensive?" LOL) and I asked to do a lesson on prayer. I found some interesting stuff about prayer and also went back to some old studies I have done to gather my info. I wanted to show prayer as a weapon in spiritual warfare and also the power that is in prayer. I don't want to mess around with little handguns...I want to show the big weapons! I want to reveal the atomic bomb of prayer!

After demonstrating how prayer is an effective weapon, I wanted to look at the best example of a prayer, Jesus Christ.

I decided to look at the ways and whens of Jesus' prayers and the results of those prayers. This is a summary of what I learned.

Refueling and Gaining Strength: Jesus often retreated to the mountain side or the garden to pray alone after teaching and healing. He did this to "refuel" and to learn God's Will for his next move. (Mark 1: 5, Luke 5:15)

Avoiding Temptation: Jesus taught about prayer (obviously) and made sure it was understood that prayer was the way to avoid temptation. (Matthew 26:41, Luke 22:40)

Decision Making: In Luke 6:12 after praying Jesus came down from the mountain and chose His disciples. That was a pretty important step in his ministry! They would be the ones to carry on His teaching.

Opening Connections: In Luke 9:28 after praying he was transfigured before the disciples there with him. His face glowed and clothes became bright. That's a pretty powerful prayer and open connection to the Father!

Opening Heaven: In Luke 3:21 we learn of Jesus' baptism and when Jesus prayed, "the heaven's opened" and the dove descended to Him. What I find interesting as well is that in Acts 7:54 Stephen prayed as he was about to be stoned to death. When Stephen prayed he saw the "heavens open". Eventually his spirit went to be with the Lord.

Prayer causes the heavens to open!

Heaven opened to allow the Spirit to descend on me when I prayed to receive Christ. At my death, the heavens will again open to receive the Spirit back. cool.

If prayer opens the heavens, OPENS THE HEAVENS, why don't we pray more often? Prayer is very powerful! Heaven opening is a direct connection to God, the Creator of heaven and earth...HE OPENS HIMSELF UP WHEN WE PRAY TO HIM! That is pretty awesome! Prayer moves mountains, opens the heavens...THAT IS MORE POWERFUL THAN AN ATOMIC BOMB AND IT IS AVAILABLE TO ALL CHRISTIANS, who are called to pray, and PRAY EMPOWERING PRAYERS!

PRAY PRAY PRAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Reposted from 5/13/03

Questioning Forgiveness

What does God require of us to be forgiven?

Do we really need to repent?

Are we forgiven even before we sin? or after we sin?

Is forgiveness different for those who are not children of God? Are there those that God does not forgive?

I get stuck on these questions a lot. I wonder about forgiveness and the difference or similarities of "giving it to God".

If a person wrongs you and then comes to you to ask forgiveness, without a doubt you are commanded to forgive.

If a person wrongs you and never asks forgiveness and continues to wrong you, what is the point in forgiveness? Some say "forgiveness isn't for the offender in that case, it's for you, your peace of mind." But then I ask, if forgiveness is for the one who was offended, why would God ever forgive? Does God need to forgive for His peace of mind?

Are we really required to forgive those who wrong us, who never ever repent, and then continually wrong us? Or, are we asked to give that person/situation over to God. Let God deal with that person and remove ourselves from harms way?

Is forgiveness a "two-way" deal? Can there be true forgiveness if one party doesn't want it? Would God forgive me if I didn't ask?

I do wonder sometimes if we require more of ourselves than God himself requires when if comes to forgiveness. If God forgives when we repent, shouldn't we require the same?

Maybe forgiveness is the actual act of handing over an unrepentant offender to the Lord. If we can do this, we are acting biblically. We are maintaining our relationship with the Father and not allowing unforgiviness to become a sin "of the mind" that would hinder our relationship with God.

This is one of those things that keeps me up at night...pondering.

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15)

At first glance it seems that verse is teaching that God only forgives us when and if we forgive others who may have wronged us. As I examine this closer I see that it is possibly teaching that not forgiving = sin, and that sin of unforgiveness is what is separating us from God's forgiveness.

God's forgiveness: It bloggles the mind!

Repost from 2/17/04

For Tradition's Sake!

Growing up I have been exposed to many traditions. Some are family traditions while others are cultural and/or religious. Recently I have found myself on a quest for truth regarding Christmas and Easter. Now, I'm not going into all the details of the discoveries I have made regarding pagan practices vs. God glorifying practices, but I do have a problem with the fact that Christians who know the Truth continue to celebrate traditions filled with flaws.

For instance, how many kings were present at the stable when Jesus was a "babe in a manger"?

Answer: None!

There were no kings and no wisemen present when Jesus was born. Wisemen came to see King Jesus when he was a toddler and he wasn't in a manger! There is only one King who really stands out to me and he didn't come to present Jesus with gifts!

This is just one simple example of many many stories that have been passed down through the ages amongst Christians...folklore presented as truth for the sake of tradition. For years...even now, I find myself guilty of falling into patterns of living for tradition's sake. Where does that leave God?

I have to question....

Is it harmless? What if Jesus came to visit a local church at Christmas time to see the portrayal of His birth? Would he sit silently or would he correct our misinterpretations?

Where does this leave me? What will I do differently?

I don't have an answer at this time. I only know that I will continue on my quest...while searching my heart and seeking God for answers.

When asking religious leaders why Christians continue to practice things that are not true and teach them as if they are, they don't seem to think there is anything wrong with it. They think it's okay as long as the point is made.

Is it okay to create confusion for a new believer right from the start?

Lies, lies and more lies:

A friend made an excellent point. He said that we indirectly teach our children to worship Santa, the Easter Bunny, even the Tooth Fairy...eventually they learn that it's all a lie. Then we tell them about Jesus and expect them to believe?

My words are not written in judgement or accusation. Perhaps they are written from personal conviciton. Or perhaps they are simply the ponderings of my heart as I hunger for Truth.

Today's Flavor Shot:

Deuteronomy 13: 29-32
Don't worship the Lord your God the way pagan nations worship their Gods.