Thank You for You

 Thanksgiving! I love Thanksgiving and all the hustle & bustle that follows in preperation for Christmas! Such a beautiful start to celebrating Christ's birth! Usually we reflect and thank Him for things we have such as home, family, food, etc. This Thanksgiving I've been prompted to thank Him for Him. Thank Him for His qualities. Thank Him for His very person! So, while this is not an exhaustive list, here's a few of my favorites!

                              MY  GOD IS:

1. FORGIVING.  Psalm 103:12 "as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us." That ends in a period. It's a statement. A fact. I'd like for it to end in an exclamation mark because that fact is so exciting to me! To Him its fact, so to me its fact & I love that.

2. LOVING. 1 John 3:1 "How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God! And that is what we are!" John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son..." Now say it with your name- "For God so loved________, that He gave His one and only Son..."

3. FAMILY.  Read 1 John 3:1 again! Ephesians 1:5 "He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will". He finds pleasure in adopting me into His family!!!

4. MERCIFUL. Ephesians 2:4-5 "But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ".

5. GRACIOUS & COMPASSIONATE.  Isaiah 30:18 "the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion." Notice how He isn't just gracious to you; He longs to be gracious to you. He doesn't just show compassion; He rises to do so. He makes an extra effort!

6. KIND. Ephesians 2:7 "the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus."

7. PROMISES. Acts 2:38-39 "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off - for all whom the Lord our God will call." Deuteronomy 26: 18-19 "And the Lord has declared this day that you are his people, His treasured possesion as He promised...He has declared that...you will be a people holy to the Lord your God, as He promised."

8. FAITHFUL. Hebrews 10:23 "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He Who promised is faithful." 1 Thess. 5:24 "The One Who calls you is faithful and He will do it." 1John 1:9 "...He is faithful and just..." Psalm 91:4 "His faithfulness will be your sheild..."

9.  PROTECTING. Psalm 32:7 "You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance."

10. ATTENTIVE. This one is very dear to me! 1 John 5:14 "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us." Not only does He hear us, He loves to hear from us! The way I love to hear from family & friends this Thanksgiving & Christmas season is how He loves to hear from me every single moment! I find that so beautiful!!

Like I mentioned, this is not an exhaustive list of Gods qualities. There are many more! Each one means something different & special to us personally! Please share your favorite(s) in the comments below!

Affairs of My Household

 Since the last post, Proverbs 31:27 keeps coming to my thoughts a lot.

"She watches over the affairs of her household."

What are 'the affairs of my household'? Well, obviously, the cooking, cleaning, laundry, chores, school, sports, haircuts, clothes & grocery shopping, appointments... the list is endless! Lots of organizing, preparing, & planning schedules & routines to make sure life runs as smoothly as possible for everyone. It's all a lot of hard work! But, is that all it means to 'watch over the affairs of my household'? Yes....well, wait! Maybe...no?!?! We get so wrapped up in daily life its easy to forget there's a bigger, greater, more divine purpose in daily tasks of  'doing life'.

Paul tells us to live life by the Spirit. What does that look like? Or, what it is NOT. Paul wrote in Galations 5:19-21 

" The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness orgies, and the like." 

If you're like me, you're thinking, "That's some harsh stuff! I don't have half that stuff going on under my roof & if I did, there'd better be a change made. Pronto! Now! Immediately! Get out & be gone!!

Let me gently say, if you know there's sexual immorality, impurity & debauchery, witchcraft, drunkenness, orgies & the like going on in your household, find help. Do all you can to remove yourself & your precious innocent loved ones from such goings on & do it promptly.

Now let's look at the other things. Discord is defined by Websters New World Dictionary as a disagreement, a harsh noise. So, a loud arguement. 

Yikes! We have those occasionally. 

Dissension is defined as a disagreement, and faction is defined as dissension. 

Note how Paul wrote "faction AND envy" instead of "faction, (comma) envy", as if they were a seperate item on a list. Faction is also defined as "a group of people working together against a main body". Is it safe to assume that faction & envy are related? I believe so! 

Just think how quickly a seed of envy in just one person's heart can spread & turn into a revolution of hatred. Hatred stems from discord, dissension, faction, jealousy & the like. 

Just this morning we had a loud arguement between siblings. Let's call it what it is- dissension, faction, discord. Without wise intervention & discernment from a parent, such things could easily turn into hatred. Yikes!!

Jealousy is closely related to envy. Jealousy is also defines as resentfulness. Sometimes I resent others for what they have. But not just others. Sometimes I resent that my husband gets to leave the house every day to go to work, hunting, or some other activity thats not necessarily IN the home, but definately FOR the home. I know he feels it & worse, my kids pick up on it. Another 'Yikes!'

Fits of rage is a scary picture. A fit is a sudden uncontrolable attack or outburst. Rage is furious, uncontrolled, violent anger. So a fit of rage is a sudden uncontrolled outburst of furious uncontrolled violent anger. I've never seen a literal fit of rage, but I've displayed anger in a loud voice. To me, that's too close to a fit of rage to be dismissed.

Are these things affairs of my household?

Sadly, yes.

I have to work on omitting these things from my home daily. Not just in my children, but first & foremost, in myself. I'm the one they learned it from. Ouch. 

I have a sinful nature & its obvious, as Paul wrote. But, praise the Lord, that's not all! I also have His grace! My legacy doesn't have to end with my sinful self. Halleluja!!!

Through Jesus you & I have been given "divine power to demolish strongholds" (2Cor.10:3-5) and put on the fruits of the Spirit- "love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control." (Gal 5:22-23)

Today I'm convicted that THE AFFAIRS OF MY HOUSEHOLD ARE SO CLOSELY RELATED TO THE AFFAIRS OF MY HEART, THAT I CANNOT SEPERATE THEM.

Join me in prayer, dear one! Let's, with faithful feet & linked arms pray for one another & stand strong against the enemy's scheme to inch his way into our hearts & homes.

Lord,

I come before you, humbled & repentant. I give you the affairs of my heart. Take my bad attitudes, dissension, envy, jealousy, fits of rage (fill in the blank)________________. I lay them at your feet. I don't want them anymore.

Father, thank you for Your total forgiveness! Strengthen my resolve to be strong in You, Lord. Today I put on Your full armor to stand against the enemy's shemes & to demolish strongholds in Jesus' name. From this moment forward help me to display only love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control in my words & actions toward my husband & children. Where my attitudes have overflowed, impacted & hurt them, bring total reconciliation, forgiveness, & healing.

Lord, as I go now to watch over the affairs of my household, be with me to strengthen & remind me to first watch over the affairs of my heart.

Amen.

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My Chicken Heart

Chicken!!! Ba-gack bac-bac-bac-ba-gack!!! We've all heard it, whether it was directed toward us or others, in fun or mocking. Sometimes used as a funny way to encourage a scared individual or just flat out mean-spirited mockery.

 

We have chickens. Forty some, to give you an idea! Its quite a flock! A noisy, stinky, feathery, hungry, easily excited, routine loving flock. I find these birds intriguing. Let me share!

 

The first thing I learned is they don't produce eggs very well under stress. Moving them to a new location, excessive heat, cold, change in diet,etc. will alter their ability to be fruitful & lay eggs.When we moved five times in five years, there was about a week after every move that I didn't want to do much of anything. In all honesty I wasn't very productive. When a loved one passes we feel drained for weeks, maybe years. When you recieve the doctors diagnosis, life seems to stand still. Your spouse drops the d-bomb & your world becomes frozen. Your in shock. You step into survival mode & go through an unproductive period.

 

Chickens go through a less productive time under stress, but they still need fed. Likewise, we, when going through that stressful time, need to be fed spiritually, or the load becomes even more unbearable. Open your Bible! Read a little every day. Going to church is vital, but if thats all we do to get a dose of spiritual food, we can't benefit to the fullest extent. God has a spiritual buffet laid out in His word. Dig in! Help yourself! Take all you want & even fill to-go boxes for later. Share those to-go boxes of faith food with your family & loved ones around you. They need it, too. And don't forget to return to His feast daily.

 

Chickens don't like new or different chickens. We started with Rhode Island Red chickens, as pictured above. When we were given 19 other chickens, some black, some white, there was some major drama going on in that chicken house for days. The black & white chickens were soon missing neck feathers, cowered in the corner & I even had to feed them in a different area of the coop. While humans don't literally pick out each others neck feathers, we've all done the same thing to someone not quite as stylish as ourselves. Maybe they don't look like us & we don't want to be associated with their look. "God does not judge by external appearance" (Gal. 2:6 & 1Sam.16:7) So if we are trying to put on the image of Christ, go talk to the person. Say Hi! If we hear others talking about the individual, picking out their neck feathers, so to say, we mustn't stand idly by! "Keep corrupt talk far from your lips." (Pr. 4:24) Especially, in your home, around your children.

 

When preparing for our small herd of chickens, my husband fixed a door, we built a roosting place, nest boxes, spread staw on the floor, bought a waterer, feeder & feed. We wanted to make sure the conditions were suitable & accomodating for a chicken. Likewise, we prepare or home with comfortable furniture & beds, good food, clean clothes, etc. We carefully attend to the physical needs of our small family. But what about the spiritual needs of our family? Proverbs 27:23 reads "Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds." OK!! So maybe we don't have 40+ kids, but even 3 can seem like a herd or a flock at times!! ;)

 

Spiritual well-being is an essential aspect of everyday life. When a family or individual is spiritually well, there is an undeniable sense of love & acceptance in their presence. The parents stive for unity, the children are aware of their value to the family & as an individual. 'The condition of the flock' is well! This doesn't just happen. It takes planning, preparing, communicating, intentionality, commitment, & perseverance. Parenting or shepherding a flock is hard, but God has equipped us for the journey! Dig into His spiritual buffet daily for continual encouragement & direction!

 

For me & my chicken prone heart, shepherding my flock would sound something like this coming from a megaphone: "A wise woman 'watches over the affairs of her household.' (Pr.31:27) So, today get off your social media duff, shut the TV off, & be attentive to the affairs of your household!" But, that's just me, I need a little in-your-face calling out sometimes! "Be very careful then, how you live- not as unwise, but as wise, makng the most of every opportunity" (Eph. 5:15-16) How careful?? VERY careful! How many opportunities??  EVERY.SINGLE.ONE. Pray over each member of your household for at least 10min every day. Encourage them to do for themselves. Engage in their activities. Laugh with them. Cry with them. Look into their eyes when they speak. Listen to their words. Being listened to is so close to being loved that most people can't tell the difference. " Be quick to listen, slow to speak & slow to become angry." (James 1:19)

 

Don't be chicken!! Buck up, dear mama!! Be encouraged! "Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature & complete, not lacking anything" (James 1:4) Lacking what?? NOTHING!! Na-da. Zilch. (Can you tell we watch veggie tales? lol) "Love [your] husband & children...be self controlled & pure...be busy at home...be kind," (Titus 2:4) "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances," (1Thess.5:16) Dear one, "make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business & to work with your hands"(1 Thess. 4:11), and diligently, ever so diligently "WATCH OVER THE AFFAIRS OF YOUR HOUSEHOLD" (Pr.31:27)

 

To the enemy chant "ba ba back-off! This is a household of God!" Claim it!

 

 

 

 

Refreshments for the Soul

Refreshments...aahhh, just the word will get most of us thinking of snacks, delectable desserts, maybe a punch bowl filled with a colorful fruity ice cold drink..aahhh, sweet, sweet refreshment!

In life there are many times we need refreshment. Life throws its curves, theres ups & downs, highs & lows. When rubber meets the road our souls often need refreshment, our hope renewed, resolve revived, courage reestablished & faith rejuvenated.When we receive refreshment our demeanor is brightened & we become refocused on what is truely important.

Proverbs 11:25 says "He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed." Could I possibly revive a burdened soul? Could I help reestablish anothers courage & resolve to fight the good fight? And if so, what does that look like? How can I, struggling & stressed & needy as I am, refresh another soul?

Let's start with the ones closest to us! My husband labors all day to provide for his family. He has encountered many physical demands throughout the day & is exhausted. Coming home to a trashed house, screaming kids, & unkempt wife, he will not experience the inviting refreshment he needs & longs for. Greeting him with your days burdens will not make him want to come home any earlier. In fact, he might even tuck tail & head for his shop to tinker around, away from the chaos & adding to your frustration. But, a door opened to him by a calm welcoming wife, will immediately make him feel refreshed. The smell of dinner in its beginning stages, a tall glass of iced tea & the newspaper brought to him by a smiling wife & his children playing peacefully in a somewhat tidy home will revive him greatly. Which home would you rather be invited into?

The mom who has rocked & carried a fussy baby for 10hrs, would be greatly refreshed to have a helping hand. Whether its a meal, help with the baby so she can take a nap, or household duties, a helping hand refreshes her demeanor & revives her weary heart!

The elderly experience long days often wondering if family has forgotten them. Day after day they sit & wait & long for companionship. A few minutes of a smiling face dropping into say hi, give a hug, or help with a chore is great refreshment to the elderly's day.

A boy up to bat with bases loaded, 2 outs & has never made contact with the ball, will be encouraged beyond a doubt by hearing his mom shouting her support & belief in his ability. He will be refreshed just knowing that no matter what, I still have someone who loves me!

Isn't that what refreshment of the soul is all about? Expressing our love for the individual, whether in words or deeds! When was the last time you needed refreshment? I've often received refreshment in the form of an encouraging text, a card, a smile, an understanding look from another mom in the grocery store, my husband switching laundry to the dryer, a bouquet of limp dandelions clutched in small hands, & my favorite - tiny arms squeezing my neck with all their might! What beautiful day brightners! I felt so loved!! My heart revived & willing to keep on keeping on!

Maybe, because of lifes demands I can't do great & marvelous things, but I can smile! I can text! I can hug! I can offer a meal! I can send a card! I can offer child sitting for a tired mom! I can kiss boo-boos! I can serve my husband cheerfully! I CAN refresh others! & in turn I will be refreshed! So, offer someone a tall glass of Soul Refreshment today! You're likely to spill a little on yourself!

 "A cheerful heart is good medicine" Pr. 17:22