Plugging into Christmas

Ok, I totally get ya! Christmas parties, Christmas presents, decorations and cookies--there is LOTS to do. Christmas is a busy time of the year, but just recently I was reminded again about what is really important.

As many of you know, we finally have our house back after MONTHS of bathroom renovations. It's been just a little stressful so when I was able to finally CLEAN the house and put up my decorations, it was WONDERFUL.

That night, little A. and I celebrated next to our lit tree with hot chocolate, popcorn and a Veggie Tales movie. It was WONDERFUL. Then the next day, I woke up and jumped into Christmas shopping., then went to Christmas play practice and started preparing for one of our MANY parties. My sweet husband worked on a few projects, including putting the Christmas lights up outside. We have lights that outline our house, lights surrounding our tree, a lit nativity outline and some lights on our porch. Since we added a few more this year, we quickly found out that they were not all going to be able to be plugged in.

We had half of the porch lights off for a few days but that looked a bit weird so the lit nativity got pulled. It would be a few days before my husband had time off again so I just waited it out. I walked past it everyday in frustration and went about my busy Christmas schedule.

Finally, after too many days of an unlit nativity, it hit me. STOP! Unplug the tree lights and plug in the nativity. It was quite simple. The only light that really needs to shine this Christmas is the nativity.

At this point, I really don't care if our tree lights get turned on. If my husband has time to fix it all, then that's great, but REALLY the meaning of Christmas is Jesus and that is what needs to shine from my home this year.

This was a great reminder.

My dear lady, don't worry about all the presents and decorations and cookies. Make sure that Jesus shines. Make sure that it's about His birthday and His celebration. Enjoy those other things and let them come out of His celebration. Plug in Jesus. He needs to be the One shining this year. - Rejoicing in the Present

Our Shamar

As I am studying the PSALMS OF ASCENT with Beth Moore, I have come upon a comforting fact that I want to share. Let's first go to the Word of God to find this nugget.

Psalms 121 says.I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.

He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.

Each of the words in bold above come from a Hebrew word, Shamar (shaw-mar), which means to keep, to guard, to preserve, to protect, to watch. 

Get a hold of what this word means. It's the type of word that puts your heart at ease.

The writer of this Psalm did not use multiple synonyms. He used one strong word to describe what God would do for us. 

1. Our Shamar does not sleep.
2. He will shamar Israel.
3. He is our Shamar.
4. He will shamar thee from all evil.
5. He shall shamar thy soul.
6. The Lord will shamar thy going out and thy coming in. 

He not only protects us but He is our Protector in everything, from everything, for all time. 

At a time when the future looks scary, war seems to surround us, and our journey appears daunting, God is our Shamar. 

Rest assured, there is no place that we, as believers, can go that God will not go with us.  He will never abandon me.  He is the keeper of your soul. - Rejoicing in the Present

Where are Your Eyes?

Terrorist threats, government incompetence, the drama of life, sickness, death-- it is all around us. And raising my children in the midst of it is terrifying. As I was reading Psalms 123 in my Bible study, I was reminded of an important truth.

Psalms 123: "Unto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that he have mercy upon us. Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us: for we are exceedingly filled with contempt. Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorning of those that are at ease, and with the contempt of the proud."

We are surrounded by those who scorn us and would love to see evil come to us. Friends, we need help. "Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us." These are the times when our Savior and our salvation are especially an encouragement and our hope. This is not the end. It is just the beginning.

Many of you sweet ladies are in a really dark place; you're crying out for mercy; you need a balm, you need come comfort. You need mercy.

Let's look back at the first verse. The psalmist says "Unto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens."

He is looking UP. This is where our eyes must be.

In Acts 3:1-7, we see a poor man who is living a pretty sad life, begging for money. Peter tells him, "Look on us." In a few short moments, the beggar was healed.

What happened? The beggar took his eyes off his problems. This is not to say that you will necessarily be physically healed because you look away, but looking up DOES heal your heart.

This is how Beth Moore described it in our Bible study:

WHERE I LOOK leads to -> WHAT I HEAR, which leads to -> WHAT I FEEL which results in = WHAT I EXPECT

How does that effect my walk with God?

When I take my eyes off my problems and look to Jesus, I can hear Him. Thus He can guide and lead me. This way you will develop the peace that He brings, which will make you feel like a whole new woman. Thus our expectations will be what we know God will do.

So who is this God? The God of the Bible, not the God that we have decided on in our imaginations.

He is holy - Psalm 22:3-4

He is King and in control. - Psalm 29:10

He reigns, surrounded in all His glory. - Psalm 99:1

He is HIGH above the nations. His glory is so much more then we can fathom. - Psalm 113:4-6



The God of the heavens, the God that is revealed to us in the Bible, is worthy of worship and praise. He is truly God. He is in control. Let's get our eyes on Him and all the rest will fade away. We have HOPE because we have Jesus and we have mercy and grace because of a loving God who cares about US. - Rejoicing in the Present



Love is Kind Pt. 2

I discussed a Biblical example of love, yesterday; today I want to give a real life example of how selfless love played out, in one instance.  

A group of friends and I heard of a need.  We talked about all putting together items for this needy person.  

While we were in the process, I noticed something special that one of my friends was doing. She was gathering items that were not old or unwanted.  In fact, she had just gone to the store, to buy these items.  She had bought these as "treats" for herself.  When she heard of the need, she didn't give the extra or the unwanted.  She gave from the heart.  She gave the nice and the new, the things she had wanted for herself.

That REALLY hit home to me. 

When different organizations collect canned foods or other items, I tend to donate my extra stuff or things I no longer want.  When I give away clothes, they are used and unwanted. 

Is this love?  Or could I just be just trying to appease my conscience?

When there is a need, do we give where it hurts or do we give only to the extent that it's comfortable? 

Jesus gave until it hurt.  In fact, He bled and died for us.  Is our love comfortable?  Love is sacrifice. Let's love until it hurts.  This is what God did for us. - Rejoicing in the Present

Love is Kind - Pt. 1

I Corinthians 4 says  "Charity suffereth long, and is kind;" 

Love is kind. 

In my accountability group, we are studying what love is.  The story that we were encouraged to look at last week was the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10.

Love is kindness in action. 

Let's look at some steps that this man, known as the Good Samaritan, took. 

1. He saw a need. 

Many times, we get so busy that we just miss that fact that there are needs all around us.  We drive by.  We don't see it. 

SLOW down.  LOOK around.  It won't be hard to find someone in need.

2. He sympathized with the man's plight.

This Samaritan man was "filled with pity."  He felt.  He listened. Sometimes, we need to shut our mouths and just listen to people.  Just be there.  Just feel what they are feeling.

3. He seized the moment.

In this study Rick Warren says "Do what you can, when you can, AS SOON as you can, with what you have."

He stooped down, which means he got on the stricken man's level. He used what he had, oil and vinegar. and didn't wait around to do it. He seized the moment.

The situation could have been a very scary one for the Samaritan; he didn't know if those robbers were still around the corner.  But, as I John 4:18 says, "there is no fear in love". 

This man loved freely.

4. He spent whatever it took

Lastly, this man spent his own money. He told the inn keeper to use what was needed.  This man took care of a need and didn't expect anything back.  This IS true love. 

Love is Kind. - Rejoicing in the Present

More on Helping a Widowed Heart

John 15:13 "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

FIRST, please watch this video clip of how to help your friend's with their grief. 

Below are some things I take away from the video:

#1.  Let the grieving person tell her story

Invite your friend to tell her story.  It is a way of imprinting the story on someone else.  It's part of the process.  It's part of the healing process. You are carrying their story. 

#2.  It will take AT LEAST a year before healing can fully begin

A grieving person has to go through all the annual events and anniversaries that occur each year, at least one time.  After that, there will not be a first time of doing something without the missing loved one again.   Make sure you are sticking around to be there for these "firsts" with your grieving friends.

How can you tell if your friend is just angry or truly bitter?  Anger is being upset at the situation while bitterness involves your outlook toward the world.

Watch your words...things NOT to say:

- "God needed another angel in heaven."

- "Satan took your baby." 

- "Well, you have three other beautiful children"

-"10 years from now...."  The grieving person is not interested in anyone talking about 10 years from now.

-"You have a baby, so you have a piece of your husband.   It doesn't replace the loss.

Don't fill the silence. Just SIT in silence.

Acknowledge the loss and don't minimize it.

Grieving is good and hopeful because you are fighting through your pain and not just ignoring it.  God is in control.  In Him is no darkness at all.  He is good. We have to hold onto that and the perspective of the hope of Heaven. - Rejoicing in the Present

Virginity vs. Purity - Part 4

I wanted to end this series with a note to married woman.  I closed with this comment on the last blog but felt led to expound a little bit.

On a side note, if you are unmarried or an unfulfilled wife, go to a CHRISTIAN counselor to get help. God has given you permission to be sexual (read Song of Solomon).  Don't read 50 SHADES to try to find help! 

God created us to respond to our husbands.  This is a gift.  Don't ignore it or set it aside. For free counseling or to get a recommendation for a counselor in your area, call Focus on the Family 1-800-A-FAMILY

From sexual abuse to the Christian "no's" before marriage, many dear ladies have a hard time finding freedom in their marriage, especially in this area.  It's hard to get married,and say "yes" to your husband, after saying "no" before. 

If you watched the part 2 video clip that I linked to my last blog, Priscilla asked Julie about what the boundaries within marriage are and she gave us three three questions. 

• Does God say no? (Homosexuality, adultery, fornication...)
• Does it relate to only my husband and myself? (If you are fantasizing outside your marriage, then it is not just you and your husband)
• Is it good for us and our relationship?
• Is it loving?
• Does it promote safety and security with us as a couple?
• Is there risk involved?
• Humility or pain is not helpful or loving
• It needs to be about growing in love, not just about thrill of arousal.

The devil has us delight in things that are wrong and gives us guilt over things that are right.

Ladies, God wants us to enjoy our husband.  Sex inside of marriage is truly right and if you are not enjoying him, seek for some Christian advice. 

A while back, I realized that I needed to go outside our marriage and get some help.  A friend of mine had been to a Christian counselor and she recommended this counselor to me.  I was so embarrassed to meet with this lady, but it was exactly what I needed.  I was hours away from home but I was still so nervous going into this lady's office, afraid that someone would see me, but it was one of the best things I have done. 

She opened my eyes to some areas that I needed to work on and showed me how right the intimacy in our marriage was.

If we do not have an intimate relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ, first of all, and second, with our husbands, that part of our life becomes fragile and the enemy can easily come in and attempt to destroy the purity in our marriage. The devil would love to destroy your marriage.

This is very very important and thus why I felt the need to extend this conversation. I just want to encourage you to have liberty in this area. Sexual intimacy is the way many husbands express their love to their wife. Let them express it and if you still struggles, get help! It will be the best thing you do for your marriage. - Rejoicing  in the Present