So have you ever had a WOW moment while reading scripture? That happened to me this morning. Now, I have read this passage multiple times in the past 14 yrs but today it was just different.
"For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, seperated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault." Colossians 1:19-22
Ok, so I started really thinking about this verse. That I was once an ENEMY of God. Who wants to be that, right?! But here is what really got me......I asked myself the question....would I do what God did for my enemies? I know Christ rose from the dead after 3 days....so God "got" his son back in three days BUT would I let my son go through ALL Christ's sufferings (even if I too got him back in three days) for my ENEMIES?!?! Heck no!!!! AND then after to see THEM as holy and blameless....WHAT?!?! My SON was the one who suffered...not THEM...they were the ones with evil thougths and actions, not my son...THEY are the ones who should of died! Why would God do this?! Then this verse popped in my mind:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
WOW! He must really love us!!
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Friday, November 16, 2012
Becoming a 1 Peter Wife
As I was really praying and asking God to mold me into a better wife, I believe He led me to 1 Peter. As I was reading through this book I wrote down 6 things that I am going to work on and pray that the Holy Spirit will change in me. These are taken from 1 Peter 2:23 - 4:2:
1. Respect Matt by my words to him and about him to others.
2. Do not retaliate with insults when I am hurt. Leave room for God to work. Choose to bless instead.
3. Be quiet and let the Holy Spirit do His job. I only get in the way.
4. Do not fear what decisions Matt might make, trust in the Lord to take care of me and our children.
5. Pray for a gentle and quiet spirit. That I would have a tender heart towards Matt and a humble attitude.
6. Seek to be a peacemaker within our family and not to just have my way. Seek not my own desires but God's will.
I will let ya'll know how this not only changes me but my family as well! : )
1. Respect Matt by my words to him and about him to others.
2. Do not retaliate with insults when I am hurt. Leave room for God to work. Choose to bless instead.
3. Be quiet and let the Holy Spirit do His job. I only get in the way.
4. Do not fear what decisions Matt might make, trust in the Lord to take care of me and our children.
5. Pray for a gentle and quiet spirit. That I would have a tender heart towards Matt and a humble attitude.
6. Seek to be a peacemaker within our family and not to just have my way. Seek not my own desires but God's will.
I will let ya'll know how this not only changes me but my family as well! : )
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Happy Birthday
Since my husband and I were both Marines, I have to say "Happy Birthday Devil Dogs!" : )
My Mighty Savior
Thank you Lord that I have MS. Thank you for the hard days to show me the love my family has for me. Thank you that because of your grace and your love for me, you allowed me to have MS. MS has isolated me......I know now this is so you could talk to me and it would be quiet enough for me to listen. Satan will not win....he will not steal my joy and peace. Even through the pain and the unknown, you Lord will never leave me. You are enough for me. You truly are my Mighty Savior!
Friday, October 26, 2012
Losing the anger
Anger is such an issue in my home. I see it in me and in my children. So this week we have been talking about anger in our family devotions. Like I have said before this blog is for me....for me to remember what God is showing me. And right now it is about the issue of anger.
We have been reading in James. And James 1:19 reads, "My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry..." That has been our memory verse this week. We all know the saying: "God gave us one mouth and two ears, because he wants us to listen more than we talk." It is so hard not to speak. I see my 8 yr old struggle with this. His favorite saying is, "But mom..." As I am correcting him, it is like the finger should be pointing back at me. I am constantly saying, "But God..." But God, why are my children fighting....But God, why isn't my husband talking more to me.....and the list goes on and on. I don't want to just listen, I want to be listened to. I want to be understood....because then everyone would know I am right, right?! But being understood and everyone agreeing with me are two different things. As I told my children in the car this morning....If I put a bowl of broccoli in the middle of this car do ya'll understand this is broccoli....they all said yes....then I said but do we all agree it tastes good....and as you can imagine I got a couple of no's! : ) I told my son today.....Son, I understand exactly what happened with your sister, BUT I don't agree with how you handled it.
We have also been talking about being slow to become angry. One reason we get angry is because of our "rights." I have the right to be listened to....the right to tell my children what to do....the right to eat my breakfast in silence....and that list goes on and on also. My only "right" is hell and an eternity separated from God. Nothing more. But our Savior came and died to give me the privilege of heaven.
Another reason we quickly get angry is our selfishness. We don't want to put someone else's needs first or let them get something better, so we get angry. My children don't want their sibling to get to pick out the movie, or go first in a game, or have the last packet of mini muffins. But I am the same. I can get angry if I think Matt gets more time to himself than I do, or if my children interrupt my movie time. I am SO very thankful that Christ put me before himself when he DIED on the cross.....and I don't think I can pause my movie.....seriously?!
We have also been talking about Proverbs 15:1, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." How hard it is for us to not try to get the last word, or strike back in our anger. But the Lord gave me a great example for my children as I was ironing my daughters pants. So I ask them, "How long does it take for an iron to heat up?" "Not long," they answer. Then I ask, "How long does it take to cool down?" They understood where I was heading because they didn't answer right away. : ) That is what happens when we stir up anger.....things around us do not cool down very quickly!
I am so thankful that the Holy Spirit helps us with our anger.....if we let him. I am also thankful that He is working in the hearts of my children, so that we can become different than the world around us.....we can put others before ourselves, give up our so called rights, and have gentle answers. This is not to "look good" but to point others to Christ.
We have been reading in James. And James 1:19 reads, "My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry..." That has been our memory verse this week. We all know the saying: "God gave us one mouth and two ears, because he wants us to listen more than we talk." It is so hard not to speak. I see my 8 yr old struggle with this. His favorite saying is, "But mom..." As I am correcting him, it is like the finger should be pointing back at me. I am constantly saying, "But God..." But God, why are my children fighting....But God, why isn't my husband talking more to me.....and the list goes on and on. I don't want to just listen, I want to be listened to. I want to be understood....because then everyone would know I am right, right?! But being understood and everyone agreeing with me are two different things. As I told my children in the car this morning....If I put a bowl of broccoli in the middle of this car do ya'll understand this is broccoli....they all said yes....then I said but do we all agree it tastes good....and as you can imagine I got a couple of no's! : ) I told my son today.....Son, I understand exactly what happened with your sister, BUT I don't agree with how you handled it.
We have also been talking about being slow to become angry. One reason we get angry is because of our "rights." I have the right to be listened to....the right to tell my children what to do....the right to eat my breakfast in silence....and that list goes on and on also. My only "right" is hell and an eternity separated from God. Nothing more. But our Savior came and died to give me the privilege of heaven.
Another reason we quickly get angry is our selfishness. We don't want to put someone else's needs first or let them get something better, so we get angry. My children don't want their sibling to get to pick out the movie, or go first in a game, or have the last packet of mini muffins. But I am the same. I can get angry if I think Matt gets more time to himself than I do, or if my children interrupt my movie time. I am SO very thankful that Christ put me before himself when he DIED on the cross.....and I don't think I can pause my movie.....seriously?!
We have also been talking about Proverbs 15:1, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." How hard it is for us to not try to get the last word, or strike back in our anger. But the Lord gave me a great example for my children as I was ironing my daughters pants. So I ask them, "How long does it take for an iron to heat up?" "Not long," they answer. Then I ask, "How long does it take to cool down?" They understood where I was heading because they didn't answer right away. : ) That is what happens when we stir up anger.....things around us do not cool down very quickly!
I am so thankful that the Holy Spirit helps us with our anger.....if we let him. I am also thankful that He is working in the hearts of my children, so that we can become different than the world around us.....we can put others before ourselves, give up our so called rights, and have gentle answers. This is not to "look good" but to point others to Christ.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Is God Good?
That is the million dollar question.....at least for me.....and that is.....is God good? Not just good when I am laughing with my kids....or Matt and I are on an amazing date together...or my house is clean and all the laundry done...or whatever else makes me "happy." Is God good when the house is a mess, laundry is all over the floor, Matt is at work, the kids are yelling at each other, and my feet are on fire....and all this at the same time. Is God good?
I realized I have to make a choice to believe he either is or isn't. It really comes down to one or the other. And it doesn't matter what my circumstances are. I think for the past few weeks I really doubted if he was. Because if I believe he is good than I have to believe that having MS is what is best for me. What?!
What is so great is that God doesn't tell us to figure it out and get it all together and then come find him. He is big enough to handle our questions and our doubts. He never leaves us. If we are Christians then his Spirit lives in us. I know it was the Holy Spirit in me that helped me answer this important question.
Yesterday it was like a switch in my heart was turned on. And it wasn't because anything around me changed. The answer to this question is so perfectly clear now. I KNOW that God is good. That having MS is best, even though right now I may not know exactly why. That doesn't matter. Because I know God is good, I can fully and completely trust him.
I realized I have to make a choice to believe he either is or isn't. It really comes down to one or the other. And it doesn't matter what my circumstances are. I think for the past few weeks I really doubted if he was. Because if I believe he is good than I have to believe that having MS is what is best for me. What?!
What is so great is that God doesn't tell us to figure it out and get it all together and then come find him. He is big enough to handle our questions and our doubts. He never leaves us. If we are Christians then his Spirit lives in us. I know it was the Holy Spirit in me that helped me answer this important question.
Yesterday it was like a switch in my heart was turned on. And it wasn't because anything around me changed. The answer to this question is so perfectly clear now. I KNOW that God is good. That having MS is best, even though right now I may not know exactly why. That doesn't matter. Because I know God is good, I can fully and completely trust him.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Stake in the Ground
Well the results of my MRI are this....the questionable spot in my brain is in fact a MS lesion. So there it is. No more guessing. The good news is that my brain was not full of them. I really struggled with this all last week (which is why I didn't post anything). I am not sure why....I guess I was still hoping I wouldn't have MS. That this was just a fluke thing. I felt angry, hopeless, scared....like my friend said to me it was like I was grieving. And I think I was grieving.....grieving a life I know I will never go back to. I was angry that my youngest would probably only know me as this sick mom. I felt hopeless thinking that God has left me and I had no idea where to go next. I was scared that this pain would never go away and that there is more pain to come. I felt as if I was going to become such a burden to my family. All of this was going through my head on top of being one of the most painful weeks I have had lately.
So where am I now? Well, as of today, I am placing a stake in the ground. Instead of mourning my old life I am going to be excited for this new life. God promises he will never leave me or forsake me and I am going to hold on tightly to that promise. If I continue to look back I am going to miss what is ahead....and I don't want to do that. I may not be able to plan like I used to or "go" like I used to but I can do one thing....one very important thing....I can live each day on my knees before the Lord, relying on his strength to make it through whatever that day brings!
So where am I now? Well, as of today, I am placing a stake in the ground. Instead of mourning my old life I am going to be excited for this new life. God promises he will never leave me or forsake me and I am going to hold on tightly to that promise. If I continue to look back I am going to miss what is ahead....and I don't want to do that. I may not be able to plan like I used to or "go" like I used to but I can do one thing....one very important thing....I can live each day on my knees before the Lord, relying on his strength to make it through whatever that day brings!
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