Thoughtful Tuesday ~ What do we do?

This post may be a bit, um, heavy. Some may agree, some may disagree. I'm not here to sugar coat things or make everyone agree with me. I'm hear to post my thoughts and the things I feel God saying to me. So, if this post offends you, you can stop reading at any time.

We, as the church, are supposed to be different, no? Romans 12:2 says, "Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." To me, that says that our lives should look different from those of non-believers. Well, I don't know about you, but I have seen a lot of Christians' lives looking an awful lot like the rest of the world.

Let's get one thing straight, I am NOT perfect. Nor do I claim to be. I am just as messed up need as much grace as the next person, but I do know that God is working on me...piece by piece.

At one point in my life, I lived just like the world...because I was still in the world. I hadn't met Jesus yet. At a different point, after I had met Jesus, my life looked an awful lot like the world. God shook me down to my foundation and rebuilt me with Him as my center. Does that make me perfect? Heck no! Does that mean I have all the answers? Ha! No way! What it does mean is that He shows me His grace...daily. Something that I certainly could not live without.

Many of you may know that I have a burden for the youth. You see, I made some really dumb mistakes as a youth and I went through some things that no one should have to go through. And God has shown me that I can help this next generation with my testimony...my mistakes, my trials, my hardships. What hurts my heart the most is to see a student at church living one way, and then see them outside of the church and not recognize them. To see that they are living two different lives. I always tell the students I work with that if I were to go to their school, they should be the same person they are at church...and at home.

The problem I'm seeing is that young people, girls especially, are changing who they are in order to fit in. Changing the way they dress, the music they listen to, the words they speak, the things they do or don't do, and who they hang out with. "This person thinks it's OK to dress immodestly, so I think I will dress this way when I'm around them." "This person listens to this questionable music, so I will too when I'm around them." "This person says he will love me if I just have sex with him, so in order to feel that love, I will." "This person uses foul language, so I will, but only around them."

The problem with this sort of behavior/thinking is that you can't turn it off. Maybe at the beginning you can moderate what you say/do around who, but eventually, it will consume you. It's like throwing a rotten apple into a good bunch and expecting them to stay good. It will consume you...trust me on this. I've been there.

OK, so what can we do?

1) Well, I, as a parent, know that I need to teach my girls why they should be different from the world...not just that they should. Sure, for a while they might just do what I say because I'm mom and that's what they are supposed to do, but once they get to the point where they need to figure things out for themselves, they need to know the answer to the 'whys'. It's my job to make sure that foundation is there.

2) Pray! I know it sounds cliche, but prayer is powerful. There are few things more powerful than the prayer of a parent for his/her child(ren)

3) Set the example. This is a big one. Our kids, and other young people that look up to us, are watching to see if the way we live our lives matches the way we speak. Are you the same person everywhere you go? Do you read your Bible daily? Do you talk to God daily? If the answer to any of these is no, then you need to work on yourself before you can fix anyone else.

4) Don't judge. If you see that a young person has stumbled and made mistakes, don't judge them...love them. Love is what will repair the damage that has been done. God is love. Love them like He does.

Think about it...

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Are you a square peg?

Many of you may know that my family relocated a little less than a year ago. At first I was upset, I mean who wouldn't be, leaving a place you called home for over 11 years. But then, I had such a peace about it. A peace I can't explain except to say that while my world was being turned upside down, I knew that everything would be OK. God had it covered.

Now, He didn't reveal to me exactly why we were coming up here to the Falls, but as we've been here almost 9 months, He has been slowly revealing to me our purpose here...and it's a multi-faceted purpose! Bear with me as I try to explain a little bit of what He's been revealing to me.

The place we left (which consequently is only 150 miles from here) is a very 'religious' town. That is in the good and the bad sense of the word. God has been (and is still continuing to) lifting the 'religious spirit' that has had a hold of that city for many years. And what is left is God...and true relationship with Him. That is an absolutely wonderful thing for my family. Here in the Falls however, God doesn't really have center stage. As a matter of fact, there are times when I wonder if He's even been cast in the play.

Sure, there are churches, but many of them are dead and still others are just there for the 'box checkers' to do their thing. I have some wonderful friends here who love the Lord with their whole hearts and He directs their life. But, other than this handful of people, God doesn't seem to be a factor in many people's lives...except maybe on Sunday. And this truly hurts my heart.

One day last week, while driving my girls to school, it hit me. This town is all about outward appearances. Does it look good? is the motivation for most things. People have ridiculously large homes with beautifully landscaped yards, but do they have love? Do they have True love from Christ? Some, yes. But I would venture to say about 75% don't.

Before you think I'm just bashing this town, let me explain. In 1 Samuel 16, God instructs Samuel to go out and find one of Jesse's sons to anoint to be the next king. God's king. Jesse had 8 sons. Samuel saw the first, Eliab, and thought for sure he was the one. But it goes on to say in verse 7, "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.' "

I don't know about you, but when God looks at my heart, I want Him to be pleased. In order to achieve this, God is showing me how to live a righteous life in the midst of a godless city. To be that proverbial square peg in a round hole. To not care if I get strange looks while doing nice things for people. To not conform to the ways of the world. To stand out...and do it proudly! I am also to teach my girls to do this. I think, thus far, we have been successful...at least with my Big Girl. I think over the course of the next few years, my Angel will pick up on this. I just pray she doesn't get sucked into the world while trying to learn the lesson.

So, basically, He wants us to learn (through life experience) how to continue to be square in this round world...and to not let the things of this world round our edges.

I'm willing...

Are you?

Think about it...

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Focus

The girls and I do a devotional every morning before school. I love this time that we have together to dig into God's word. And I love the thought provoking, practical subjects and questions in our current devo series. This morning's title was God Is Always There. You know, sometimes I need a reminder of the simple things.

Often times, the girls will ask questions pertaining to (or not) the subject. Somehow our conversation veered off track. No worries though! I don't mind when we have 'unplanned' conversations about things that matter. Anyhow, we managed to begin talking about the things we focus on. When you go through trials, it is very easy to focus on the 'facts' of the situation. When really and truly, we should focus on the 'Truth' of every situation . . . Jesus.

Think about it this way. There are positives and negatives in every day, every decision, every everything! That's something we cannot choose. What we can choose is how we react. What things we focus on. If I were to focus on the fact that we aren't millionaires, we have debt up to our eyeballs, I haven't bought 'new' clothes in forever, most of my furniture is old and falling apart, I'm hundreds of miles away from all of my blood relatives . . . and so on, (you get the picture) I'm fairly certain that I would walk around moping like my dog just died. Instead, I choose to focus on the blessings in my life. I know that sounds really cliche, but . . . I focus on the fact that I'm alive and healthy, I have a wonderful husband who loves me (even though I don't deserve it), I have two fabulous girls who bless me daily, we have a roof over our heads . . . in a safe neighborhood, we have been blessed with two fabulous church families, and well, I could go on for days, but I'm sure you'd be bored in about 5 minutes, so I'll stop.

You see, most often you will find me with a smile on my face. Not because I have a perfect life, but because I am content with the life I live. I don't focus on the blah of my life, but the blessings!

Think about it . . .

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Philippians 4:12

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Something So Small

You know, sometimes I wonder how something so small can have such a great impact on things. Take an earthquake for example. It all starts as a small shift in the plates of the earth's crust and ends with massive destruction like we've seen recently in Japan.

Or take a neck cramp (because I happen to have one right now) for example. I just happened to move the wrong way and now any time I move I am in excruciating pain. Heck, sitting hurts! But it was just a small movement!

What does the Bible have to say about 'little things'? Well, in the book of James it talks about something along these lines.

Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. James 3:4-6

Basically, to me, this says that everything we do has an effect on something! Whether we want it to or not. So, we should watch those 'little things' that don't seem to matter . . . because they do. They matter more than you know.

Think about it . . .

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Mountain vs. Molehill

How many times do we make something of nothing? I know I do . . . and often. Now, I'm not really a worrier about most things, but I tend to have thoughts about worst case scenarios when it comes to my kids. Not sure if I just fear failing them or what. Either way, I hate it . . . it sucks!

Since the move, my Angel has had some behavior issues at school. I know, in the beginning, most of this was a result of the move. She's only 7 and basically had her world turned upside down . . . and her personality doesn't tolerate change very well. So I expected some issues.

Here we are over halfway through the year and she's still coming home almost every week with conduct cuts. (misbehavior) Ok, well, I can't be there the whole day, so I don't know what's going on. Is she really being as bad as it seems? Everyone else (friends, people at church) tells me she's always well behaved and is very sweet . . . basically the opposite of what I'm getting from school. What!?!? She spends 7 hours a day there . . . and I am not ok with her misbehaving there.

What to do? We've punished her, talked to her about it, tried rewards, and still nothing. Finally I got fed up and scheduled a conference, if for nothing else than to see how bad her behavior actually is. Well, that was this morning and, well, apparently I was making a mountain out of a molehill, because the teacher doesn't seem concerned at all. Um ok? Well, I guess we'll just trudge along through the rest of the year and pray for a better personality match for next year.

Such is life, right? :)


Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Seriously?

Ok, so this post isn't going to be very . . . um . . . well, you be the judge.

I know that when people choose to live a public lifestyle, they are inviting all kinds of stuff into their lives. Stuff like fans, fan mail, critics, hate mail . . . just to name a few. I also know there are people out there I like to call drama magnets. You know them. The ones who, if they can't find any drama to smear all over, they will create some. Yeah, those. I'm not one of them, so I don't really understand the logic behind their thinking.

Ok, take a public figure like, say, Kate Gosselin. I'm not a huge fan of some of the choices she's made, but hey, it's her life, not mine! I began to follow her blog for a while because I thought it was interesting. I mean come on, she's got 8 kids. Nothing is normal with that many people! I also followed it because it kinda gave a glimpse into her human-ness. Sometimes we forget that others are human just like we are.

Anyway, on several of her blog posts, people would talk all kinds of trash! I mean stuff that wasn't even on topic with the blog. It's like they just wanted the whole world to know how much they hated her. Really!?! Can anyone explain this to me? No really, can you? It makes no sense to me. Me personally, when I dislike something, I tend to stay away from it. Um, duh. If something causes dis-ease within me, why would I continue to subject myself to it?

Well, there are a few blogs that I follow now that I love to read. Do I agree with everything the author posts . . . uh, no. But am I going to make sure they (and the rest of the world) know how much I loathe them and the things they write about? Um, no. I would rather stop reading all together and save myself the torture. Wouldn't you? (I'm not saying that I loathe anyone's blog or any person for that matter! It's just a 'for example' kind of thing.)

I would love to hear what you think. But know this, if there are ever any comments posted that I find derogatory (non-constructive) or disparaging in any way, I will NOT approve them. What's the point?

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Stressed Birds?

Take a look at the birds in this photo. Do they look stressed to you? Well, they don't look stressed to me. Can a bird even be stressed? (not sure, but I don't think so)


So why do we stress?


In Matthew 6:25-27 Jesus tells us . . .

"That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?"

Think about that for a minute . . . really think about it. He's telling us that we don't need to worry about what we are going to eat or what we will wear. He's telling us that we are valuable to Him. We take care of the things/people that are valuable to us . . . how much more will God take care of those things/people that are valuable to Him.


Think about it . . .

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Perspective

Beautiful view, yes? I think so, but I was also raised on the coast. Now take a look at this one . . .

Not quite as breathtaking, I know.

Want to know the interesting thing about these two pictures? Well, I was sitting in the same exact spot while taking them both . . . just facing a different direction. With a different perspective.

That got me thinking . . . when we are in the middle of a trial, we (me included) often focus on things that make the situation seem endlessly horrible. God whispered to me that that is not how He wants us to be. Jesus did not promise us a peachy keen life once we became His followers . . . quite the opposite actually. He did say that He would never leave us, He would always be right by our sides.

Having experienced a bit of 'life' myself, I have learned from experience how changing one's perspective can seriously change so many things . . . for example, the seeming severity and duration of a trial. If we can only take our eyes off of all the negative things, and focus our eyes on Jesus, things will fall into place . . . like they are supposed to. Does this mean life won't be hard? Uh, no, but if we are focused on the right thing person, it won't really matter all that much . . . especially when we look back on it.

Think about it . . .

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Life

There are days in my life when it feels like I'm living in the middle of a reality TV show. And there are days I wish I were. Not for the celebrity factor . . . no, for the documentation factor. You see, I have seen too many times how quickly our memories can fade when we age . . . and I don't want to forget this wonderful life I'm living.

Just yesterday, as I was dropping my girls off at school, I experienced an all too familiar situation. They kissed me and bid me farewell for the day and I sat and watched them walk into the school. No big, right? Watching my Angel walk into that big school by herself (they used to walk in together, but now I guess she's big enough to do it herself *tear*) I realized that she's not a little girl any more. She has grown so much. I said aloud, "She's getting so big." Big Girl was still in the car and just kinda shrugged it off. I said to her, "And you are practically an adult already." She just smiled and walked off . . . unaware of the emotions I was experiencing.

So on my drive home, God and I had a little heart to heart. I asked Him, "Why does it have to go so fast?" He ever so gently reminded me that this life is not the one that is most important. He reminded me that this time with them as children is precious, yes, but more importantly, crucial. Crucial to their success as adults. Success in what? Being workers and harvesters for the Kingdom! It is my job, my calling if you will, to raise them up to fear the Lord and to make Him their #1 priority. My job is to lay the foundation . . . and He will do the rest.

I only hope that my job thus far laying their foundation is good enough to stand the test. I cannot know the answer to that. I can only trust that I am doing what He has called me to do, as their mother. Today, He tells me I'm doing fine . . . just the confirmation I needed. Thanks God . . .

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. Psalm 42:1

Thoughtful Tuesday

Have you ever stopped and thought, "wow, where did the time go?" I often find myself wondering where the last day has gone. It seems that the older I get, the faster time flies. It seems like just yesterday I was walking around very pregnant with my almost 11 year old. Where have those years gone? They seem like such a blur. I can remember many things, but sadly there are many things I don't remember. I wish I could just slow things down. . .just a little bit. I know I can't, so I'll just do my best to enjoy my time with my girls before they grow up and begin their own lives.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34

Thoughtful Tuesday ~ Parenting

Just my random thought for the day...


Do you have that one thing that you can hover over your kids' heads that always works? You know, that one thing that they love and don't want to lose...or that one thing that they are so afraid of that they will do anything not to have to face it? Last night while playing games at a friends house, I learned that I am that one thing that some people use. You know, the "if you don't stop doing that I'm gonna let so-and-so have at you!" Yep, that's me...I'm the threat...LOL! I guess I can be a little stern and hard in comparison to others. I'm in no way offended by this! I think it's hilarious!! My philosophy, if it works, keep doing it!


“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13