Vacation at the beach was heavenly and I fully intend to blog in pictures...eventually. And I intend to post about the kids' recital that is upcoming and other life events, but that will have to wait.
Today as we await severe storms in the aftermath of the OK tornadoes, I await a plumber to hopefully fix the water leak in the pipe behind the fridge. Then i get to discuss this with the insurance company while informing them that the flooring replacement estimate is about $2500 over what they have allotted us. Gotta love those slow water leaks that present as a faulty refrigerator! At least we replaced the fridge, even though the ice maker on the new one went out within 3 weeks. Yea for warranties???
So next on the list of summer fun will be checking the A/C (a texas necessity), fixing the water heater, oven, and kids tub drain pan. And paying for church camp....Man, when it rains, it really pours.
On the other hand, it could always be much worse. Counting blessings!
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Thursday, May 2, 2013
The Spirit In Us
I was about to finish laundry this morning when I saw my bed was a mess...kids, you know. But on my bed I found a scrap of paper with notes I wanted blog about a while back concerning God's Holy Spirit living within His people. These are my views based on my study. They may not always be exactly like this, but right now, this is my belief.
I guess laundry can wait....
I have heard people say God's spirit led them, God's spirit is the scripture and only speaks to us that way, God's spirit told them to do this or that. I have my belief and scripture to go along with it.
First of all, in the studies I have done, I found over and over the bible saying the spirit is in us. This was said in the days when the scriptures were not fully written or readily available. I believe the Holy Spirit does indeed dwell in Christians, and when we pray, that spirit guides us in our decision making and choices when we are truly seeking the right path. I do not however believe that His spirit is confined to the scriptures. I believe we are all spirits/souls and God's Spirit is alive and well in the unseen world (along with active angels and demons), living in our own souls, which also cannot be seen, yet live inside our human forms. Nor do I believe that it works the way it did in the first century as a supernatural spiritual gift to confirm the written word that was to come.
Here are the verses I want to share.
I tend to use ESV or NKJV or NASB.
for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. Matthew 10:20
.Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. John 3:5
But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Romans 8:9-11
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16
Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given[a] us His Holy Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 4:8
Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? James 4:5
Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. 1 John 3:24
By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 1 John 4:13
And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 1 John 14:16-17
That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. 2 Timothy 1:14
I guess laundry can wait....
I have heard people say God's spirit led them, God's spirit is the scripture and only speaks to us that way, God's spirit told them to do this or that. I have my belief and scripture to go along with it.
First of all, in the studies I have done, I found over and over the bible saying the spirit is in us. This was said in the days when the scriptures were not fully written or readily available. I believe the Holy Spirit does indeed dwell in Christians, and when we pray, that spirit guides us in our decision making and choices when we are truly seeking the right path. I do not however believe that His spirit is confined to the scriptures. I believe we are all spirits/souls and God's Spirit is alive and well in the unseen world (along with active angels and demons), living in our own souls, which also cannot be seen, yet live inside our human forms. Nor do I believe that it works the way it did in the first century as a supernatural spiritual gift to confirm the written word that was to come.
Here are the verses I want to share.
I tend to use ESV or NKJV or NASB.
for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. Matthew 10:20
.Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. John 3:5
But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Romans 8:9-11
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16
Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given[a] us His Holy Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 4:8
Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? James 4:5
Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. 1 John 3:24
By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 1 John 4:13
And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 1 John 14:16-17
That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. 2 Timothy 1:14
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Creation vs Evolution
We are created in His image. We are a soul. We have a physical body, but our soul is what makes us, us. And we are all travelling this life on different paths.
My journey began when my friend Clay began asking me to attend worship with him, when I was 16 1/2. I think God sent him to me for a reason. Of course, i will not ever know for sure. Still, he was patient with a very argumentative and stubborn girl for a long time.(wonder where my kids get that attribute?) It was because he loved me. And God was patient with me because He loved me. I am not the easiest person to convince.
But after my 18th birthday I had decided that Jesus was real. God was real. I believed He had died for my sins and was the son of God. I knew I could never get to heaven without washing my sins away and trying to live by the bible, so I got baptized that summer. I was a Christian. I was a new creation. Very new. A babe in Christ. I knew very little bible.I had a long way to go.
As happens sometimes, I was fresh and new, and clueless. I was still easily led to do things my way, as had been my 18 year habit, so within the year I fell away from doing what was right. But God gives second chances to those who come back. I came back and before long, I was married to Clay and we were setting out on a path of Christianity like I had never imagined. Our church family at our new congregation had much to do with my future growth. They lived what they read in the bible. They did not shy away from serving or from talking about it. They desired to study and to teach. These things rubbed off on me. Aligning yourself with the right people makes a HUGE difference. I was growing and evolving closer to what God wanted.
Then came a life changing experience that made me really want to be strong in the Lord. I had children. Folks, if that doesn't change you, I don't know what will. It made me want to be a better Christian, a great example, a great teacher, a person of love. After all, you only get one chance to raise them. If you fail....well, failure was not going to be my option. Not that I haven't had tons of mini failures as a parent, but hopefully with God's help, I have had more successes. I changed more because of my kids than I could have imagined. I also recall going to a scientific seminar on creation vs. evolution that really convinced me how true the bible is. Apologetics are amazing!
Lately life had been evloving differently. For about 15 years I have been parenting, but it has hit me that in 11 years they will all be grown. That is not more than a blink away. And while I have devoted myself to parenting, I have not been as devoted to being a woman or a wife. I am finding out who I am. I am getting back to the parts of me that I dropped after having kids. I'm making friends, doing things for me, doing things for fun, keeping myself looking as good a s possible for my husband, and still diligently raising kids. I realized they need to see me as an affectionate wife willing to retain that girl I used to be, the one my husband fell for so long ago. They need to see me as a person with feelings and interests and taking good care of myself, and laughing, having fun, being playful, enjoying the good stuff of life.
I am evolving. God's creation in me won't be complete until I die, but it is ok. Life for Him is a journey, with struggles, many mistakes, failures, successes, sadness, happiness. The point is to keep going. Keep learning, keep trying to reach the goal. I have nearly stopped looking back. I can't change things that happpened and the memories are sweet, but often bittersweet. So I am trying to live in the day and do my best.
Life is a journey.
Carpe' diem!
My journey began when my friend Clay began asking me to attend worship with him, when I was 16 1/2. I think God sent him to me for a reason. Of course, i will not ever know for sure. Still, he was patient with a very argumentative and stubborn girl for a long time.(wonder where my kids get that attribute?) It was because he loved me. And God was patient with me because He loved me. I am not the easiest person to convince.
But after my 18th birthday I had decided that Jesus was real. God was real. I believed He had died for my sins and was the son of God. I knew I could never get to heaven without washing my sins away and trying to live by the bible, so I got baptized that summer. I was a Christian. I was a new creation. Very new. A babe in Christ. I knew very little bible.I had a long way to go.
As happens sometimes, I was fresh and new, and clueless. I was still easily led to do things my way, as had been my 18 year habit, so within the year I fell away from doing what was right. But God gives second chances to those who come back. I came back and before long, I was married to Clay and we were setting out on a path of Christianity like I had never imagined. Our church family at our new congregation had much to do with my future growth. They lived what they read in the bible. They did not shy away from serving or from talking about it. They desired to study and to teach. These things rubbed off on me. Aligning yourself with the right people makes a HUGE difference. I was growing and evolving closer to what God wanted.
Then came a life changing experience that made me really want to be strong in the Lord. I had children. Folks, if that doesn't change you, I don't know what will. It made me want to be a better Christian, a great example, a great teacher, a person of love. After all, you only get one chance to raise them. If you fail....well, failure was not going to be my option. Not that I haven't had tons of mini failures as a parent, but hopefully with God's help, I have had more successes. I changed more because of my kids than I could have imagined. I also recall going to a scientific seminar on creation vs. evolution that really convinced me how true the bible is. Apologetics are amazing!
Lately life had been evloving differently. For about 15 years I have been parenting, but it has hit me that in 11 years they will all be grown. That is not more than a blink away. And while I have devoted myself to parenting, I have not been as devoted to being a woman or a wife. I am finding out who I am. I am getting back to the parts of me that I dropped after having kids. I'm making friends, doing things for me, doing things for fun, keeping myself looking as good a s possible for my husband, and still diligently raising kids. I realized they need to see me as an affectionate wife willing to retain that girl I used to be, the one my husband fell for so long ago. They need to see me as a person with feelings and interests and taking good care of myself, and laughing, having fun, being playful, enjoying the good stuff of life.
I am evolving. God's creation in me won't be complete until I die, but it is ok. Life for Him is a journey, with struggles, many mistakes, failures, successes, sadness, happiness. The point is to keep going. Keep learning, keep trying to reach the goal. I have nearly stopped looking back. I can't change things that happpened and the memories are sweet, but often bittersweet. So I am trying to live in the day and do my best.
Life is a journey.
Carpe' diem!
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Summer's Coming!
It is almost May and that means summer is quickly approaching. Usually we continue schooling thru the summer, and take dance and maybe do a musical...but not this year. We are going to finish our curriculum and then have a real, old-fashioned summer. No classes...nothing.
You know, church camp, VBS, swimming, shopping, hanging out with friends, visiting grandparents, ice skating, being crafty, celebrating birthdays and just having fun.
So, in anticipation of that, we shall go get some ice cream, hang out at the partk, make some tees into tanks, and spend a week at the beach.
BRING IT ON!!!!!!
You know, church camp, VBS, swimming, shopping, hanging out with friends, visiting grandparents, ice skating, being crafty, celebrating birthdays and just having fun.
So, in anticipation of that, we shall go get some ice cream, hang out at the partk, make some tees into tanks, and spend a week at the beach.
BRING IT ON!!!!!!
Friday, April 26, 2013
Go Ahead...Make My Day!
Sometimes, out of the blue, someone just makes your day, don't they?
After 40, I admit I have days I just feel gross and old. But compliments are wonderful and fill me with smiles for days! I have had several compliments lately, as in the past 5 months, but today's was great.
I was fridge shopping in Home Depot with the 2 youngest and wearing a black tee, and bright blue spandex capris and running shorts, and Nikes. My hair was not brushed well, and makeup, what little I had applied that morning, was almost gone. As we are walking out of the store, the greeter (a short, pretty, stylish woman of 40ish age) said, "Wow! You are so gorgeous! You really are beautiful! Wow!" I kind of looiked around to see the person, but there was no one, so I said, "Sorry?" And she reiterates, "You are just gorgeous! A real knockout!" So I said, "Well, thank you. I just love that you said that. It made my day!" And she just said, "Well, you really are. And it just struck me."
That came out of nowhere, but I really loved it.
Other compliments I got lately that made my day.....
1. Hard hit of the night goes to Brandee (said by Eric, one of the self defense instructors, after fight night)
2. Your family is amazing!
3. Your kids are so talented and such godly kids.
4. Your family is wonderful and beautiful!
5.You look fabulous in that dress!
6. Oh no! She's back! No suiting up for you! (for second fight night)
7. You're so athletic! (that one made me laugh)
8. I want to be a wife and mother like you.
Something as simple as a compliment can really make someone's day. Compliment people on the good you see in them and their family, interior and exterior, and you will make their day. Doesn't matter if you know them or not. Who knows what good could be accomplished if we all did this more often. It just makes you feel happier, stronger, more confident, and blessed, and most of all loved.
After 40, I admit I have days I just feel gross and old. But compliments are wonderful and fill me with smiles for days! I have had several compliments lately, as in the past 5 months, but today's was great.
I was fridge shopping in Home Depot with the 2 youngest and wearing a black tee, and bright blue spandex capris and running shorts, and Nikes. My hair was not brushed well, and makeup, what little I had applied that morning, was almost gone. As we are walking out of the store, the greeter (a short, pretty, stylish woman of 40ish age) said, "Wow! You are so gorgeous! You really are beautiful! Wow!" I kind of looiked around to see the person, but there was no one, so I said, "Sorry?" And she reiterates, "You are just gorgeous! A real knockout!" So I said, "Well, thank you. I just love that you said that. It made my day!" And she just said, "Well, you really are. And it just struck me."
That came out of nowhere, but I really loved it.
Other compliments I got lately that made my day.....
1. Hard hit of the night goes to Brandee (said by Eric, one of the self defense instructors, after fight night)
2. Your family is amazing!
3. Your kids are so talented and such godly kids.
4. Your family is wonderful and beautiful!
5.You look fabulous in that dress!
6. Oh no! She's back! No suiting up for you! (for second fight night)
7. You're so athletic! (that one made me laugh)
8. I want to be a wife and mother like you.
Something as simple as a compliment can really make someone's day. Compliment people on the good you see in them and their family, interior and exterior, and you will make their day. Doesn't matter if you know them or not. Who knows what good could be accomplished if we all did this more often. It just makes you feel happier, stronger, more confident, and blessed, and most of all loved.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
training
I am in training for life, for a couple of 5k runs, and for parenting. Neverending training. I have been diligently trying to train up children for 14 years now. Time is so fleeting. There is much training to do, and re-training, and doubling back to train the younger ones. Parenting is definitely not for the faint of heart, or for wimps who give up easily. You have to train to win this game.
I realized this past year that in 10 years they will all be gone and I will need to figure out who I am. That is when i began training my body. Never had much interest in exercise, but doing it on my own terms is kind of fun. I like to push myself. I like to see what I can become. And I still havent' bought a scale. I am training all of us to eat better foods and use more supplements to stay well rather than to head to the doc to treat illness.
I am training myself currently to be a mom of a teen driver, and in a few years to be a mother in law/grandma/empty nester. I can wait on those last three. Really. Not ready for that, but I am loving training for health.
Life is fast, life is good, life can be overwhelming if you don't take control of it and steer your destiny. But in the end, you just have to roll with it. God is the one in control.
I realized this past year that in 10 years they will all be gone and I will need to figure out who I am. That is when i began training my body. Never had much interest in exercise, but doing it on my own terms is kind of fun. I like to push myself. I like to see what I can become. And I still havent' bought a scale. I am training all of us to eat better foods and use more supplements to stay well rather than to head to the doc to treat illness.
I am training myself currently to be a mom of a teen driver, and in a few years to be a mother in law/grandma/empty nester. I can wait on those last three. Really. Not ready for that, but I am loving training for health.
Life is fast, life is good, life can be overwhelming if you don't take control of it and steer your destiny. But in the end, you just have to roll with it. God is the one in control.
Monday, April 22, 2013
WHIRLWIND
it was a massively busy week but very fun.
Today I am most tired.
I also decided to start running (and I use that term loosely) some 5Ks. My first is this coming Saturday. there are some ladies at church that are going to do these with me. It is a great way to have some fun while exercising.
So that is all I have to say because my brain is a bit fried after last week....now to teach PE, and give blood, and finish school...and oh yeah, the fridge had a water leak and destroyed the wood floor and kitchen linoleum so we have to shop for flooring and a new fridge tonight.
But in happy news the countdown is on for Florida beach time!!!
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