How do I remove this smile from my face?

I know it has been awhile since my last post but I will make up for it - trust me! God has been working in great and mighty ways and He has given me many blogs ideas so stay tuned.

As for right now, I have to take this opportunity to just simply praise Him. The Bible says, "Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord." Psalm 150:6

Well, I have breath therefore I will praise the Lord!

Boy, I am not even sure where to begin. My family and I just got back from a trip to Georgia for my sister's wedding so we can start there. My sister decided a long time ago that she was not going to settle for anything less than God's best in regards to a spouse and this weekend, I had a front row seat to see how He can bless those who are willing to wait and trust Him.

Zach and Amanda are a wonderful couple. They compliment each other well and most importantly, they both not only love the Lord but have fully surrendered to Him. This was abundantly clear throughout their wedding. The programs listed each of their own personal testimony of how they got saved and it also gave God the glory of how He worked to bring them together. The Lord Jesus Christ was the center focus of the ceremony and I am confident He will remain the center focus of their marriage. They both had a strong desire to have the plan of salvation presented so that those in attendance could leave knowing that they can know for sure where they will go when they die. The preacher presented the gospel clearly and simply and three souls trusted Christ as their Savior that day!

I already had a smile stuck on my face but when you hear of 3 people coming to that wedding lost and stuck in sin but knowing that they left as released and redeemed children of God - wooooo - makes a girl want to shout a bit! His hand was in everything and He is worthy to be praised!

With any wedding comes a blending of 2 different families. Our families hadn't met until that week but I have to praise the Lord here again folks because He was in it all. Both families are saved and that is the best common ground to have with anyone but the Lord blessed above what I think any of us could have asked and these 2 families blended together so well that it easily feels as one. He brought sweet fellowship among those from the north and those from the south. Rather than having introduction awkwardness, He overwhelmed us with the feeling of being reacquainted with old friends. A smooth transition such as that can only be crafted by His hand and for that, I praise Him!

I praise Him for all the safety of those who traveled. Some came from North Dakota, Minnesota and North Carolina and God's hand of protection was around them all. He got us there safe and brought us back safe.

While I was decorating a table for the reception, I got a very important phone call from a friend of mine. I had been anticipating this call for months. My friend had been without work for more than 7 months and things were coming down to the wire. If she wasn't able to get a job within a week or two, she was going to have to make some very important decisions and changes. We had spent months praying for God to provide and I have been privileged enough to see God push her to trust Him. He was pruning her like one of his plants and now that she was pruned and dependent upon Him, He began to water her life with blessings. Number 1 - He provided her with a job! I'll tell you what, being a part of a prayer request like that, it fills you up will more faith and trust in Him as well. To see Him come through (just as He always does) and answer the request in His time, for that, I will praise Him!

He is so good. Psalms 113 is a great psalm on praising God but one verse has always stuck in my mind, "From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the Lord's name is to be praised." That verse is very true because if you lend me your ear, I could talk all day about how good God is and what wonderful things He has done but I will wind it down here and leave with just one more praise.

I have to praise God for allowing me to be a Sunday school teacher. Although I feel incredibly inadequate for the responsibility, He is able to work through me and reach those kids. He has allowed me to have a unique relationship with the kids in my class and for that, I wouldn't give anything for. When I came home, I was greeted with a giant hug from one of the girls in my class and then tonight, I was lucky enough to be invited to their piano recital. Those little kids, if they knew how much they mean to me... Well, I'll just praise God for them and for the opportunity He has given me to be their teacher.

He is so good. His goodness can be found all around us, no matter if it is in the warm sunny afternoon or the rainbow found after a spring storm, He is always there, always watching for us. He is good and worthy to be praised. Let everything that hath breath, from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same, praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord!

Struggles

What a week.

It started out just like any other week and had the same potential as others to be great but this week decided to veer off the road where everything is bumpy and there are blocks and pitfalls all over.

I struggled this week. In fact, if I were to be completely honest, I've been struggling for a couple of weeks now. My struggle has been mostly contained within myself (that was at least the case until Wednesday afternoon but I may get to that later). This struggle has been an internal struggle between striving to do the things I know I ought to do and almost more importantly, NOT doing things I know I ought not to do.

I have been allowing myself to listen to more music that I know I ought not to be listening to and I have been neglecting things that I know I ought to be doing more of such as reading my Bible and working on my Bible study topics. I have been feeding my physical man more than my spiritual man and that has thrown me off balance.

When I did read my Bible this week, I happened to come across Galations 5 which describes the fruits of the flesh (physical man) and the fruits of the spirit. Ooohhhh. I believe I found myself fitting more into the fruits of the flesh category more than the spirit the past few weeks, which is not a good thing. I've had hatred, wrath, strife and envyings just to name a few. In no way am I proud to have to admit this but it's true and then I continued to read onto the fruits of the spirit: love, joy, peace, gentleness, meekness and the big daddy of them all that I was lacking this week (drum roll, please..........) temperance.

Pretty hard to consider yourself temperant when are so mad you want to punch a hole in the wall.

I thought I blew it. I was not being a good example at all and was greatly discouraged.

But just like the hymnist wrote, "Just when I need Him, Jesus is near, Just when I falter, Just when I fear; Ready to help me, ready to cheer, Just when I need Him most." God was right there with me, just when I needed Him.

I sought comfort and direction from His word and just as always, He came through. He gave me a verse for this week - this week filled of stress and frustration, disappointment and discouragement, God gave me Joshua 1:9 "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee withsoever thou goest."

He is with me, wherever I go and He is there, just when I need Him most.

Are you thankful?

I may not have the nicest things that money can buy but I am abundantly blessed. I have been overwhelmed this week with the realization of how much God has blessed me and my life. Sure, there are areas of my life where I can find discontentment and frustration but in light of the lives of others...yeah, I am abundantly blessed.

This week I heard an honest description of missionary life. Many people would describe this missionary family to be in paradise and think they have a carefree life, living with an ocean view and watching sunset behind the tall palm trees while the sound of lapping waves is heard in the distance.

Now, I am sure it is beautiful in this location but it is not without it's hardships. Bugs (everywhere!) diseases, heat, language barriers, discouragement, isolation, difficulty with finding/purchasing good, fresh food is more often then not the reality that a missionary and his family will face when they move from the States to a foreign field. Yet, God cares for them and blesses them in ways that I am sure we cannot comprehend.

I am thankful for the ability to get in my car, drive on a paved road to a store full of fresh food. We may think nothing of it but it is a luxury.

As I thanked God for His abundant blessings upon me and my life, I was reminded of when Jesus healed the 10 lepers and out of the 10 that were healed, how only 1 came back to give Him thanks.

It's found in Luke 17:11-19 "And it came to pass as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back and with a loud voice glorified God. And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, 'Were not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger'. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole."

So it leaves the question: which are you? Are you one of the nine who receives God's blessings but don't bother to stop, take some time and give Him the glory and thanks He deserves?

Or are you like this one man? The man who recognized what God had done for him.

Take a moment to notice this man's reaction. When he saw he was healed, he SHOUTED! He wasn't quiet or shy about giving God the glory, oh no! He shouted it! The Bible says, "with a loud voice, glorified God." We ought not to be meek and quiet about giving thanks to God, no way, man! Let's shout it from the roof tops, from the street corners, from your desk at work. This man wasn't concerned at all about what others may have thought about him shouting God's praises. Instead, he let it fly because he knew his end as a leper. He had lived it. He had shouted "unclean" when walking through a crowd, he had seen the looks of disgust from the fellow citizens, he knew what it felt like to be shunned and sent off for separation. But he also knew that now that he was healed, he was clean, he didn't have to be separated anymore. He knew he had been given new life and he knew he had been given that new life from Jesus Christ.

The other nine were healed and cleansed as well but this man who took the time to turn around and give thanks and glory to God, he received an extra portion of blessing.

I know everyone is busy nowadays but I hope to never be too busy or too preoccupied to neglect the opportunity to give God thanks and glory!

What are you thankful for today? Have you thanked God for those things yet?

Don't be quiet about it! Shout it out! Share it! It will be an encouragement to others!

I didn't want to, I didn't have to, but I did it anyways...

I was drained.

I was up early that morning, attempting to form a new exercise habit, went to work all day, stopped over to a friend's house and then went to Bible study. The hands of the clock were winding around and around while my eyelids became heavier and heavier.

I finally got home. I took care of a few dishes and the day's mail and then off to bed.

Finally. Comfy, cozy, relaxed. I could stretch out and get ready for some rest.

Ha. Not quite.

I tossed and I turned. Hour after hour.

I got up and read but that didn't help to much. I just wanted sleep.

Then I finally began to drift off into a sleep that had definite restful potential. The only problem was that it was 6:30 am and my alarm was scheduled to go off in 90 minutes.

So I soaked up as much sleep as the 90 minutes allowed and then I was faced with the decision: Do I get up, get dressed and go sing at the nursing home or do I roll over and go back to sleep?

Hmmmmmm.....

The pro/con list was forming in my mind when all of the sudden it was interrupted by the voice of my brother and his wife who stated the night before, "we need your voice".

Well, I got up, not because they needed my voice because I am exceptionally good (because anyone who has heard me knows that's not true) and not because I specifically wanted to go but it's what I do.

The first Saturday of every month a group from my church goes out and sings 4 songs to a room of nursing home residents, my brother gives a little message and then we shake their hand and greet them with a smile. ANYONE can be a part of this ministry. It requires no talent whatsoever (although there are some in the group with very high rankings on the talent scale, for which those of us with low rankings are exceptionally happy to have with us) but all you need is a voice, a hand, a smile and a willingness to be there.

So I got up and got dressed and made it there just in time. I walked through the door and the first person to greet me was Logan, an adorable boy from my Sunday school class. As we walked to the first room, Logan (who was in an exceptionally good mood that morning) said "C'mon Miss Amy! C'mon Miss Amy!" as he took off down the long hallway.

I chuckled and didn't think much about it at the time but as the day drew on and I was now at home later in the afternoon, going over my lesson for the next day I thought of Logan and the rest of the kids in my class.

Logan is only 4 years old but he is a bright kid and as much I don't want him to grow up I am excited to see what God has planned for him. Maybe he'll be a pastor or a faithful deacon in a local church (like his dad) or maybe God will call him to go to a foreign field. I pray these be opportunities for Logan and I pray that as he grows up, that he will have a desire to serve God, whether it be from a pulpit or singing in a nursing home.

As a Sunday school teacher, I have a part in encouraging him to know God and to trust Him. I encourage the kids in my class to memorize their Bible verses each week and just like realizing how ridiculous it is for me to encourage them to memorize verses when I myself wasn't, it is just a ridiculous for me to encourage them and tell them how great it is serve God if I am not fully doing it myself.

That afternoon I realized my real reason for going to the nursing home. I didn't want to (I wanted to sleep). I didn't have to (no one was going to punish me if I didn't go). But I went anyways and part of the reason I did was to be an example.

The Bible says we need examples and we need to be examples.

In 1 Timothy 4:12, Paul is instructing Timothy to be an example, no matter how old or young you are, we are to be an example, "let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

If we do not step up and be an example to the next generation, who will? The music/movie/tv stars that get married one day, divorced the next and have children out of wedlock, are we going to leave it to them?

While I anticipate these kids growing up, I also fear for them and the world they will be left in charge of if the Lord tarries. They need good examples. Good examples in word and conversation (not potty-mouths that have every other word bleeped), good examples in charity (seeing a need and fulfilling it), in spirit and faith and purity (does main-stream America even know that the word "purity" exists?)

Now I am not saying I am anywhere near being a good example in any of these areas but I can strive to be.

I'm glad I didn't stay in bed and sleep on Saturday. I would have missed out on some blessings.

Foolishness

Ah April Fool's Day. A day filled with rubber bands around the kitchen sink sprayer, doughnuts filled with mayonnaise rather than custard and the day when you find pickles in your peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

As today was approaching I was trying to think on some shenanigans to pull off but couldn't come up with anything really worthwhile but the word "fool" lingered in my mind and I began to ponder the thought of what God considers a fool to be, or what are foolish things in the eyes of God.

As I opened the Bible and began to study, I quickly realized that God has quite a bit to say about fools and foolishness. While I studied and read over the verses, 2 thoughts began to form in my mind so I thought I'd share them.

One of the most commonly quoted verses (especially on April 1st) is Psalm 14:1 "the fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. The verse continues say a fool is corrupt, have done abominable works and that there is none that doeth good.

Well, it doesn't sound like God is very pleased with fools, especially those who say there is no God. I have to admit that I agree completely with this criteria of a fool. Only a fool would think there is no God considering the fact that creation itself not only knows there is a God but also declares His existence. That's right! Just 5 chapters later in the book of Psalms you can find the first verse of chapter 19, "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork." That means that the trees, the flowers, the mountains, the clouds, the sky...they are all more intelligent than a fool.

The other thought/verse that came to mind was Proverbs 14:9 "Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favor."

It is very apparent in our society that sin is mocked. People think nothing of it. They dumb it down. Sin is sin and it is very serious. A lie is sin. Disobedience is sin. Fornication is sin. Just because many people do it doesn't make it right and it doesn't justify it. Sin comes with a payment - which is death (Romans 6:23) and will be judged by God, "So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God." Romans 14:12.

One foolish man's judgment came much sooner than he thought. In Luke 12, there is a parable of the foolish man. He is a great example of how fools mock sin, think they have everything in control, and reject the idea that God is always in control.

"And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: and he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years: take thine ease, eat, drink and be merry."

Sound familiar to the mind set of today? People constantly "upgrading" to the newest phone or car and building houses that are bigger and bigger and always striving to have the latest and greatest possessions. Well, the next verses show us God's mind set on having and storing up the "latest and greatest".

"But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

I chose to not be foolish. I know God exists and I desire to be sure to declare His glory through my life. I also do not want to be foolish when it comes to sin. When I do sin, I go to God and confess it and get things right. I'd rather be rich toward God, than rich in the eyes of man.