Being An Inspiration

Was told just a day or so back that God was using our circumstances and us in ways we do not understand to lead others! Well guess I'd better get out the old 2x4s and shore up my backbone then! Feeling a little 'Stooped' by the weight! So many of our church families are going through struggles such as this, and many have lost their jobs. They feel destitute with nothing to look forward to. We have the most precious gift that I have just realized as I am typing this... We have something to occupy our thoughts and time, and have a beautiful reminder that life goes on and that this too shall pass! That being a wonderful beautiful daughter, that is marrying an absolutely fantastic amazing man! Thank the Lord for this Wedding that we can concentrate on. Thank God in Heaven that my husband had the foresight to put the money for it aside and that provision for it is made! Wow. What a blessing! My heart is overwhelmed with Gladness and I must stop for a moment to Thank Him...
.....................You KNOW whats going on right now...lol!.....................

Feeling very enlightened!
We have been thinking... what horrible timing... but now I see it more clearly...It is the most perfect timing! We can throw ourselves into the joy of preparing for this day knowing that God will bless this marriage, and use it for HIS glory!

So....I guess if people need to watch us go through this and gain strength I will be a willing vessel! May as well make good use of my 'front and center' position to give Him glory!
People are watching anyway so why not be a strength to them?
I don't want to be one of the wailers, that is not my style anyway... So I shall lift my head high... slap that smile on my face.. at ALL times... rejoice and be glad in HIM! and... this too shall pass... (the storm... not the joy!)

If my daughter could dance so beautifully to the song "Blessed be the Name" at the lowest point of her life... then I can definitely sail through this stormy little breeze! So... here we go.... this is how ya do it...
May be a little bumpy at times, but if you fall, you get back up again and laugh about it! Regardless of the bloody knee! You LAUGH... YOU SQUEEZE JOY out of every moment! You refuse the ... "mullygrubs" ... and you get on with the business of Worshiping your King!

We are not alone... we have a PROVIDER who walks with us! 4 people have spoken to us about doors! Now I know that is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear of someone losing a job... but it is NOT the first thing that comes to mind when you are the one having lost it! The reminder was perfect timing. Sis. Stanley spoke to me of a door an hour after this lay off happened! One person told us that God showed them that He needed to close one door in order for us to walk through the better door He has prepared for us! Now we just have to find that door... eh.... ever been in a maze full of doors, or a maze of funny mirrored walls... that is what is like... so it's an adventure... here we go... Wheeeeee! See you on the other side.... and When God steps on board.. your boat is already on the other side of the storm!
I need to end this rambling of thoughts but they are coming fast and furious!
Thank you God for INSPIRING me and leading the way out of this maze!

Blind Sided!

Wow! Did not see that one coming! Still in complete shock! I wake up every morning thinking... what an awful dream... only to come to the slow sickening awakening that it is not a dream! Then you get up... slap yourself in the face with some cold water, and begin taking one step at a time!

Dan went to work on Friday morning. September the 2nd, whistling and singing, happy as a lark as is normal with "morning people!" only to be called into the office and be told that he was laid off! The company had no more money to pay him! His pay stopped officially at noon on Friday! All his commissions for jobs coming up that he had sold and that we were depending on... gone... nothing... nada... zilch! Heh... uh... what? Repeat that please?

And so the process begins.... As this has never happened to us before we had no idea at what step to take next, so as we begin to do what we think we should do... every step is a hassle.. you have to make phone calls to creditors... but there are no people to talk to ... If you want a change of address press one.... If you are in a tailspin..... press two....you have chosen an incorrect option... lol! and on and on... We spent one entire day on the phone! Wow! You just cannot imagine the stresses that pile upon you in just trying to get through this maze.. not to even mention the fact of unemployment, no pay... and all the fears that come along with it!

And you really wish you could get through it with no one knowing.. but you have so involved people in your life because we need each other, that there is no possible way to keep it quiet... then comes the embarrassment, the feelings of inadequacy, blow to ego.. all that junk! You know people will understand.. but there are always those few "talkers" who are just mean spirited that you have to deal with!

And then comes the encouragers! The... "If you need anything, let us know" haha... we have no paycheck coming in... pretty obvious what we're gonna need! And who has any extra of that lying around? haha!
There are those that do not know what to say so they look down, and walk by really quickly...and you just smile because you have been in that same positon... it's really awkward! Then there's the "Everything's gonna be alright!" ... how do you know? I have said that a million times to people when I didn't know what I was saying! And you stand there and smile... thinking of the 15th of the month when the biggies come due, and there will be no deposit!

And so far this is my very favorite...."What are you going to do?" haha! If I knew the answer to that... well I guess I do....

This is what we are going to do:
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart. Lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy path!"

That's it! That is all we can do!
It's your's Lord! You are all we know! You are really all we have! Everything else slips through our fingers one way or another, no matter how hard you work for it, and no matter how tight you try to hold onto it! But Thou oh Lord are a shield for me. My glory and the lifter of my head!

We have walked through treacherous times before and that is both good and bad... bad because you know what can happen and it scares you to death... but good because you know God has ALWAYS gotten you through it even if He did not spare you from it!

I don't know how to face tomorrow, but I know who holds tomorrow... so I know we really will be ok... eventually! But we are definitely not "OK" right now!

Just give us that!

Yeah we are gonna come out fighting... but right now we are still knocked down! So give us words of encouragement.....WE DESPERATELY need them... but only after you have truly prayed for us! It is the words given to you in prayer that are the words that truly are stepping stones to get us back up and able to fight! It is in Prayer that God uses you to comfort and uplift!

Maybe this will be my book....lol! "How to be an Encourager"... for dummies! haha! I crack myself up... oh well it is my blog!
God will see us through... He is faithful!

Wedding...ing! ...and Blissfully happy about it!

There is no other word for it! We are wedding..ing! It is so much fun! Each day we do a little, and little by little things is getting checked off the list! We have booked a Venue, purchased all the necessary flowers, planned the reception, scheduled Photographers...and today we are putting the final touches on being ready for Bridal Portraits tomorrow! Just need to get a cake and figure out the food, and a few more details and I think we are done for now with all we can do till it gets closer to "The Day"!
Thank you Josh for making her such a happy bride! She is truly in a blessed state of blissful happiness, and I couldn't be more at peace! What a feeling to see your little girl become such a radiant beautiful woman! I can't wait for the day she walks down that aisle and all her dreams finally become reality! I know she will make a wonderful wife because I can see so much anticipation in her wanting to set up her home at last! Seeing all this in her reminds me of that time so long ago when I was in her shoes! This is truly one of the most special times in a girl's life and I am so happy to be going through it again with her! She is such a blessing to me and such a treasure of a person to know. I really feel sorry for those who do not know her very well, because you are truly missing a treat! She is the type of person who demands very little, and expects nothing of you other than for you to try to be happy! She is a bit like her dad in all that she is, with bits of me sprinkled in for a little surprise now and then! She is not interested in drama or attention, but is just blissfully walking into her own, becoming a lady at peace with her life! Just last night out of the blue she quietly said to me - "I am so thankful for everything I have been through, because it has brought me to this place and given me a deep appreciation for all that I have been given, and for what the future holds for me!" I bit back the tears of gratitude to the Lord and said nothing for a moment, because I knew in that moment, she was in deep thought at having voiced that revelation as it washed over her and became a part of her!
She is enjoying and even relishing every moment of this wedding planning, and there doesn't seem to be any great stress!(now that we have a venue, that is!)
One day long ago the Lord gave me a scripture to hold on to and I have this day seen it come to pass.
Proverbs 3:17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness and all her paths are peace!
While this scripture is talking about acquiring wisdom, The Lord's promise to me was that if I would raise her up in the wisdom and nurture of the church and never depart from it, the Lord would give her a life of peace! I know He has put her on this path at last, and I remain forever grateful!
I listened to them talking together last night as they planned for their future and heard them talk about ministry and what God has called them to, and heard her saying that she would follow him anywhere and do anything with him, that she didn't care where God called them, as long as they were working side by side!
I now know that the life lessons she has learned were for a reason and were meant to strengthen her for the journey ahead!
I am so very thankful that His hands are always there, and His wings fly faster than we can fall!

Thankful

You know... God is just priceless. You can purchase all kinds of Insurance, but that won't keep you from accidents. You can take vitamins, supplements, eat healthy, exercise and live a healthy lifestyle, but you can still suffer illness and/or disease. All the money we can spend on all the remedies and cures of this world...we have no guarantee they will protect us at all. We do have an assurance to turn to tho... all we really need is just one word... "Jesus" and faith that He will do as He has promised.
I am so thankful for a prayer I prayed a little over two years ago, early one morning after a very disturbing dream which I now know God gave to me. My prayer was as follows very simply -
"God, I know that up to this point You have allowed this, and even blessed it. But maybe there are things that have changed along the way? What are you showing me? If this is not right, block it now, and whatever we have to go through we will deal with it. Only you know the future, and only you know the past. To me, everything looks great and I believe this is your perfect plan, but if we are wrong, or if there has been a wrong turn taken and some have stepped out of your will then we bow to your wisdom. You see and know all things! Please step in because you know what is best. You promised me long ago... (here I named the exact promise which I cannot reveal)... And I still stand on that promise today! I trust you, Lord, this is your decision, Not ours! Please take over!"
The very next day parts of my dream were revealed. I was very disturbed, but trusted God and stood on His promise. Little did I know God had stepped in at the exact moment I prayed. That very night He took over and the process began.
Two months later, after we were in the erruptions of the storm, a message was preached that God would someday, in His own time, remove the blinders and we would see the hinder-part of the situation, and all would know.
But we would have been spared and would be walking and living in blessing and in peace.

It has begun. Bits of those blinders are being removed and we can see what God was doing!

When I prayed the simple prayer, I had no clue all that I was asking God to do, the actual horror I was allowing Him to unleash into our lives, but I knew I could trust in Him. I knew He would ultimately protect us. His Word was my Guarantee! In the midst of the horrible situation we knew it was God's hand that was troubling the waters! We knew that God was allowing the pain. We knew it was our only way out! And forever more, me and mine will be secure in the promises of God. For they are everlasting. They are our Insurance and our Guarantee, our protection from every situation and storm. Because of that one situation and God bringing us out of it, our faith will remain unshaken. A new heritage was built for my family and all my descendants from now and forever more! GOD PROVED HIS WORD!
You may feel the situation you are in right now is going to destroy you, but if you know God's hand is in it, then you can trust that you will come out in the end victorious, and better because of it. If you could only see what you were going to be after this storm! I hope this strengthens someone today, because it was not a fun experience to relive. But I felt compelled to share this because I know of some LIFE ALTERING storms people are struggling with. God will show you why some day. But in the mean time.. just trust! Hold HIS WORD next to your heart! Literally! I have slept holding my Bible many nights! It was the only way sleep would come! He is a Keeper of His Word! Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and HE shall direct thy path.

A Little Riled

Ok I know... I am a little festered right now. I just think it is high time we stood up for what we love. Hasn't anyone ever heard the little rule.. Don't have your pastor for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? So why do some think it is ok to speak against the Organization? I just don't get it... why if it has been engrained into us for life not to speak against the ministry, does it become ok to do so, when you feel they do something that you disagree with. Pretty sure the Bible tells us "Touch not mine annointed" and that covers them all...There are annointed holy men of old that I am sure I would not agree with on every level... but still I cannot allow myself to come against them.... Voicing your opinion in a derogatory way is not the way to stand up for something. When you use the word dung to describe what you think of what our Organization has made a decision on... you may as well say the real word you are thinking...We are all thinking it! And it is NOT right.. It is WRONG! It is a matter of respect! Oh be careful little mouth what you say!-- Wow two posts in one day!

Grace and Mercy

Thought I would let my thoughts unfold this morning! Haven't been on in awhile, and have gotten definitely older since my last post was the day before my birthday! It was brought to my attention that my previous post may have been a little "accusatory" if that is a word. That was not my intent. It was merely an observation regarding a situation at hand that we were experiencing. As I recall, I really didn't have a particular person or people in mind! ok- enough about that!
Today going forward...I heard the song this morning, (don't know the name)
"If I fall let it be on the grace that first brought me to you, and If I weep let it be as a man who is longing for his home"! If I sing...
and I began to think of God's Grace. How it is unfailing, never-ending. I really don't have much drama in my life, no pull of the world that controls my puppet strings, but still I have His grace whenever I need it. And there are times when I fall to my knees in need of immediate grace! And He is right there with plenty to spare. His love for us is such an amazement to me! The deepest sinner, the saint who struggles, the young person faced with temptations insurmountable... we all have the same grace extended unto us! His love so amazes me.. to be more like Him in my dealings with others is what I strive to achieve. How much more should I extend grace to others because of the limitless grace and mercy He has readily available to me!
"Your grace and Mercy, has brought me through.
I'm living this moment, because of you!
I want to thank you, and praise you too!
Your grace and mercy has brought me through!"
And so it goes... another day full of blessings, full of grace and His mercy! How can I not live this day in thanksgiving unto HIM?

New Beginnings

For many years the term "New Beginnings" has bothered me, or more so annoyed me because I thought the two words cancelled each other out. But I find myself and my family at a crossroads of New Beginnings and I believe I finally understand the concept! There really can be such a thing as a new beginning... a beginning for the first time down the same path...lol~! That path of engagement! Wow. This time has begun with such a sense of rightness.. no flags.. nothing but promises of God. So many congratulations and best wishes... but it is funny, the thing that really screams louder is those who for whatever reason have not given their congratulations. Funny how some of the people who mean the most to you, really don't give much thought to you! Oh well! I refuse to be intimidated by thoughtless people and I refuse for that thoughtlessness to change my love for them. I watch and learn! There is so much about the human nature that is so intriguing to me! So many things can be learned and discerned if you hold your peace, let the Lord fight your battles, and watch and pray! God is good, just, faithful and is more than enough for any New Beginning we find ourselves in!
So Josh and Shelly... go with God for HE is in charge! Your steps are ordered of the Lord, so fear not... the path will be illuminated for you at each step you take!