Praising the Healer

It was going to be a LONG trip, at least twelve hours, with a bus-full of teens and my two little ones. The babies didn't like their car seats and we had one very stomach-sick teen. Oh, and did I mention that our bus broke down only 2 hours away from our home? 

This could be a post about a very horrible trip but it's not going to be that. The trip and teens that we took, ended up being quite lovely! However, in the bleakness of that night, a miraculous event occurred and THAT is what I want to tell you about.

Sweet "T" (she certainly fits the name) is usually all smiles and just a blessing to be around.  Another fact about her is that she seems to be highly allergic to everything. From pollen to animals to weather changes to perfume and germs, she seems to get sick quite easily. It's possible that she might have a rare white blood cell disorder that her dad has but she has not been tested for that, as of yet. 

When our bus broke down outside of Jacksonville, we did a little shopping and then hung out outside throwing the football and goofing off. Later that night we ended up at a dear family's house who had dogs. We didn't know before that night that she reacted to them. 

It was a bit of a shocker to wake up at 3AM to the sound of her having a horrible coughing fit. It was so bad that as I sat and rocked her; I feared that we would most likely end up at the hospital. I had packed her inhaler machine (which was another miracle) and gave her a treatment but it still didn't seem to make that much of a difference. 

The only thing I could think to do was pray. So as I held her up to the Lord and I prayed. "God, you are the healer. I need you to heal her, and when you do, I will praise you for it." I was going to beg Him until He said, NO. I continued to pray and after a short time she started settling down. Then, it was like she had a boost of energy. 

Then, as she was feeling better, she decided she was going to have a "party" in her crib. Finally, I prayed again, "Lord, now that you have healed her, please put her to sleep." He did!

It was a long night and I didn't get much sleep with all 4 of us sleeping in a full size bed but it was a beautiful night. God came out of the bleak night and healed a little girl for that night to soothe a mother's heart. 

We went on to face more pollen and more germs on that trip and baby "T" is continuing to fight off more sickness. However, My Father, the Healer, filled up my faith tank just a little more and showed me how He really does care for our family.  So, in return, I praise, YOU, Father and thank you for the miracle you gave us that bleak yet beautiful night. - Rejoicing in the Present

Health - Home Remedy

"Lemon Medicine," this is the what my son calls it. This is also the "medicine" that I grew up on. We were rarely sick and, if we did get sick, this is what mom used.  It's AWESOME! 

With all the nasty germs floating around, I would recommend that you make yourself some of this. A teaspoonful a day will keep the "nasties" at bay but if you do get sick, take 1/2 teaspoonful every hour, until your body is saturated.  You will know that has occurred if the stomach begins to gargle a bit or if stools become very loose.

This is what you need...

• 1 cup warm water  (not boiling)
• 250 mg B6 - buy capsules
• 5g pantothenic acid - buy capsules
• 50g vit c - powdered ascorbic acid is the least expensive
• Glass Jar

What you do.

• Pour 1 cup of hot water into your jar
• Then open and pour in the contents of enough capsules to equal at least 250 mg B6
• Next open and pour in the contents of enough capsules to equal 5 g or 5000mg pantothenic acid
• Finally pour in enough ascorbic acid to equal 50 g or 50,000 mg
• Place the lid on and shake.  It may not totally mix immediately, but, as it sits in your refrigerator, it eventually does.
• Keep refrigerated

This is what you are actually ingesting...

1/2 teaspoon will = 500mg vitamin C, 100mg pantothenic acid and 5 mg vitamin B6

It's quite tart, so be prepared.  However you'll get used to it quickly.  My son actually likes it.  I came downstairs one day and he had gotten into it and was trying to drink it.  SCARY!  Good thing, it was healthy.  :-) The worst it could have done was give him the "runs". Try it out.  IT WORKS!

KEEP IT SHUT - Review

Karen Ehman seems to be a down-to-earth yet "pointing you to Jesus" kind of speaker and seems to be quite chatty. Reading her book was very encouraging since I also struggle with the chatty part.

KEEP IT SHUT is a book that simply teaches you "what to say, how to say it and when to keep it shut." Here is some advice that she sprinkles throughout the book...

• "Before we open our mouths, we need to think about not only to whom we're speaking but also what they may be dealing with at the time and how the news might impact them."

• Don't say something permanently painful just because you are temporarily ticked off

• (Speaking of a small group setting) "If some of us who talk too much would actually zip our lips a minute, then these people could have an opportunity to speak up more often

• Talking to God helps me know how to talk to others

• We must also examine the why behind our words as well as how we say them 

• We need to speak the truth, but kindness matters....if something is hard to say, it will be hard for the other person to hear; I need to craft my words in such a way so as they are helpful.

• Leave some things unsaid: Write your "talk" down, then cross some off. Boil it all down to the most important thing that needs to be said.

This is just a taste of book. She gives some awesome advice using the Biblical illustration of salt. She also gives some great reminders about communication through social media.

I want to leave you with her closing illustration because I think it's that good. She talks about words and honeycombs, like the Bible does. She did some research and found out that "the sweetness or bitterness of honey is determined by what the bee drinks in and the amount of time it spends in the sun."

What are you drinking in? Are you spending time in the Son? Your words will show us whether you are or not. 

Ladies, get the book. It's really good whether you struggle with saying too much or saying too little, it will help you. - Rejoicing in the Present

* I was given this book free in exchange for my honest opinion. 

Bible Study - What Way?

The devil is a jerk, a manipulating jerk, so he knows how to mess with us. One of the things he does is start a little distracting spark and let us blow it into a forest fire. We will be arguing over the way to do something and, simply, it just needs to be done. 

So, I want to encourage you, there are many great ways to read the Bible and study its content but simply you just need to do it. I would encourage you to read it different ways. Maybe the first year just read it chapter by chapter and then the next year, start digging in and reading verse by verse with a commentary or some study tools. JUST READ IT! :-) 

Here are some excerpts from an article I read about this subject recently. I don't know Tim Challies, so I can't recommend him, but I will recommend this article he read. Click the links for the full ariticle. - Rejoicing

"We prefer what we prefer and to hold our preferences high above the alternatives. We sometimes find ourselves expressing our beliefs and preferences in off-handed little comments that seem so insignificant to us, but can hit another person with unexpected force.

Reading the Bible is something we all believe in. We know it is good and necessary to remain in God’s Word day-by-day. If we are to obey God, we must know who he is and what he commands, and if we are to know who he is and what he commands, we must hear him speak, and if we are to hear him speak, we must go to the one source where he has promised we can always hear from him. And so we develop that discipline of daily Bible reading.

When I consider Bible reading, I see two broad approaches: one that aims for familiarity and one that aims for intimacy. Both are good, both are beautiful, and both have their place.

A few months ago I was at an event where I heard a leader condemn Bible reading plans like the McCheyne plan that requires reading 4 or 5 chapters per day. His critique was that these plans do not allow for deep consideration or meditation. He did not frame this as a matter of preference, but as a matter of right and wrong. But then I don’t have to go far to find people advocating and celebrating the many-chapter-per-day kind of plan and speaking ill of Bible reading that moves too slowly, so the reader bogs down in a text and never looks up to see the wider landscape. Again, we prefer what we prefer, and often bring far too much force to our preferences.

I love to grow in Bible familiarity. I appreciate the McCheyne approach of reading the Old Testament once per year and the New Testament and Psalms twice (Or even the Dr. Horner plan of ten chapters per day). This is drinking from the firehose of Scripture, and it is a beautiful thing. There are few better ways to understand the overarching story of the Bible and to see all those connections between Old and New, between shadow and reality, than to read it in this manner.

I love to grow in Bible intimacy. I appreciate the two-verse per day approach to reading the Bible—just a verse or two slowly observed and applied. This treats the Bible like a lozenge soothing a sore throat—something to be slowly savored and not quickly crunched up. There are few better ways to fully understand and precisely apply the Bible than to look deep into its words, to ponder them, and to work them deep into our hearts and lives.

I happen to believe we do best when we have a mix of both. ...In so many ways I surround myself with the Bible, sometimes pursuing familiarity and sometimes pursuing intimacy.

... Intimacy or familiarity—we simply can’t go wrong."

So, my dear friends, get in the Word of God, whether you read the Bible with familiarity or intimacy. Read it, bathing it in prayer and desiring who God is and what He wants you to be. - Rejoicing in the Present

Bible Study Tips

Communication is key in a relationship; thus Bible study is KEY to having a relationship with Jesus Christ.  I know so many people who have struggled with having assurance of their salvation. I struggled with this as well during the younger years of my own life. Probably 99% of those that I have talked with struggle because they didn't have a vital relationship with Christ. They didn't talk to Him or read His grace/truth-filled letter to us. They simply received His free gift and, then, never pursued the relationship part.

However, in any relationship, when you stop talking, when there is no communication you start wondering things like "Is He even there?" Does He still love me?" or "Is He dead?." The list goes on.

You have to talk to HIM. Otherwise you will struggle with your relationship.  So I want to help you with some Bible Study ideas. 

I am going to be talking about this subject for bit of time, because I feel it is so important.

The first article I found was from thevillagechurch.net. They simply gave some great ideas on Bible study. The point was to do it, whether you have 15 minutes or two hours. 

To read the whole article click on the link.

Take a Long-term View

Think of Bible study as a savings account rather than a debit card. Rather than viewing it as a declining balance you draw on to fill an immediate need, allow it to have a cumulative effect over weeks, months and years. You may not reach understanding of a passage or be able to apply it well after one day’s exposure to it. That’s OK. Keep making deposits into your account, trusting that in God’s perfect timing, He will illuminate the meaning and usefulness of what you’ve studied, compounding its worth. What if the passage you study today is preparing you for a trial 10 years from now? Study faithfully now, trusting that nothing is wasted, whether your study time resolves neatly in 30 minutes or not.

This is so very true! There are Bible lessons I learned as a child that were nice but didn't have real-life meaning to me. Now, I read them with tears in my eyes completely understanding and embracing the lesson. - RITP

Stay Put

Rather than reading passages pulled from different parts of the Bible each day, choose a book and stay there. Topical study guides and devotional guides can leave us with a piecemeal knowledge of Scripture. We may grow very familiar with certain passages, but we might never learn their context. Reading a book of the Bible from start to finish helps us connect the dots in our Bible knowledge and generate a cohesive understanding of the text.

I would encourage this style of Bible study. You can make the Bible say whatever you want, if you read it out of context. This is why it is so important to know the context - RITP

Honor the Context

Before you begin studying a particular book, research its historical and cultural context to prime yourself for proper understanding. Reading a book in light of its original audience and setting is a basic principle of interpretation. Who wrote the book? To whom was it written? When was it written? What historical and cultural factors prompted and informed its writing? Researching these questions guards us from interpreting in light of our own cultural or historical bias. 

Understand Genre

The Bible is comprised of many different literary genres. It contains historical narrative, poetry, prophecy, wisdom literature and more. Each of these genres abides by certain rules. Each uses language and imagery in a certain way. We cannot read the Psalms the same way we read the Gospels, nor can we read prophecy the way we read wisdom literature. When you begin a particular text, learn about its genre and read it according to how that genre “works.”

Use Proven Tools

If your goal is to build foundational knowledge of Scripture, you’ll need good tools to do so. Choose tools that have stood the test of time: read the text repetitively, paraphrase verses in your own words to help you focus on their meaning, look up word meanings, annotate a copy of the text, check cross-references, read accessible commentaries. Each of these tools will help you build comprehension and move you toward sound interpretation and application.

Dwell in the “I Don’t Know”

We tend to minimize our feeling of being lost by rushing to various study helps. We read a passage, we feel the dissonance of not understanding it, and we immediately consult study notes to relieve the dissonance.

But that dissonance is actually what helps us retain understanding when we finally achieve it. Commentary, including sermons or the notes in a study Bible, is best used after you have spent time trying to understand a passage on your own. Push yourself to read for understanding, using tools such as those mentioned above, before you consult study helps. In doing so, you honor the command to love God with your mind, not someone else’s.

On a side note, there are some things that we will never understand, especially about God. He is God, He does not have a human brain or agenda. So sometimes we have to say, I'm not going to understand this completely. I am not going to try to put Him in my human box.  I am simply going to accept that He is God and way above my understanding. - RITP

Study All of It

If “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable” (2 Tim. 3:16), hadn’t we better work to spend time in all of it? Determine to use your study time so that, over time, you gain exposure to all parts of Scripture, not just those that feel the most accessible or familiar. We need the Old Testament to fully understand the New Testament. We need Leviticus as much as we need James. Be careful not to avoid or hurry past sections of the Bible that seem boring or unhelpful. Even genealogies, strange prophetic visions and inventories of building supplies are profitable for our instruction, though it may take some work to discern how.

Remember That the Bible is a Book About God and His Grace

It is tempting to read the Bible as a road map for our lives or as a guide for “abundant living.” But the Bible, strictly speaking, is not a book about us. From Genesis to Revelation, it reveals and celebrates the character and work of God. We do gain self-knowledge, but only as we gain God-knowledge, learning to see our own character in relation to His. Read asking, “What does this passage teach me about God and His redemptive work?” Then see yourself in relation to Him: “Knowing that God is longsuffering causes me to reflect on how impatient I am. How then should I live?” Allow application of a passage to flow from seeing God in a particular light. A key tool to consider here is the ESV Gospel Transformation Bible, which shows, passage by passage, how the Bible is a unified message of grace for sinners.

Pray

We lack wisdom. Never are we more aware of this than when we embark on becoming students of the Bible. Pray before, during and after your study time. Ask God to give you ears to hear. Like the psalmist, pray, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law” (Ps. 119:18). Acknowledge your limitations, and humbly ask God to grant you wisdom and insight as you study. He will not refuse your request.

Taken from The ESV Women’s Devotional Bible © 2014, p. 1584. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org. All rights reserved.

Lying

Fudging, 

White Lie,

Bending the truth,

Manipulating the truth

Omission of facts, 

Exaggerating, 

Small lie

...these are all terms that make us feel better about what is REALLY going on, but let's put it bluntly--It's lying.

Karen Ehman, in her book KEEP IT SHUT says it best. "A half-truth is a WHOLE lie" 

If it is not the truth and the whole truth, it is the opposite. The opposite is a lie. There is no in-between. There are no grey areas when it comes to lying. It is either the truth or a lie. 

So then if it protects us, is it ok? Is it ever ok to lie? 

I would respond by saying let's go to the Bible and see that the Bible says about truth and lies...


In John 8:44 the Bible speaks about liars "Ye are of your father the devil, he (speaking of the devil)...abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

WOW! That is pretty powerful. So, some thoughts about lying and the devil. 

1. The devil is the father of lies 
2. He abides not in the truth 
3. There is no truth in him 
4. His speech is literally lying 

So when you lie, you are associated with the devil. You are doing what he does, by not abiding in the truth. Your speech is lies.

Now, let's look at the positive side, which is truth.

We know that JESUS IS TRUTH, so let's see what the Bible says...

And the Word (Jesus) was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. - John 1:14

For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. - John 1:17

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. - John 14:6

Did you also know that the Holy Spirit is Truth?

But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of me: John 15:26

The Holy Spirit is not only truth but He guides you to be truthful.

Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of 
Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come. - John 16:13

So, my sweet friends, lying, fudging, exaggerating, manipulating is NEVER OK.  It will tie you up and the devil will hold the key.

The truth, though it may not be easy, is simply the only way. "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." - John 8:32

I would encourage you to be full of truth.

But how do you get truth? The Bible answers that as well. :-)

Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth. John 17:17

When we are reading and living out God's principles and when we allow the spirit to fill us and guide us, we will be truth-bearers.

Show me your mouth and I'll show you who you are following today.

Let's be people that speak  truth laced with grace. - Rejoicing in the Present

It's Ok, Mommas

Ok, Moms! It's tempting, it's hard not to be the "soccer mom, room mom, mom of the year- mom," but just be your baby's mom. Be what your baby needs. Be the best for your family. 

I know, I know! It's hard when all the other Facebook moms are looking at you. It's hard when pinterest is telling you, you can do better. It's hard not to compete, but you only need to be awesome to one little family. ...and let me tell you they already think your amazing. I had to share exerts from joyfilleddays, To read the whole article, click on the link.

Im so glad I didn’t have the internet when my kids were little. The internet has become a measuring stick for young moms that constantly tells them that they aren’t measuring up. It hammers away at your soul, a photo, a click, a comment at a time.

I have a message for young moms, and I mean this from the bottom of my heart: You will never thrive in life if you try to be remarkable in every area of life. You’ll sink, because it’s too much weight to carry.

Don’t believe the lie of Pinterest– that every aspect of your life must be remarkable.

When I was a kid, the women around me were known for their “one really good thing.” It was like their little badge of honor, and we were all willing to ooh and ahh and revel in that one thing.

My great-grandmother was excellent at making Italian food. From the moment I stepped into her house, I was greeted with the smells of onions hanging overhead and garlic simmering in the pan.

My grandmother had a wonderful garden when we were young. We’d snap the beans off the poles and eat them. The smell of the grapes in her arbor transports me back to my childhood to this day. She was also known as our sleepover grandmother because we all begged to sleep there and play with her little puzzles, and drink hot cocoa and eat blueberry muffins.

That’s no longer the case in our digital age. We can’t just be really good at making fresh salsa or baking bread: we must grow our own organic food, have a house that is way out of our means and looks like it should be on the cover of a magazine, our teeth must be perfect, and clothes up to the minute. Our kids need to be ready for Yale at the age of seven and they must all be athletic, musical, and Mary Poppins-ish—practically perfect in every way.

...“The world tells us we need to be exceptional, when we really need to be faithful right where we are,” were her wise words.

Isn’t that what we all need to hear shouted from the rooftops?

Isn’t faithfulness in the little things, the local things, what really matters?

Where has God placed you? Look around you. Are you in a room full of little kids? Well, don’t despise this chance to be “missional” because this is where God has called you.

What does being "missional" in your home look like?

It looks like-- brushing and braiding your daughter’s hair and taking time to add the touches she wants.

It looks like-- being present right where you are, and making life “special” for those in your home, and not just for company.

And it looks a lot like-- faithfully tidying your home to make it pleasant for those who live under your roof, serving meals with loving touches to the people you love the most, and living a kind, quiet, peaceable life right where you are.

It means teaching those chubby-cheeked kids about God.

Our goal cannot be to impress others with our lives, but to imprint God’s ways of walking in love into our child’s heart.

...

The truth is this: God loves you. He’s remarkable, so you don’t need to be. You’re already loved and accepted. You don’t need to seek for approval that you already have.

DON'T STOP READING... click here for the rest of the story!!! - Rejoicing in the Present