i am weak

Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.

- Psalm 105:4

I am weak.

I struggle with a lot of things, some things are not even mine to struggle with, yet I do.

I stress out badly, and I know deep down that these crazy things are just that – things.

Song reference!

You are my strength when I am weak
You are the treasure that I seek
You are my all in all
Seeking You as a precious jewel
Lord, to give up I'd be a fool
You are my all in all

Taking my sin, my cross, my shame
Rising up again I bless Your name
You are my all in all
When I fall down You pick me up
When I am dry You fill my cup
You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

These things . . . I need to stop struggling, stop freaking out and give it to Jesus. 

He is my all in all.

Have a blessed day.

let me in!

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

- Revelation 3:20

I am kind of a freak about locking my doors, in the house in the car, I have never really lived in one of those towns where you could leave your doors and windows open and your keys in the ignition and not worry about your stuff.

So when someone knocks on my door, unless I am expecting company, I am a little (a lot) skeptical about their reason for being at my door in the first place.

Back in the day, I was a country music fan – I know, it was a crazy thing . . . but there was this song that had a cool beat and interesting lyrics. 

It is probably mildly inappropriate here, but I promise there is a tie in – the song was “Somebody’s Knockin’” and here is a snippet of the lyrics:

Somebody's knockin'
Should I let him in
Lord it's the devil
Would you look at him
I've heard about him
But I never dreamed
He'd have blue eyes and blue jeans

Well somebody's talkin'
He's whispering to me
Your place or my place
Well, which will it be
I'm gittin' weaker
And he's comin' on strong
But I don't wanna go wrong

OK, here is the tie in – there is always someone knocking.

It is really up to you to answer – it could be the devil and he could have a heck of a deal for you, or it could be Jesus, with a far better deal.

But you have to answer the door.

You can slam it in the face of the devil when you realize you don’t want that mess.

Listen to the voice that is behind the knock, let Jesus into your heart.

You won’t regret His presence in your life.

Have a blessed day.

I am good enough

Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

- Psalm 32:1

One of my daily devotionals had this verse and a comment “stained by our sin, we are led to believe that we are not good enough for God.”

That my friends, is a flat out LIE.

That kind of thinking is the evil one trying to get inside your head.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing that could remove you from your Father.

When you ask forgiveness, it is given to you.

If you feel like you are not good enough or not forgiven – that is not God, honey, that is evil, through and through.

Song reference!

When he told you you're not good enough
When he told you you're not right
When he told you you're not strong enough
To put up a good fight
When he told you you're not worthy
When he told you you're not loved
When he told you you're not beautiful
That you'll never be enough

Fear, he is a liar
He will take your breath
Stop you in your steps
Fear he is a liar
He will rob your rest
Steal your happiness
Cast your fear in the fire
'Cause fear he is a liar

When he told you were troubled
You'll forever be alone
When he told you you should run away
You'll never find a home
When he told you you were dirty
And you should be ashamed
When he told you you could be the one
That grace could never change

Fear he is a liar
He will take your breath
Stop you in your steps
Fear he is a liar
He will rob your rest
Steal your happiness
Cast your fear in the fire
'Cause fear he is a liar

Let Your fire fall and cast out all my fears
Let Your fire fall Your love is all I feel

Oh, fear he is a liar
He will take your breath
Stop you in your steps
Fear he is a liar
He will rob your rest
Steal your happiness
Cast your fear in the fire
'Cause fear he is a liar

I am good enough.

You are good enough.

If you have any doubts whatsoever about your worth, call me . . .  I will show you in the Bible exactly how important and worthy you are.

Have a blessed day.

it is ok to not be ok

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

- Matthew 5:4

First, I apologize for being out of pocket for a bit, things should be back to normal now.

This verse, it says a lot for such few words.

We can mourn over a lot of things, a broken friendship, a misplaced treasure, a career change, the death of a loved one (human or furry).

Jesus said that those who mourn are comforted.

So that must mean that it is ok to not be ok, right?

Just remember that if you are not ok, especially if you are not ok, you are not alone.

All you have to do is reach out.    

Have a blessed day!

be careful of your influence

If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.

- Mark 9:42

This past week I was given the opportunity to work with the little ones in our church.

Our Women’s Ministry hosts a “date night” on Valentine’s Day every year, we have parents in our congregation drop their kiddos off with us, we feed them dinner, let them watch movies and play games for 2-3 hours so mom and dad can get some much needed time alone.

This is not something I find pleasant. ( ! )

Blessed are those who are teachers and caregivers – after only an hour or so I was pulling my hair out – ya’all who do this for multiple hours everyday have got to be some kind of angels!!

Anyway . . .  one thing that I noticed as we had kiddos separated in age groups, is that if one was acting out, it did not take long for a couple more to follow suit. 

Very quickly one minor infraction could escalate into an all out war!

That said, we need to watch what we do and say as well, because these little ones, they not only copy each other but us as well.

We are role models, we need to make sure that we are being good role models.

Old song reference!!

O be careful little eyes what you see
O be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little eyes what you see
O be careful little ears what you hear
O be careful little ears what you hear
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little ears what you hear
O be careful little tongue what you say
O be careful little tongue what you say
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little tongue what you say

O be careful little hands what you do
O be careful little hands what you do
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little hands what you do
O be careful little feet where you go
O be careful little feet where you go
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little feet where you go

O be careful little heart whom you trust
O be careful little heart whom you trust
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little heart whom you trust
O be careful little mind what you think
O be careful little mind what you think
For the Father up above
is looking down in love
So, be careful little mind what you think
Have a blessed day!

unseen

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

- 2 Corinthians 4:18

A lot of people find it hard to believe is something they cannot see.

There are quite a few jokes in the world about the professor/teacher that was trying to disprove that there is a God by saying that you can’t see, hear, smell or feel God, so He does not exist, and the student that counters with the fact that you can’t see, hear, smell or feel the professor’s brain, so it does not exist.

The idea of the joke is to bring humor into a tense issue, but realistically, there are still people that do not believe.

I am not sure how I would get through each day, if I didn’t have God.

I am certainly not saying that my life is perfect, because I sure have bad days, and there are times I just sit and cry.

I will however, stand strong in my faith, personally knowing that my God helps me through those bad times.

Even when I can not see.

Song reference!

You were reaching through the storm
Walking on the water
Even when I could not see
In the middle of it all
When I thought You were a thousand miles away
Not for a moment did You forsake me
Not for a moment did You forsake me

After all You are constant
After all You are only good
After all You are sovereign
Not for a moment will You forsake me

You were singing in the dark
Whispering Your promise
Even when I could not hear
I was held in Your arms
Carried for a thousand miles to show
Not for a moment did You forsake me

After all You are constant
After all You are only good
After all You are sovereign
Not for a moment will You forsake me
Not for a moment will You forsake me

And every step every breath you are there
Every tear every cry every prayer
In my hurt at my worst
When my world falls down
Not for a moment will You forsake me
Even in the dark
Even when it's hard
You will never leave me
After all

After all You are constant
After all You are only good
After all You are sovereign
Not for a moment will You forsake me

I hope you know Him too – He is there.

Have a blessed day!

you are mine

But now, this is what the Lord says— He who created you, Jacob, He who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

- Isaiah 43:1

Valentine’s day. . . there are lots of opinions about this day, some are kind of messed up!

There is also a lot of history behind the day of giving candy and gifts.

From the saints in the Catholic church, to pagan roots (Lupercalia – a fertility festival), it has been declared un-Christian, today it is recognized as a significant cultural, religious, and commercial celebration of romance and romantic love in many regions around the world, although it is not a public holiday in any country.

I’ve heard it called Valentine’s Day, Saint Valentine’s Day, the feast of Saint Valentine and singles awareness day.

The card/candy/flower industry absolutely thrives on this holiday, as Valentine’s Day is the second largest card-sending holiday of the year, and all of those cards say one thing: “Be Mine”

We already belong to someone – right there in scripture, we are told “you are mine”.

I get kind of warm and fuzzy thinking that God has already declared me to be His.

Warm, fuzzy and loved.

Have a blessed day!