Standing Still

Still need works...but are we not all a work in progress

Over the last few days I have stood and I have waited...In the Heat with sweat pouring off of me. I was waiting for an opportunity to present its self..... but after standing and waiting for hours,days....and hundreds of shots later I learned I  had done everything wrong....This happened over and over and over.  Each time I had to wait a little longer, be still a little longer and watch even longer.  I really thought I had everything just right only to realize I had to go back to the drawing board and start all over again.  In my waiting I started to get distracted...and....I miss the opportunity that was presented to me.  So many times in life this happens....we seek God for a specific thing and we wait and it seems the answers and not coming...we become distracted, impatient or make decisions out of our emotions or frustrations.   So many times we want something and we say we are waiting upon the Lord...we are waiting for the confirmation of what  His direction is and we blow it.I had to wait hours and days standing in the South Georgia heat with sweat pouring from me to just get a shot of a humming bird.  I waited for an entire hour just for a chance to get a shot.   In this time of waiting and being still I really felt God speak to my spirit.....We have to endure sometimes unbearable conditions and situations but if we are willing to wait for God to move He will move in ways we cannot even begin to Phaethon or understand.   We must learn that sometimes we may have to wait not just a day or a week...but we may have to wait for months even years before we understand what it is God is wanting us to know.   Are you willing to wait upon the Lord?  Are you willing to stand and endure the uncomfortable conditions and situations for God to move on your behalf?  Perhaps God was answering us but we were so distracted in what we wanted or what we thought that we missed Him completely...maybe what would have been a few weeks turned in a few years simply because we refused to wait upon Him.   How many times have we made the will of God for our lives rather then  letting God reveal His plan to us.   I got that T-shirt I don't know about you.   All of this from standing in the Hot South Georgia heat with the Gnats and fire ants to get a picture of a humming bird that is extremely camera shy.   In all this waiting, being still and watching I learned a couple things....1) Where the hiding places were....the places the bird would retreat to...2) How intensely he watched me  3) That every time I thought I had something mastered I was shown how very wrong I was....I had to reset and make changes to my settings. I must learn where those hiding places are in God.....I must accept that He fully loves me and watches my every move,...I have to learn to reset my settings in life to God's settings....Whatever His will is for my life I must adjust and reset for whatever it is that Gods settings are for my life.  I also understand that I will have to reset and adjust many times over the span of my life.   Lord let me be moldable to your settings....Not my will but your will oh God.

The hiding place.
near the top of a pine tree

perfect opportunity
but wrong settings

Why stress about that

So the other day I was talking with my very wise Uncle Jeff...I love him and his wisdom.  We happened to be talking about me stressing out....and he said something that was so simple yet so profound to me.   See I stress if I am even going to be 5 minutes late....I can't stand to be somewhere and not be on time....I would rather be one hour early then even think of being late.....I worry and stress about things not being perfect....I drive my own self crazy trying to do things just right and being on time.....but you know what....My uncle said Jo is it going to be something you will remember in 5 years?   and I thought about that....and I was like you know your right....half the stuff I am worrying and stressing over it is not going to matter.  More then likely I will not even remember any of this stuff a year from now. .   So now when I begin to feel stressed....I ask myself...is this going to matter in 5 years or am even going to remember this in 5 years. I don't stress out near as much...and I have a very thankful husband and family. So many have tried to tell me this very thing my uncle did...but I was able to finally  receive it.

    I found these scriptures.......and thought I would share:

(“inward parts are in turmoil and never still”, just like Job (Job 30:27)  Now does that not apply to me or what?


John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.



Romans 8:6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace(OK this one for me was like WOW...how true is this....me stressing out is simply my flesh...Ouch)



Philippians 4:6,7 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.



1 Peter 5:6,7 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you

Proverbs 16:3 Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.



Jeremiah 17:7,8 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
(OK that scripture totally reminds me of my husband...I never see that man stress about anything....he stays calm and unmoved at all times!)





Luke 10:41-42 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

“True leadership is tested and proved in crises. The real leader is the one who can handle the stress. He is the one who can solve the problems, bear the burdens, find the solutions, and win the victories when everyone else is merely flustered, confounded, and perplexed.”  ~ John MacArthur

I guess I have been a lot like Martha....Anxious and troubled about many things....but I no longer what to be that stressed out emotional person I have been in the past but more grounded and stable....and know I cannot control every situation...there are times I am going to be late...and not everything I do is going to be perfect...but as long as whatever I am doing I am doing unto the Lord and He is pleased that is all that matters.   

Be blessed today and I pray if you have been like me and stress and worry....put it all in the hands of God.  He does not want us to be anxious or troubled and he does not want us in turmoil.  He wants us to have a life of abundance...not full of stress and anxiety.

Thankful

I woke up this morning....Thank God I woke up!!!  it started off kind of rough for me.   I have been battling some health issues for sometime now and I just got some answers to what it is I am battling.    This morning though.....was a morning of tears....I was not feeling well....my head was hurting...my eyes were extra sensitive. I could just go on and on.   If you open my cabinet I think I could start a drug store with all the medication I am on.  I remember saying I never want to be one that has to take any medication...but this is my life...the life God has given me.   Everyday I will thank Him and give Him praise!  No matter how I am feeling...no matter what I feel like I am going to lift my hands and my voice and give Him praise!   God has been so good to me!  The blessings are so many that I don't think I can even begin to count them!  I am blessed with a wonderful husband who loves and adores me....He is everything I could want or ask for!  My children are healthy and thriving:D  I still have both my parents....two wonderful brothers and the best sister in the world.    So no matter what the report from the doctors say I know my God will sustain me and Keep me!  There is nothing that God cannot handle!  I am having faith that what I have will not get any worse! I will say this....since finding out what I have it has given much more compassion for anyone who has a illness or battles PTSD.   Sometimes you can look at someone and they look physically fine....but you cannot see the pain or hurt on the inside.  How many times has someone rolled their eyes at someone because they could not see what was wrong or because they simply did not understand what that person was feeling.   Oh how I know this.   I look physically fine....but what I am battling is on the inside of my body.  So many times I have said to my husband if you could only be in my body and feel what I feel....and as I was putting up the laundry the other day I started to think of people who have battled depression, PTSD or just hurt from Life.  How many times have they just needed a little compassion and it was not given?   I can now identify with them.   I am sure people thought she is fine...she just needs to realize that and get over it.   Sometimes we tell people who are going through issues or problems...maybe even dealing with health issues...just get over it. However its not that simple. So now I pray different..... Lord Reveal to those who are hurt your love...if you put them in my path speak through me God the words they need to hear.....I pray for more compassion and understanding.    So next time you see someone that is hurting or is battling health issues...even if you can't see what is going on with them on the outside...they are battling on the inside....Pray for them....and if they are like me and having to go from doctor to doctor......and have test after test....say a extra prayer for them...pray God allows the doctors to find and give the right diagnosis...give extra encouragement.....and remember just because you can't see things does not mean that someone is not battling on the inside! 


So today I simply count the blessings I have all ready been given!  I look forward to counting many more blessings tomorrow...and the next day...and the next day:D  Be blessed today and walk with more compassion and love then you had yesterday.

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Let my words of my mouth be........

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14

Words...How many times have we heard the Pastor, Evangelist, Pastors wife or Bible study teacher give us a word from God on our words and the conversations that comes out of our mouth?  How many times have we dismissed what we are saying and found ways to  justify why  we are "venting" or because we need to just get things off our chest.....How many times do we share things we should have never have spoken because it was spoken to us in confidence?  Are any of us not guilty of doing this?  How many of us have hurt someone with our words or conversation?  I think anyone reading this will agree at some point in our life we have let someone down and broken that trust that was given to us when they bared their heart and soul...maybe it was fleeting thoughts that was shared...maybe something they were struggling.  " Oh its ok if I share this with so and so because I know they are close and will not mind".  How many of us have done this.   I will admit I am guilty.   I have done this and I have hurt others because of my mouth...because I did not bridle my tongue.   Because I let my mouth do the talking....I was like a babbling brook just running my mouth with chatter and without thought or sensitivity and not stopping to think of the consequences of my words or conversations...See the words and conversations they will have an effect on others...first the person I am telling things too...and the one the conversation is about.  I will tell you God has and is dealing with me on these things!  I have wept and I have cried and repented.  I do not want to be a babbling brook that just runs...I want to be a fountain of life!  I do not want to kill anyone with my words or be a part of any conversation that is not uplifting someone or encouraging. If someone comes to me they need to know they can trust me......Oh how  I pray that my words are acceptable in the sight of God!!!  We say things and think no one will ever know I have said this or shared this...but we do serve a all knowing God who knows all, sees all and hears all...He is in everyplace, every conversation and everything we do.  But we serve a merciful God who will give us warnings..first warning is the conviction we feel in our hearts or maybe he will allow the Pastor  on Sunday to give us a word about our conversations and what is coming out of our mouths..God will remind us of what His word says about what He says is acceptable words and conversation...yet we casually brush it off....we will still find ways of justifying what we are saying...If you are still reading this...and are still with me....Let me remind you of what God has reminded me....there is no justification for gossip...there is never ever a justification for our wrongs....if continue to ignore what God has told us He will let us reap the consequences of our choices and behavior.  We will reap what we have sown.  I know this first hand!  Maybe it will be the loss of a friendship you hold dear to your heart...maybe its the respect and trust of the people you are trying to reach....but if we have the right spirit...we repent and let God put us in the fiery furnace....let him purge from us the spirit of gossip or negative thinking..If we allow him to  purge us form whatever it is that has a hold of us and allow Him to do a work...He will renew us He will show us what is hidden in our hearts.  But are we are willing to commit ourselves fully to Him and Say ok God no matter the cost...no matter how embarrassing it maybe for me... no matter what it takes God cleanse me!!!!!!   In order to have what comes out of mouth controlled by God, My life must be controlled by God.  I must allow Him to fill me completely in every part of my heart! Not just a small corner of my heart...but my whole heart!   I am  His and He wants me(us) to radiate Him!  When?  Continually...at all times!  He wants and needs to be the God in not just me but in all of us, He wants a  vital, deep, consuming place in our lives!  Not just a little but all!  "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks"(Matthew 12:34)  What is in our hearts?  Search me oh Lord...show me oh God what is in my heart....then Lord cleanse me!!!!!  I want to speak life not death...I want to uplift someone not bring them down...I want to encourage others to go deeper in you Lord not further.  With God's help I will be a fountain of life to someone...they will feel refreshed, encouraged and uplifted! Why not because of me but Because of God!!!!  He has control....He is what is in my heart...He will be the one speaking through me......... "May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, My Rock and my Redeemer"(Psalm 19:14)

Lord, teach me what it means to have the mouth of the righteous. I want my tongue and my words to bring you glory all the days of my life!  

And with all that is written...I am thankful for His abundance of mercy...His forgiveness...and for the blood that covers all my sins!  I am thankful to know that His mercy and grace are with me...and that there is nothing He will not forgive me for....and there is never a time He will ever leave me or forsake me......

God bless!!!  And be a fountain of Life today!!!!!  Bring someone a word of encouragement.....and let the God of Glory minister through you today!!!

Unless we talk to Him....He can't help us!

Ever have those mornings where the kids are fighting.....arguing.....and complaining?   Today was the second day of  "these mornings" for me.   I sat down on the couch closed my eyes....held my head in my hand.   I was praying in my head.....God I feel so tired....drained and frustrated.    I just don't understand why they must fight and argue with each other.....it was at that moment I felt God....he pricked my heart.....I heard Him say...me too....why must people do the same.....I was quite....I then said....God I feel so under appreciated....I do everything in power to make sure they feel loved and cared for....again I felt God's presence and He said....me too......I felt pricked in my heart.   It was at this moment my twins were standing in front of me....tears streaming down their faces.   I began to talk with them....more tears coming down...I dismissed Andrea to finish getting ready for school....I had a few moments with Allison....she has been the one to give me the most trouble lately....I said Allison is anything going on?  She said no....I said baby girl unless you talk to me....I can't help you.   Then at that very moment.....I felt God even stronger.....as I was speaking to Allison God was speaking through me and to me.   Unless we talk to God and tell him know how we are feeling He cannot help us.   It was in my moment of being a parent that God was speaking to me.   Even as something as simple as my son asking me...mom are these socks to small....I said they look OK....Josh says....look at this....with a raised eyebrow I say Josh if you know they are to small why did you ask me if they are to small?   I chuckle inside again....how many times do we do this very thing to God?   We ask God a question and we all ready know what the answer is...yet we ask Him.....the Joys of being a mother and a parent....and this morning....as I was being that parent God was speaking to my heart!   And what did I learn?   That if I don't communicate with God...(Prayer life)  He can't help me....even though he all ready knows my needs, wants and desires...even though he sees the areas I struggle in....He can't help me unless I communicate with him...unless I let him in and let him help me.   I learned that no matter how tired or frustrated or under appreciated I feel.....I am only feeling and understanding what God himself has gone through and goes through daily.   So thankful for the last two mornings....so thankful my kids were fussing and arguing.....it opened a door for God to minister to my heart...to let me know just how much He understands the very things I am going through....the very struggles I face.  I feel so loved and thankful this morning....for He took the time to let me know this morning just how much He loves and adores me.   He comforted me and let me know just how much he understands what I am going through...even if it is just being frustrated with being a mom.  

Jhn 3:35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. Jhn 5:20 For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.

It's a New Day!!!!

It's a new day!!  I am so thankful to God this morning....He woke me up this morning at 4:42......and I am so glad he did!   I have prayed this morning and I can't stop thinking of how very blessed I am.   I am given another chance...another day....my opportunities are endless....the sky is the limit on what this day and other days hold.  I keep thinking about what so many people are going through right now at this very moment....I have a friend Jennifer she is recovering from have cancer....she was pregnant when she was given the news that she had cancer....they wanted her to abort the baby....she refused...and she had to fight every step of the way for that baby and her!  She is one of the most upbeat people you want to meet!  Such in inspiration!  Her life has not been a bed of roses but when you meet her she always has a smile and laughing.....she inspires me in so many ways!  Oh and you should see that baby....she is beautiful!    Oh and I may mention that she is cancer free!!!  Praise God!  She is taking a few rounds of radiation but should be done with that soon!  Then there is Amy....such a beautiful women of God...she expecting baby number 10....and battling a few things in her body!   She too is upbeat...does not complain when the rheumatoid arthritis flares up.....not many people can handle having one child let alone 9.....she is one of those that can.....her and husband make such a fantastic team!  Still I pray for her....I pray that by His stripes she is healed.....my brother is battling lupus and Rheumatoid arthritis....as I write this the tears are coming.  My brother who I am the same age with for 11 days in December is now crippled looking...he has to walk with a cane...and some days cannot even get out of the bed....how my heart aches for him.    How my heart aches.   My dear friend Diane Sistrunk....just lost her husband.....talk about a wonderful man of God....so upbeat...so kind and full of love!  Now she is without him....she is raising there beautiful little girl that God blessed them with.....how my heart aches for her.....but she is strong...she knows God in a way most may never understand...God is her strength and strong tower...He is her provider!  There is nothing she will have to want for....for she is blessed and highly favored!  I do wish I could see her and hug her neck...give her my love but I can't so I pray....and I am sure prayer is what she needs more then ever right now. I have so many others on my heart this morning.....but today is a new day...I can start over....do something new...run....well I can try and run....lol....I can open the curtains and welcome this new day this new wonderful day in with all its glories it brings.   I can chose this day to see things in a positive light to not dwell in the past....to only move forward....take all my mistakes and short comings and apply what I have learned.   I can allow God to use those things to help propel me further in kingdom!  I don't have to be who or what I was yesterday!!!  Today I chose life....I chose to live in a way a didn't live yesterday.....I chose today to be more...to cherish more to love more.   I pray not to take for granted one moment of this wonderful life I have been blessed with....but I pray to use it for His glory.....I can hear Brother Sistrunk shouting and rejoicing.....he has made it to a place we are all striving to go.....he has a new body....my prayers are with my dear sister in Christ as she continues to do the work God has called her to do with out her soul mate and best friend.    I will continue to pray for Amy and healing in her body...and for my brother.   I don't always understand  they why's of life but I have learned to trust.   I pray that today who ever reads this blog will just take today and look at it as the gift that it is....show extra kindness...take a moment to just slow down and find God in the moment of right now....slow down and just let the sun shine on your face....find the beauty in this moment....listen a little longer to the bird singing his song....laugh harder and love deeper today then you did yesterday.   Do something special for the kids....let them be little one more day God....let me hug them a little tighter....God teach me to slow down and not always be in such a rush I miss the little blessings you have for me...your gifts.   Teach me your ways today oh God!  Yes....today is a new day....if you can.... live it!   Cherish it.....for none of us are promised tomorrow.....but we have today!!!!!   Blessings!

So many thoughts

Its been a while since I have posted a blog...but I am up early this morning...feeling better then I have in over week....Thank God!   No but I am up with all kind of thoughts going through my mind.   How many people go in debt for Christmas?   How many people give a gift just to say they have given?   My husband was standing in the door way and I was talking to him about Christmas....and he made the comment "oh....I thought you were going to suggest we do something different this year....like work in a soup kitchen"   I remember thinking that would be nice but no.... I read something this morning that has me stirred!   What if we got really radical and did not open any gifts at all on Christmas morning....what if we totally gave back!   What if my kids got excited because they knew they were giving to a child that was in need...or was helping to serve food to those who had none......as I am sitting here I all ready know I will get phone calls or emails from loved ones and friends saying that I have lost my mind....but how much better is it to give then to receive. I want to live so much different then I have been .   I feel as if I have been dead but ready to be revived.   I don't want to live life as I use to.    I want to have so much God in me that others see it to!   I want to be more then just a Wednesday or Sunday Christian  I want to live a life that is pleasing to Him.....I want my kids to grow up with a love and relationship with God that comes from understanding His love.   As I am sitting here.....all I can think of is how can I give back....I am blessed more then I deserve.....How can I bless others? Well little ones are up and stirring....I just presented the idea to them....should have seen the twins faces....they were stunned with the idea.....guess I have lots and lots of praying to do.

Contentment

It's been a while since I blogged but I have had so much going on but wanted to share about the "remodeling"  We live in a very humble home of 1200 square feet which at times can feel very small and tight when you have four children and two dogs and one bathroom.   Anyone who knows me knows how badly I want a bigger home.  I love to have people and family over but we are usually crammed in and so in my mind a bigger home is very much needed.   I know what we are doing will not make much sense to many.   In many peoples minds they will probably think we are crazy and should just buy a new home.  However...there has been some things that have taken place withing me that has changed me so radically that moving is no longer an option.  The desire for a bigger home has been taken from me and I am finding Contentment  in what God has blessed us with!  I think the change for me began when I read the book a 1000 gifts by Ann Voskamp....God really was trying to get a hold of  my heart in that book......then I read Plan B by Pete Wilson.....God is still working on me.....but it was when I read the book Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis that it really hit home for me.   Staying in this house makes the most sense.   Why?  I will tell you why....God has blessed us with home that will be paid off soon....its small but cozy....and we are enlarging the house by knocking out some walls and adding a second bathroom.   With staying where we are....which is smack dab in the middle of God's will by the way.  We will be able to give and give more.   When I die and pass from this world I am praying that no one will remember my house but remember me and who I was as a person....and if they do remember my home....I pray that they remember that it was home of warmth and love....that they felt the spirit of God flowing through out.   When I die I cannot take anything with me....my heart is no longer in the things of this world but that of my heavenly home.   My treasure is in heaven.   The things of this world will rust away.....I am seeking more then just things.....I want more of God....my desire for Him is ever increasing.   Yesterday I ripped out the carpet in the 12 x9 room my husband I will now call our bedroom and I felt God so strongly!   I felt as I was ripping out the carpet and the padding the tacks that held it down(not easy job by the way)  I felt I was ripping out the old me...my old desires.  When we are done with this room it will be brand new....just as I feel God is making me.   I don't want to stay the same but grow more in Him.    I am looking forward to what God has in store for us as a family and looking forward to where God is taking me.   I am so blessed and so very thankful for all that He is doing in me!

 “There is no end of craving. Hence contentment alone is the best way to happiness. Therefore, acquire contentment.”

Unplugging to Desire

I was driving the other day....and this thought came to mind....Do we really hear God?  We seem to be so consumed any more with technology and life...do we really slow down and unplug enough to hear the voice of God?   If we are driving we are on our cell phones, listening to music or the kids have a DVD playing.....now mind you this is just in the car....what about at home?  At home we have even more distractions, TV, Computers, Facebook, telephones etc.....so when are we hearing the voice of God? When are we making the time to hear the voice of God?   I have really been thinking about this and I have begun to unplug from things I would normally be plugged into.   I have been making an extra effort to not just unplug but to also slow down life...Slowing down is something I have been working on for a while now and the blessings from that alone have been wonderful....I am also unplugging from  TV before bed..... I would find myself just aimlessly flipping through the channels...and there would be nothing on....and I would ask myself why do I do this?  There is nothing on worth watching and I waste my time every night by doing this....so the other night I just picked up a book that was near my bed and began to read....and Oh what a blessing!  The book is called E.M. Bounds on Prayer.   It is fantastic!   But talk about conviction yikes!  This man died in 1913 and upon reading this I thought he was talking about Christians of today.  The passion he has for prayer and God is simply amazing!  The one chapter that has touched me is the one about Prayer and Desire.    How we must desire prayer and have a passion for it.    It is in this place in prayer that we will see results!  I know with this desire in prayer I will  hear the voice of God and know the things He has for me without question.  I am so thankful that I have started to "unplug" from the things that were keeping from hearing  God.   Its not easy!!!!   Habits are hard to break but I know that the end result will be worth it and only be a positive in my life.  I want to desire the things of God more then things of this world....I want to go deeper in His word and have a deeper relationship with Him more then anything!!!!   The only way I will be able to go to the deeper in God is by plugging into Him.  Prayer...something I must plug into daily for deeper desire and deeper places in Him.
Desire-1. to wish or long for; crave; want.
           2. to express a wish to obtain; ask for; request
           3. a longing or craving, as for something that brings satisfaction or enjoyment
           4. an expressed wish; request
‎"without desire, there is no burden of the soul,no sense of need,no enthusiasm, no vision, no strength, and no glow of faith. There is no strong pressure, no holding on to God with a deathless, despairing grasp-"I will not let thee go, except thou bless me"(Gen.32:26) E.M. Bounds on Prayer pg 132

a Love like no other

As I was standing at the sink washing dishes I began to think of where I was 11 years ago.   all I can say is....what a mess!  I was a broken vessel looking for love and wanting someone to help make all the pain I was feeling go away.  I had emotions I no idea what to do with...but the biggest thing I wanted relief from was my the pain of rejection and the feelings of worthlessness.  I felt like a failure and that I did not deserve to be loved and thoughts that anyone could love me ran through my head almost daily.   I was not educated enough and I had two children and had all ready been married.   How in the world would anyone want me or let alone love me.   I was even told I was not "trophy wife" material....(Nice)...these and other things that were told me and they only pushed me deeper into a world of alcoholism and deeper into a depression. I would not recognize where I was until much later.  All I can say is thank God he was able to patch this broken vessel and take from where I was to where I am today!  Only God could take the hurt left from a divorce,broken relationships and only God fix the voids that plagued me. I am so thankful to know that there is healing from past hurts...even wounds so deep that seem there can be no repairing.  I am so thankful today to know that I am not worthless, I am worth loving and that I am not the things people have said I am.   I am loved!  I was fearfully and wonderfully created for a time such as this.   I know today that just because of my past that does not mean I am not worthy of love....I also know that there is nothing that God will not forgive...and that there is nothing I can do He will not love through.  If it were not for the love of God and for His mercy and Grace I would not be here today.   I have been blessed in abundance and beyond measure just by knowing His love.     Oh how He loves us!!!!!!  
Be blessed

A New Day.....a gift from God

Upon opening my curtains this morning what do I see?   Sunflowers....my blessings.....my gift.  They are blooming and they remind me of sunshine.....I didn't even plant these little blessings of joy.....Whenever I am having a moment during the day....I just take a second .....look out the window and stare at the sunflowers that were planted for me....and I smile:)  For God knew that they would bring joy to me.....How awesome is that!   Its in the little things.....the things we don't even stop to think about.  God is speaking to us. Are we listening?  How can  we get so busy and in such a  hurry that we miss God?  Is that bird singing out my window God's way of singing me a song this morning?   OH the little things we miss.....how many times have we missed the little love notes he has left for us?  How many times has He wanted to use us and we were to busy or in hurry to even be used.   How many times have we walked by and missed our blessing?  How many times have we missed the will of God for our lives.....because we did not slow down and seek Him?   I pray daily for God to slow me down...I pray not to treat life as if it were an emergency....I try to slowly chew and digest each day....I don't want to wake up one day and realize I have hurried my life away.  I want to savior each day and look for the ways He is speaking to me.   I want all that He has for me.....not just the crumbs of life I have been allowing myself to have but all of the fullness and blessings.   I don't want to miss one more second on things  that don't matter!   Oh the things I have put before God and my family....I cannot ever get those lost moments back....but today...it's a new day....and today I am slowing down more....going to enjoy the gift of life and the blessings He has for me!  I am going to sit longer and talk slower.....I am going to let the seconds turn into minutes... just sit and enjoy the calm...the peace and wait for the that small still voice I know so well.  I am going to enjoy the laughter and moments of life I have right now.....I am not going to worry about tomorrow or the I should have moments....but enjoy the here and now....this day..........

"He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;"Psalm 46:10

Where do I begin

Where do I begin? I don't really blog...but really feel that I need to start! So where do I even begin? I feel that this will be a spot for me to share with others some of the wonderful and maybe not so wonderful moments of my life with others....maybe someone will read what I am writing and be able to relate with the moments that I am sharing. I am very excited to be doing this.... So I guess I shall begin with a little about me....I am mom to 4 great kids....and 2 furry ones....I have one awesome husband who loves me and for that I am thankful! I love to take pictures and capture the wonderful beauty that God has created. God has spoken to me many times while looking through the lens of my camera. I am not a professional and I don't have plans of ever going that route....but I do have a passion and a love for it. I know right now at this moment I am overwhelmed with Thanksgiving! I am so thankful for the people, trials and for the blessings of my life. I could not ask for more then what I have....well I think that this is all for now....I am looking at a pile of laundry and its getting close for me to start lunch for my kiddos....so much to do today:)