Honestly

Rotten things happened in my past, but I have to be honest, I’ve made some terrible, sinful mistakes. Sharing my story isn’t so someone can feel sorry for the bad stuff or to justify my sins.

I want to tell others so they can see that God does heal, God does restore, God does take what the enemy meant for evil and turn it into something good.

If we aren’t honest with one another, if we hide what Christ has done for us, we miss the opportunity to help a hurting world and to model redemption.

Today, and every day, let’s be honest enough to show the world what grace has done.

Please listen to “Honestly” by the band VOTA.


Honestly
By VOTA

Honestly
Can I tell you where I'm at
Honestly
Can I pull the curtain back
Will you run if you see how weak I am

If you don't see the real me
You won't see what mercy's done
If you don't see my weakness
You won't see what love has won
If you don't see the distance from the darkness to the sun
You won't see
Honestly

Honestly
I'm growing sick and tired
Honestly
It hurts too much to hide
Brokeness that's killing us inside
If you don't see the real me
You won't see what mercy's done
If you don't see my weakness
You won't see what love has won
If you don't see the distance from the darkness to the sun
You won't see

Let the light escape from this hole inside my soul
When I start to break then grace begins to flow
Let the light escape from this lonely place inside my soul
Honestly

If you don't see the real me
You won't see what grace's done
If you don't see the weakness
You won't see what love has won
If you don't see the distance from the darkness to the sun
You won't see

Please visit VOTA's MySpace page at ... http://www.myspace.com/votaband

Yikes

This evening when I went to my blog I found a rather disturbing picture on my followers through Google Friend Connect. The offending person/photo has been removed. If you ever see anyone following my blog with a questionable picture, please contact me.

I apologize to anyone who might have seen the offending photo. That person has been blocked. My prayers are for that person that they might find God's grace, mercy, and salvation.

Woo hoo! Kreative Blogger Award

Yay! Woo hoo!!!

I’ve been blessed today with the Kreativ Blogger Award by Cathy Bryant at WordVessel. Thank you sooo much, Cathy!

Here are the rules:

~List 7 of my favorite things

~Send this award on to 7 other bloggers

Seven favorite things…

1. God

2. My sweet family

3. Precious God-Given friends

4. God’s amazing, beautiful, incredible, wonderful nature

5. A great, BIG, belly laugh

6. Salsa
7. Dark-chocolate

Passing this award to seven other bloggers (Personally, I’d like to double the list)

1. Tiffany @ Tea with Tiffany http://www.teawithtiffany.com/

2. Nichole @ Living my Life on Purpose http://livingmylifeonpurpose.blogspot.com/

3. Renee @ My Autumn Years http://myautumnyears.blogspot.com/

4. Andrea @ Arise2Write http://arise2write.blogspot.com/

5. Cynthia @ Girl in a Glass House http://girlinaglasshouse.blogspot.com/

6. Becky @ Farmgirl Paints http://farmgirlpaints.blogspot.com/

7. Andrea @ A Parsons Wife http://aparsonswife.blogspot.com/

Praising God for such inspiring bloggers, and praising God for all the others which bless the Blogsphere with encouraging and uplifting posts.

Blessings, my friends!

Lisa

Captivating

I am soooo excited and honored! I’ve received permission from John and Stasi Eldredge to share the following devotion based on their wonderful book, Captivating.

This devotion touched me deeply.

“As large as the role our mothers have played, the word “mother” is more powerful when used as a verb than as a noun. All women are not mothers but all women are called to mother. To mother is to nurture, to train, to educate, to rear. As daughters of Eve, all women are uniquely gifted to help others in their lives become more of who they truly are - to encourage, nurture and mother them towards their true selves. In doing this, women partner with Christ in the vital mission of bringing forth life.

“The nurturing of life is a high and holy calling. And as a woman, it is yours. Yes, it takes many shapes and has a myriad of faces. Yes, men are called to this as well. But uniquely and deeply, this calling makes up part of the very fiber of a woman’s soul – the calling to mother.

“All women are called to mother. And all women are called to give birth. Women give birth to all kinds of things – to a book (it’s nearly as hard as a child, believe me), to a church or to a movement. Women give birth to ideas, to creative expressions, to ministries. We birth life in others by inviting them into deeper realms of healing, to deeper walks with God, to deeper intimacy with Jesus. A woman is not less of a woman because she is not a wife or has not physically born a child. The heart and life of a woman is much vaster than that. All women are made in the image of God in that we bring forth life. When we enter into our world and into the lives of those we love and offer our tender and strong feminine hearts, we cannot help but mother them.

“The capacity of a woman’s heart for meaningful relationships is vast. There is no way your husband or your children can ever provide the intimacy and relational satisfaction you need. A woman must have women friends.

“It is here, in the realm of relationship that women receive the most joy and the profoundest sorrows. The friendships of women inhabit a terrain of great mystery. There is a fierce jealousy, a fiery devotion and a great loyalty between women friends. Our friendships flow in the deep waters of the heart where God dwells and transformation takes place. It is here, in this holy place that a woman can partner with God in impacting another and be impacted by another for lasting good. It is here that she can mother, nurture, encourage and call forth Life.

“To have a woman friend is to relax into another soul and be welcomed in all that you are and all that you are not. To know that, as a woman, you are not alone. Friendships between women provide a safe place to share in the experiences of life as a woman.” John and Stasi Eldredge

John and Stasi Eldredge, Captivating, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2005), pp 176-180)

Thank you, John and Stasi!
Please visit John and Stasi at Ransomed Heart Ministries, http://www.ransomedheart.com/

Not Broken -- Sculpted

Ever wonder about the negative and/or traumatic things that happened during your life? What if we could go back and fix what went wrong?

Loved ones wouldn’t die.
Illness wouldn’t exist.
Evil couldn’t attack.
Mistakes would be undone.

We would all be different.

At very young ages, several of my friends lost their mothers, and that loss affected them deeply. Now I watch as they tenderly nurture their children, family, and friends.

Several of my friends were abused. Through God’s love, they found healing and now reach out to help others.

Other friends struggle with illness. Yet, even with their own difficulties they lift up others to God’s throne.

Some friends took very rough roads, living such wild lives their past would be too extreme to watch on evening television. Through God’s grace, they walk in freedom telling others of God’s goodness and mercy.

There is this marvelous, mysterious, awesomeness that God takes areas of brokenness and sculpts them into something beautiful.

Dear friends, we are not broken; we are beautifully, perfectly sculpted.

Perspective

Worry often looms like a huge obstacle. I’ve been working on my focus and my view of God.

According to NASA, “Scientists estimate that there are more than 100 billion galaxies scattered throughout the visible universe. The Milky Way is a huge city of stars, so big that even at the speed of light it would take 100,000 years to travel across it.”

When anxiety creeps up and sends me reeling, I need to remember that the same God who created the infinite universe, names every star, knows every sparrow that falls, and counts the numbers of hair on my head, is big enough to handle any problem or obstacle.

May I share a visual?

This weekend, sweet hubby and I drove up the nearby mountains to enjoy the beauty. I had to make my first Idaho snowman and a snow angel.

Are you impressed?

Don’t be.

My big, fat snowman was only about six inches tall, and my snow angel made with my fingers.

Perspective. Life is about perspective.

I love what Dr. Harry Kraus wrote in his wonderful book, Breathing Grace, “Anxieties and cares can hide the grace of God. In proper perspective, they are miniscule compared to the riches of God’s grace. The problem is that our focus is on our worries. In effect, we’ve pulled the anxiety so close to our eyes that everything else is blocked out, including God.” *

Dear Heavenly Father,

Help me to keep my focus on You – incredible, awesome, wonderful, Holy, marvelous, matchless, magnificent, all-knowing, loving, all-powerful, infinite, merciful, righteous, mighty You!

*Harry Krauss, M.D., Breathing Grace, (IL: Crossway Books, 2007), pp 128-129

Twiddling Toothpicks

I’ve been lax in blogging this week. Errands, doctor visits, a torn arm muscle, and general life kept me occupied. To be honest, that wasn’t the only reason—I’ve been sad about the house not selling. Today is the eighth month of the listing.

My focus has been on that one thing instead of the amazing bounty of God-given blessings. I tried Bible verses, quotes, hymns, praise and worship songs, and yet nothing seemed to get rid of the little dark cloud. I still felt like the house was chained to my leg, and I couldn’t move forward. Sniffle, whine, pout….

This morning, I remembered I do have a choice. (Yes, I’m rather slow at times). God’s word says to resist the devil, and he will flee from you. I haven’t been resisting, I’ve been a willing partner in allowing the negativity. Instead of utilizing the Sword of the Spirit, I was twiddling toothpicks.

After rebuking my attitude and sending the enemy packing, I figuratively took the house, placed it on God’s altar, and left it for Him. Whew! Boy, I always feel so much better when I do things God’s way.

This world is a tough place and often situations seem overwhelming. Please know that whatever difficulties you face; you are never alone, never without help, and never without a champion.

“Life isn’t measured by how many problems we have but by how we respond to them…. When Jesus informed us that we would have trouble (John 16:33), he did not give us permission to be overcome by trouble, but to accept his help to overcome it!” Max Lucado*


THE ROCK (OF AGES)
By Patricia Neely-Dorsey
http://www.patricianeelydorsey.webs.com/

When troubles and trials come your way,
And all your hope seem pale;
The comfort found in trusting God;
Is one that never fails.
He's the first and final answer,
In every conflict and every woe;
He is the sure and solid rock,
The one that you should know.
When fear threatens to overtake your life
And put you in a bind;
God is the number one defense,
To clear and ease the mind.
Through God's strength you can overcome,
Any giant, any enemy or foe;
He's the weapon of choice,
In this fight called life;
If victory you are to know.

Patricia Neely-Dorsey 2008
Author of Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia
(Poem used by permission. Thank you, Patricia!)

“Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God” (Psalm 43:5 NIV).

*Max Lucado, Life Lessons with Max Lucado – Book of Acts, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006, p 39