ByGrace

This might get a little preachy, but it's something that hit me square in the face yesterday and I thought it would be a good thing to share. To set the stage: Yesterday morning, Wes and I were getting ready to take the kids shopping down in Bellingham, WA. The Lord has blessed us with an extra bit this month, and the kids and Wes needed some things, so after Andrew and Beth were finished with school, we were planning to head out. I needed to know what Wes wanted to do about lunch and supper, since we'd be leaving right around lunch time and we weren't sure when we'd get back home. I asked him if he wanted me to fix our main meal of the day before we left (which we've been doing recently), and he said no; we'd take some snacks with us. So I was planning what I'd do before we left so supper would be quicker when we got home. He casually said, "I thought we might stop at Red Robin (a restaurant) on the way home," to which I immediately respond...

I just read this morning's entry at The View From My Fishbowl . Rachel is editing an old book for republishing, and came across this statement: "Our human leaders, our mission directors, secretaries, boards, and organizations ply us with this exhortation: “Pray the Holy Spirit to lead us!” That is popular and pious too. But do we or they really and truly desire God to lead us? Are we not really in our hearts, praying that God will lead us our way? I must say, this was very convicting to me in light of my stressful week. The disappointment early in the week came about partly because I was praying, "Lord, this is what I want; now please bless my plan and give me what I want." There's nothing at all wrong with praying for what we want. In fact, God desires to give us "richly all things to enjoy." Just as we want to see our children enjoying themselves. But He also knows what is best for us, just as we can see that some things our children might want ...

Candy is once again challenging us to post pictures of a week of wearing dresses. I joined in last summer, so I won't do another week, but I will put links here so you can see my week of wearing dresses. Nope, I didn't wear them for just that week; I wear them all the time! Yes! Every day! So many ladies are interested in the why's and how's of switching over to wearing dresses all the time that doing these pictures kind of gives them an idea of how to go about their daily tasks wearing dresses. We live so much in the present that we don't even realize that our foremothers (is that a word?) would not have dreamed of putting on a pair of pants, save for maybe going out to help their husbands in the fields or some other such emergency. My Granny grew up on a north Georgia farm, and the only time she ever wore pants in her 88 years of life was to pick cotton as a young girl, and even then her Daddy only let her wear them to the field and back to the house to pu...

In my Bible reading today, I found this verse: Isaiah 25:8 - He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it. I love this promise! It's also found in I Corinthians 15:54,55 - So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy stin? O grave, where is thy victory? and here, in Revelation 21:4 - And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. These verses always make me feel like shouting and rejoicing! No more death! No more sickness! No more tears! This Precious Moments figurine, entitled No Tears Past the Gate, captures th...

In our Patch the Pirate Club this month, we've been studying how to make right choices. There really are only two choices when we're confronted with a decision - pleasing God or pleasing self. It's easy to know what to do when something is definitely in the Bible, such as "Thou shalt not bear false witness" or "Children, obey your parents in the Lord"; but what do you do when it's not so clear-cut? The authors of the children's devotions this month spent one week providing them with questions they can ask themselves when they're having a hard time deciding what's right to do. I thought they were excellent questions, and would probably be good for us adults too! I know that I've learned a little more and been challenged myself to please God rather than myself as I've taught the children this month. So I thought I'd share these questions here. 1. What does the Bible say? Proverbs 6:23 2. What would Jesus do? I John 2:...

My friend Jamie posted yesterday about what makes her feel awesome . I had to laugh when I read it, because she and I are similar in this respect. Well, she gets a charge out of washing diapers, and I don't - or didn't, rather - but we're alike in what makes us feel good. Accomplished. Domestic. Fulfilled. I got to thinking about what makes me feel like I've accomplished something, and I realized that it's just little things that make me feel good. I have a cousin whose wife is the CEO of a company, and she's always lifted up by the unsaved members of our family as an example of what a woman can do to make herself valuable. Look at what E did; she started at the bottom and worked her way up; she's a self-made woman. This cousin-in-law of mine is a very nice lady - I like her - but she has the world's philosophy of a woman's worth. My sister has 7 children, and you just know what they say about that! LOL How on earth does she take care of t...

I've seen the phrase "My Heart is Fixed in 2006" and I like it. I want my heart to be fixed on several things this year, and I'm not talking about needing heart surgery! I want my heart fixed, steady and focused, this year. To "fix on" something is to focus on it, pay special attention to it. There are some areas in my life that I'd like to be fixed on this coming year. First of all, I want my heart to be fixed on Jesus. I want to be in fellowship with Him minute by minute. I've struggled this year with Bible reading and prayer; I want to re-establish those things more firmly in my life and especially concentrate on Bible study, not just reading. I want to take the time to listen to some preaching online and on tape, to feed myself more of God's Word and His instruction. I want to be able to say with David, "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise." Psalm 57:7, and again in Psalm 108:1 I also wan...