Just another post

Pin It Yesterday at church the kids gave their testimonies about their trip to Falls Creek the week before.  The all had a great time and had many that were touched and saved or rededicated their lives to God.  There was at least 7 of them yesterday that went up during the invitation, it was amazing!!  I went up too to rededicate.  Like I had mentioned in my post yesterday, This is My Story, God told me on Thursday that I really needed to go up and let them know my decision.  Even though I had gone off the path when I was younger and still always had that relationship with God it seemed like I was only talking to Him when I needed something or something was scary.  Now I understand that we also need to praise Him for who He is and that praying for others is much more important.  If you just give yourself to God and finally say, 'My life is yours' then you shouldn't have to worry so much, He is there to help you along this walk like it should be instead of you just trying to do it yourself.  Everyone needs help and once you finally let God in and fully understand His power it is so peaceful, like a giant weight has been lifted off your chest!

I understand that there are going to be times that are still hard, but that is what your church family is there for too.  Only God is perfect, we are all going to stumble some but need to make sure we make that effort to get back up and keep going even though some days may not be that easy.

Ok, if you haven't figured it out I am just writing as I think of them and then schedule it for posting later...

I guess the best way to describe when you still have God in your life but not like you should is like having that friend that you go to when you need but don't talk to everyday.  He is just sitting there waiting for you to notice Him and come and be with Him but you just don't have the time, think of what others might say or just kind of forget about Him until that time again when you need Him.  That is not how your relationship with God should be!!  Too bad it took me this long to figure it out.

This is my story

Pin It Ok, where to begin...  for those of you that don't personally know me, here is my quick story.  I grew up in a little town, by little I mean no stop lights, 1 very small grocery store and a convenience store, at one time we did have 2 and a little cafe.  Our little town is a very Christian town so of course I was raised up in church.  I have always believed in God but I guess being a child I didn't really fully understand the need for Him.  I  mean I knew what it meant but just went on my merry way anyways and did whatever. 

When I was a teen I went to Falls Creek all my High School years.  I really loved it and got saved there.  I did my best to stay on the path but after graduating and being out in the big world I kind of did my own thing. Drank, did drugs all that stuff.  I finally decided I needed to grow up and stopped around 21 or so. One of the good things that came out of it was meeting Shane.  If I never would have meet him we wouldn't have Maddie!

I still always talked to God and prayed but it wasn't the relationship I now have with Him.  I guess in the past year, watching my cousin and her family deal with their son battling cancer got me back into church.  Their faith was so strong and that little boy was such a fighter I wanted to have that kind of strength!

I decided to ask God to come back into my life, to help me get back on the right path.  I am so glad that God never gives up on us and always welcomes us back with open arms!

I am sure some of you have wondered what has been going on with my blog because I am posting a lot more about God and what He is doing for me.  This is just where I am right now and am so thankful for that and want to share it with everyone.  Doesn't mean there won't be those bad days too but the only perfect person is God.  =)

Through FB we found an old friend of my husband's that he used to work with and hang out with.  Tom is now a pastor and we travel an hour each way every Sunday to listen to him. (he preaches in a town not far where we used to live) I am so thankful we found him!  It makes it easier knowing that he has been through the same thing as we have and to see him preaching now is amazing!!  He is living proof that God never turns His back on us and will continue to call you to do things and wait patiently for you to come to Him!

I have been fighting about whether I should go up front today or not.  There is always an invitation but I keep telling myself, you're already saved, why go up there?  Plus I don't like being in front of people at all!!!  Thursday night though, something just told me that I really need to do it anyways.  I need to share with them that I am starting over with my life and hope that this time I won't go off the path.  It is so nice to finally find a church that feels like home!  I love that church and really love going, just wish it was closer!! 

So that is pretty much my story... thanks to all my followers!  If it wasn't for you guys I wouldn't have found so many other wonderful blogs out there!

sorry about the followers that left me though...





Shane's been on call all week and never got called but he came in and woke me up at 4:30am this morning and he had to go to the city.  It's almost 7:45a, and he just got home.   So now he won't be going with us.  =(

The Cross in Our Bodies

Pin It I got this in an email from my wonderful Aunt and thought it was very interesting and wanted to share it with the rest of you.  

The Cross in Our Bodies
 This is a pretty neat story and an interesting thing that few of us know. It's brief, so please read. (FROM A DOCTOR)  
A couple of days ago I was running (I use that term very loosely) on my treadmill, watching a DVD sermon by Louie Giglio... And I was BLOWN AWAY!  I want to share what I learned.... But I fear not being able to convey it as well as I want. I will share anyway.

He (Louie) was talking about how inconceivably BIG our God is... How He spoke the universe into being... How He breathes stars out of His mouth that are huge raging balls of fire..  Etc. Etc. Then He went on to speak of how this star-breathing, universe creating God ALSO knitted our human bodies together with amazing detail and wonder. At this point I am LOVING it (fascinating from a medical standpoint, you know.) . And I was remembering how I was constantly amazed during medical school as I learned more and more about God's handiwork. I remember so many times thinking..'How can ANYONE deny that a Creator did all of this???'

Louie went on to talk about how we can trust that the God who created all this, also has the power to hold it all together when things seem to be falling apart...how our loving Creator is also our sustainer.

And then I lost my breath. And it wasn't because I was running my treadmill, either!!!

It was because he started talking about laminin. I knew about laminin.. Here is how Wikipedia describes them: 'Laminins are a family of proteins that are an integral part of the structural scaffolding of basement membranes in almost every animal tissue' You see.... Laminins are what hold us together.... LITERALLY. They are cell adhesion molecules. They are what holds one cell of our bodies to the next cell. Without them, we would literally fall apart. And I knew all this already. But what I didn't know is what they LOOKED LIKE..

But now I do.  And I have thought about it a thousand times since (already)....Here is what the structure of laminin looks like... AND THIS IS NOT a 'Christian portrayal' of it.... If you look up laminin in any scientific/medical piece of literature, this is what you will see....
 

                    Now tell me that our God is not the coolest!!!  Amazing.  The glue that holds us together.... ALL of us.... Is in the shape of the cross.  Immediately Colossians 1:15-17 comes to mind.

            'He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  For by him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible And invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or Authorities;    All things were created by him and for him.  He is before all things, and in him All things HOLD TOGETHER.'
                                            Colossians 1:15-17

                    Call me crazy. I just think that is very, very, very cool. Thousands of years before the world knew anything about laminin, Paul penned those words. And now we see that from a very LITERAL standpoint,we are held together... One cell to another.... By the cross.

You would never in a quadrillion years convince me that is anything other than the mark of a Creator who knew EXACTLY what laminin 'glue' would look like long before Adam breathed his first breath!!

Praise Him Friday

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 Honoring The King Ministries 

This week I would like to Praise Him for helping me get through this week.  I have been working hard on praying and find it works best for me when I do it out loud, this way my mind doesn't wonder so much. 

God is so awesome and such a comfort to me.  When I have any problems I give them to Him and have finally come to the understanding that God does deal with them His way not always our way but no matter what it is His will and always good!

This week, I have been waking up and praising Him for who He is and thanking Him for all of us making it through the night.  =)  Also been praying for help on trying to think before I overreact to my daughter or my husband.  Sometimes that is a hard thing but this week has been such a great week!!  Not saying that there hasn't been some arguments with Mad but something is so different because I feel so peaceful and not worrying so much about some things.  I have just given my worries up to God and trust that He will help me with them. 

So this week I just want to Praise Him for giving me peace, comfort and that feeling of coming home after a long hard day!  So thankful that I have finally gotten to this place in my life where I am able to talk/pray to God like He is just another great friend.  I still need a little work on the listening part though.  =)

I also want to praise Him for all the other wonderful Christian blogs I have found lately.  It is always nice to have that extra prayer support if and when you need it.

Why can't you just listen!?!

Pin It How many times have we as parents asked our children that?  Why can't you just listen, why can't you be good!?!  I am always telling Maddie that she needs to listen to us and just do what we tell her because we know what's best.  We aren't trying to be mean but we want her to respect us and listen to us without complaining or whining then we would all be happy.  She is always saying that we don't want to be her friend or that we don't love her because we are making her clean up or do what is right.  I tell her even when we argue we will always be your friend and always love you!

Hmm..  I start thinking about that and wondering if God is ever thinking the same thing about us?  Wonder if He ever gets frustrated because we don't do what He wants us to do and we don't listen to Him.  Its so funny how we expect our children to be good, perfect sometimes, never whining, telling us yes instead of no.  I know I am guilty of doing that to God and I really need to practice what I preach.  If I am expecting Maddie to be good then maybe I should really work on myself and show her how to do it.  I always say that I am a work in progress but I wish it just wasn't so hard for me sometimes.  Why is it so hard to not yell at my child, get frustrated with my husband because he never notices when the house is actually clean but I guess I never know how his day has gone and what he has on his mind.  Why can't I just be happy with the opportunity I have at staying home with Maddie and taking care of the house.  Not because I want praise for it but because I want to do it, to make myself happy and the family.

Why do we always want everyone else's approval when all we should really care about is God's approval.  God loves us no matter what, even when we are always wondering why, He loves us like no other.  Our spouses approval is always great but I don't think you are ever really going to get approval from them like you do God.

God is faithful when no one else is!!  He never leaves us even though we let Him down over and over.  I am so thankful that he gives us so many opportunities to try and get it right, that He never gives up on us even when we do.  It's so much easier to just give up but Jesus didn't do that.  He knew what they were going to do to Him but did it anyways so that we could be free and forgiven.  It had to be as hard on God watching what they did to His Son but knowing this was what needed to be done.  How can anyone not tear up and be so thankful for God sending His only Son to die on the cross for US!?!  I think I could try a little harder because what we deal with everyday is nothing compared to what Jesus had to endure.