Bethybetrue

Calvin

2012-01-13T11:51:00.000-06:00

No, this isn't about Calvin & Hobbes, although, that'd be a fun blog....no, this is about John Calvin and his beliefs.

I am super nervous to post this, but I am curious of what you all think. So, with that being said, please, don't get aggressive with your thoughts towards me or anyone else who might comment. This, at least for the past 10 years or so, has been a topic of interest for me. I was talking with someone a few nights ago and they were struggling with which way to lean.

So, do you agree with any or all of his 5 points in "TULIP" or not? Either answer, I request you back it up with scripture, not logic. Thanks all!

Refresher:
T--Total Depravity (we are all totally sinful)
U--Unconditional Election (God choses the elect)
L--Limited Atonement (Jesus only died for the said elect)
I--Irresistible Grace (When God calls, you cannot resist Him)
P--Perseverance of the Saints (once saved, you will always be saved)

Traditions

2011-12-28T16:21:00.000-06:00

What? Christmas came and went and I never blogged? What was I thinking? Why didn't you guys slap me and say Beth! What are you thinking?

I was thinking.....that I hadn't thought about it!

Go figure! Because I had plenty of time!

Every Christmas, since his birth, Shaun and his family go on vacation to Gatlinburg to spend Christmas. That is all Shaun knows of Christmas---Gatlinburg. That is his family's tradition. Sounds like a fun one too! ;)

Every year growing up, my family would go either to my dad's family's get together or my mom's. It alternated every year. We'd go to someone's house and have a big meal and exchange gifts. It was always a blast.

No matter whose house we were at though, there was one tradition that always remained the same. Someone (often times my dad) would read the Christmas story. Luke 2. That is the one tradition I will carry on forever. No matter how excited I am over gifts, hearing that story always put things back into perspective. It reminded me why we even had this day to celebrate. It was someone's birthday!

Happy Birthday Jesus!

I am so thankful for Him coming to Earth. He left heaven. Where all is right, good and perfect. He came to Earth, full of sin, to live a perfect life in order to die for us so that God can see us as perfect through Christ's blood! What??!! Crazy right? His coming in such a humble way (to a virgin in a stable surrounded by animals) and then dieing for all to receive has made it possible for us to experience eternity with God. How can you NOT be amazed by all of this!?

So, now that Christmas is over, we can't simply go on and forget what we were reminded of! We have to live as if we really do understand what was done for us. Live in a way that shows our inward gratitude and surrender to the Savior of the sinful.

Man, I'm pumped now! Who wants to have church!?!

Thanksgiving

2011-11-22T16:47:00.002-06:00

There's so many things you can be thankful for. So many cliche things to be thankful for.....which I hope we are ALL thankful for all of those cliche things!

Think about it. We couldn't even breathe the next breath without God commanding our bodies to do so....or this breathe, or this one. Amazing.

I am often torn about being excited about death or not wanting it to happen. I wish I had the mindset that Paul had, "To live is Christ, to die is gain." He says that he so wishes he could just die and be with God, but it is more important for him to be here on Earth, so while he is on Earth, it means Christ. To live is Christ. To live AS Christ; to live FOR Christ. However, I shouldn't be afraid of death as a Christian. I should be excited and anticipating it. And, I guess in a sense I am excited and I do anticipate it, it's just a fear of the unknown.....I mean, since I haven't experienced something, I'm a little fearful of it. Heaven is amazing and it will me amazing to be there, so I need to be more anxious about it, not fearful.

But, as I am still here, it means God still wants to use me here, so I will keep on, keeping on. Keep doing what wins. Lovin' Christ. Livin' as Christ.

Now, that's another thought. As I have said before, at Christmas the past couple of years, I have been thinking about what Christ did. He came, He was born, grew up, all the time knowing He came JUST so He could die for us. That is so seemingly unbelievable! So, if Christ came to the Earth just to die, and if I am supposed to live AS Christ, then I have to live a fearless life for Him. No fear of what will happen to me as long as I live out my responsibility as a Christian. Romans 8:31 says, "If God is for us, who can be against us?" Let that verse empower you! Take the world by force! Show them God is the God of life and the very breathe we breath!

That I am very thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving friends! I pray you have a blessed day with family and friends!
(Pray I don't burn down the house, I am cooking the turkey this year!! eeekk!!)

Crazy Cool!

2011-11-18T10:10:00.000-06:00

Well, I haven't posted in a while. My apologies. Life gets busy at different times of the year and Thanksgiving/Christmas is no different. What, with all the programs going on at church, things getting busy at work and just trying to maintain some sense of sanity, it all adds up quickly!

I don't want to be all cliche and say, in this time coming up of Christmas, let's not forget the real reason. But, I am. Christ. His birth alone is a miracle, but his whole reason for existing on Earth is a greater miracle. Christ came KNOWING he was going to die a painful death, yet He still did it for us. CRAZY! right? Crazy cool!

I recently read through the book of Jonah. Most people know the story as follows....

God calls Jonah to Nineveh. Jonah runs to Tarshish on a boat. Storm comes and the verdict is to toss Jonah overboard. Big fish swallows Jonah. While in said big fish, Jonah prays to God about how he should have obeyed and will from now on. God commands the big fish to vomit Jonah out. Jonah goes to Nineveh to witness and they repent.

Am I right in thinking that is where most of us thinks the story ends. However, there is more to it than that. There is another chapter and half left in the book. Let me tell you about it....Jonah basically says one line..."In 40 days Nineveh will be overthrown." That's literally all he said. But, that's all it took. They then repented and was just hoping God would relent in sending destruction their way (since Jonah gave no further insight). Thankfully, God did relent. You wanna know what is so funny about this? Jonah got mad that God relented!! I mean, really? Turns out that this is the reason Jonah didn't want to go to begin with! He KNEW God was merciful and compassionate and the Ninevites were bad people and Jonah thought he knew what was best and didn't want God to relent from the destruction. So he got mad! So, God, gave him a plant overnight for shade, then took it away overnight. Jonah got mad enough, he wanted to die and God says to Jonah, why are you mad about a plant you did nothing to get...you didn't plant it or care for it. It came and went without your help at all, yet you are more concerned about the plant than you are this people group?

Oddly enough that is where the book of Jonah ends. We don't know Jonah's response. But there are 2 things I take from this. We can learn from Jonah what TO do and what NOT to do...We learn that even though we don't want to do something, we still must obey God. He has a greater plan. Even though we want to go the other direction and not do something, it is our duty to obey God. Then we learn what NOT to do....Jonah went to Nineveh and preached ONE LINE. When we do something, we can't half-way do it. God used that one line to change a town, so just think if we put our all into something, the great things that would come from it.

So, in the season coming up, don't forget the urgency of sharing the gospel and don't half-way do it. Be passionate about it! This is heaven or hell to someone....that is something, as Christians we have to be passionate about!

Don't be ashamed!!

2011-10-17T12:13:00.000-05:00

Last night at church we had Youth Night. Every once in a while the youth will be asked to be in charge of a Sunday night service, from beginning to end. From music to sharing a word. It is always such a blessing to be apart of it each time. Last night was no exception.

We felt the Lord move, He was ever present! The girls and I, (Chelsea, Lauren and Shelby) led worship. It was a sweet time. We could feel God there from the beginning!

Then Thomas got up to speak. He is a former youth who is now at college in his senior year. He is what Shaun likes to call our resident missionary. We are sending him out to his mission field (college) every time he leaves us. We minister and pour into him while he is here, then we send him off to minister where he is at. That is living out the Great Commission in Matthew 28:16-20.

He was telling us about things going on at school and how God is using him there. He has been apart of and led bible studies, invited and taken friends to church with him and more! God is definitely using Thomas in a great way in East Tennessee!

The verses he spoke on last night really made me think. First he read Romans 1:16, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes..." Then he read Matthew 7:21, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."

When people are preaching or sharing a word, at times, we all can take away different messages according to what is going on in ones life. For me, the thing that really hit home was that my sin is not being ashamed of the gospel, because I'm not, but my sin is not acting on my belief.

Please know that just because you believe in God, doesn't mean you will go to heaven when you die. Even the demons and Satan believe in God! You have to believe in what He did for us on the cross and accept what He did as a sacrifice for your sins. That is the only way into heaven.

I lack sharing the gospel like I should. That is the sin that was brought to my attention last night. It hit home for me. I know Thomas' message was directed more toward the topic of hope and all it entails, but God wanted to speak to me with a different message and I wanted to share it with you.

I saw God moving in others last night as well. It is such an honor to be apart of something so great to where you get the privilege of witnessing God move. Thank you God for that opportunity.

I dare you!

2011-09-19T11:18:00.002-05:00

There was a story, you may have heard it before, but I want to share it just because It was first told to me a month or two ago and I thought about blogging the story, but I didn’t. Then in church yesterday the fill-in preacher told the story and I knew then, I needed to share it. I’m not sure if all the specifics of the story are right, but you will get the point nonetheless!

There was this son who wasn’t the best artist, but he loved doing it. He painted a self-portrait and gave it to his father. The father so loved the son and therefore loved the painting. Not long after that, the son was killed in war serving his country. Eventually when the father passed away, there was an estate sale of all his belongings. Many people showed up because they knew the antiques this man owned. Everyone was excited about all the things they wanted to buy…the very valuable things! The auctioneer got up and the first item up for bid was the self-portrait of the son. Not a single person was bidding. All you could hear was the fast voice of the auctioneer. Finally someone bid on it, just to move on to the next item. Once that item was bought, the auctioneer closed the auction. Many people were confused and quite upset because they were ready and waiting to bid on the other items. The auctioneer simply said that in the man’s will, whoever gets my son gets everything.

Wow! Right? How true is that in the Christian walk? If you have Christ in your life, you have everything! Will life be perfect? No. Will life be easy? No. When sin entered the world, it made the answer to those two questions “No.” We are human full of sin, so those answers, unfortunately will never be a yes. But with Christ in your life and as your focus, life is full! So many other stressors don’t seem like that big of a deal, when we look at the big picture with Christ in it all, it’s so much easier to be thankful for what we have and not critical of what we don’t have.

Life will never be right without Christ. It will always seem empty and lonely and hopeless. I dare you. Try Christ.

Why should I go??

2011-09-13T15:14:00.002-05:00

A friend said something recently on Facebook about how frustrated she is for people seemingly forcing church attendance down her throat. She doesn’t need to go to church, she says along with other things. All the points as to why she doesn’t want to go to church are all seemingly valid points. However, I can’t agree about them. I did have to say, we would have to agree to disagree and that led to a little more convo about it. I don’t know if she will read this blog or not and I’m okay with that. I just wanted to voice my opinion, based on what I know the bible says, about church attendance. Please if you have a different opinion, feel free to share it, but please don’t use bad language or get angry, it’s my blog and my viewpoint!

It IS important. In Hebrews 10:25 it tells us not to give up meeting together as a lot actually end up doing. So, if for no other reason, we are commanded to meet together with fellow Christians for encouragement in the faith and the Christian walk. One may argue that it doesn’t say go to the church building. I agree! As my church often says, the church is the people, not the building, if we don’t come together, we don’t have church! Meet in a gym, meet at your house, or meet in an open grassy field. I don’t really care WHERE you meet….just meet! Worship God, Learn about God, Grow closer to God!

1 Corinthians 12 talks about the many different parts of the body and how they should all work together as a whole. If we aren’t a part of a church body (call it whatever you want) then how can we expect to work together like your own physical body parts do? If you detach you left hand and it’s never used or practiced with, how do you expect to give an even decent guitar performance? Are you following me on this one? God calls us, as Christians to meet together, to be one body.

There are several purposes to attending church besides what I’ve already said; some are for us to grow up in the faith, to learn to serve others, to learn to love one another and also to learn to forgive others. Yes, I hear often that the church is full of hypocrites! Shaun always says, well, there’s room for one more, come join us! Granted he is joking, but think about it! The church is made up of humans! We screw up all the time. That is why we have Christ as the head of the church, and so very thankful He forgives us!

That may not be the extent of my thoughts on this, but I hope it at least communicates to you all my heart on the issue. Christ died for all of us, so why are we wasting our time not coming together to worship Him for it?

Picture time!

2011-09-05T12:12:00.000-05:00

These are photos Shaun took on his phone when we were having fun with his neice, Caroline! We are silly sometimes! But it's so fun to be silly!!

Love to get those sweet baby kisses!

Wherever He leads

2011-08-29T12:24:00.000-05:00

Here lately, my pastor has been going through each week of Experiencing God on Sunday nights as a refresher for everyone who went through the study and to teach the ones who weren't able to attend it. Last night, something he highlighted from that week's lesson really stuck with me:

"Have you come to a place in your life where you are willing to yield everything to God in order to follow Him?"

Can we truly follow God if we aren't yielding our everything to Him? God wants to bless us, when we ask to be blessed and when we fail to ask for it. He loves blessing His children. We, by not yielding our everything to Him, are missing out on so many more blessings. How can we stand in church and sing songs like, I surrender all and Wherever He leads I'll go, if that really isn't the case? I am preaching to myself too.

God is working on me right now. He is asking me to surrender to all my comforts and just submit to Him in being willing to do overseas missions. I, at this point, don't know if He really wants me to actually GO and DO overseas missions, but He at least wants me to submit to the possibility of it. There are certain luxuries I don't want to give up that I would most likely have to give up if I actually went and did. Does that make sense?

He may not want me to go, He just wants me to trust Him enough to submit to it, knowing it could be a possibility one day. When it comes to "I surrender all" and going "wherever He leads," I really have to think long and hard about it. But why? This should be an easy answer.

I just have to get to a place in my life where I am willing to yield everything to God in order to follow Him. He isn't out to harm us. He has the best in mind for us. Why is it so hard to yield everything? Arg, stupid sinful nature! :)

Sing me a song

2011-08-18T08:19:00.000-05:00

Well, I said that soon I would post a song I had written. This is one of my favorites and it was written back in 2004. I find that I haven't been inspired to write like I was in college, so I haven't really written anything since then.....actually since this song, there's only one more I wrote after this....all the rest were written before this one. So, I hope you enjoy!

Faithful

You are faithful when I run
You are faithful when I fall
How can you love me
When all I do is fail
I fail to see that, you are faithful
Your love surrounds me
Your presence is near
What more can I do but
Praise your name

Chorus
You're my all
You're my everything
But when I'm hindering
Your perfect will
Faithful You are
for the love of your child

Verse 2
Striving for happiness
in a place up in flames
dependence on my fantasies
not wanting to give
the things that I hold so dear
The trail to righteousness
is just a grasp away
I reach out my hand,
to find you are there

repeat chorus

Closing
I couldn't go through life
without Your sweet presence
You are faithful when I run
You are faithful when I fall

Faithful you are
For the love of your child (repeat twice to close)

Nothing too big

2011-08-02T09:22:00.001-05:00

This past weekend I got the privilege to go a Priscilla Shirer conference. 7 other ladies and I drove down to Mississippi right below Memphis for this conference and boy was it worth it! Such a blessing! God has richly blessed her with a gift that I am very thankful she is using for His glory!

Her brother, Anthony, led us in worship during the weekend and let me tell you, it was amazing. All of these women, gathering together to worship our creator! AMAZING! Then, to be able to be free in the worship. To be able to raise my hands without fear of people staring at me. To be able to sing and shout out to my God and my King without fear of being judged. Such a great weekend!

I want to share a thing or two that I took away from this conference. She spoke from Judges about Gideon. The first few words in Judges 7 refer to him as Jerub-Baal. Same person new name. Paul was the same person as Saul, in the new testament, but with a new name. When we become Christians, no the life will not be easier, but it will be better. We are a new person in Christ and because of Christ.

One of the many comforting things about being a new person in Christ is that no matter the trial, no matter the battle, we can rest in knowing that God has already won the war. One thing she said that just stuck out to me so much was, "No crisis, no matter how big it is, is ever too big to keep you out of the reach of God." No matter what comes my way, I can never be out of the reach of God. Now that is comforting.

Another thing she said that I just loved was that "God doesn't call you to do the hard things, He calls you to do the impossible things, so He can be even more glorified." So true, I have never thought about it that way! So, don't be afraid to do this or that because it seems too impossible, know that if it is what God wants, He will show up and show out!

Maybe I'll bring out my notebook and share some of the notes I took because they are too good to go unshared. So, look for a post soon with them included. I was blessed this weekend by this conference and I pray you guys are blessed in your day to day living. Remember, God is on your side and He loves you. There is nothing too big for God.

Don't Stumble

2011-07-22T11:10:00.002-05:00

I have put off writing this week on my blog because I haven't been inspired. So, I was going to share a song I wrote back in college....when I often found myself being inspired....when I shouldn't have been.....in class! LOL, oh well. Then I realized I left my guitar notebook at church and wouldn't be back there again until Sunday, so maybe next week I'll share one I've written.

Today however, I finally have something worth sharing I hope. I am truly blessed to work in a Christian atmosphere to where usually everyday we will have a devotion/prayer time before we open the store. (For those of you who don't remember, I work at LifeWay Christian Bookstore on the campus of Union University) Each year we will pick out a devotional book from the sales floor to read from. This year we are reading from Steve Gaines' devotional book called Morning Manna.

Today's verse was Matthew 18:6, "But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."

Wow. I mean, WOW! That is some intense stuff right there. We often don't realize what we do affects other people. One thing I have learned in dating Shaun and more specifically in dating a minister in the church is how in control you have to be of yourself. Self-control is a fruit of the spirit and it is crucial when you are in the lime light, so to speak. Growing up, I never had to be conscious of what I said and did because there weren't people in the church looking up to me and my actions. And now, I have to be overly intentional about everything I say and do. Well, what I didn't realize is that, even though they may not have been looking up to me in church, they were looking up to me everywhere else. At school, at work, at the grocery store....there are people watching my actions and making judgements based on that. People who know I am a Christian can very easily (and probably do) think that "oh, if Beth can do this and she is a Christian, then I can do that and it shouldn't be bad!"

Friends, you and I both have to be very aware of our actions so we won't be a stumbling block to our friends, aquaintances and the strangers around us! Because Jesus said it would be better for us to drown with a heavy necklace around our necks than to be stumbling blocks! Yikes!

Last food for thought. Let me challenge you in this....whether you are convicted about something you do or not....IF you do that something without personal conviction...think about how it might affect others...or cause them to stumble.

Floating By

2011-07-12T11:27:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I got off work and went with some friends to float down a river in an inner tube. It was so much fun! Now, the sunburn that I have now isn't that fun, but oh well. There were about 9 of us that went. We had a girls car and a guys car. It was interesting! On the way there and back was great conversation! I'll talk about that more later!

We got there fearful of the weather because it had rained earlier that morning and was cloudy the whole trip. By the time we got out of the van from a very fast and curvy ride to the river spot, the clouds were separating an the sun was out! It ended up being a very nice, hot day! The cold water is just what the doctor ordered for the sunny day! So relaxing! No cell phones, no computers, no tv's, just us, floating down a river and enjoying life. It was great!

On the way back (we were in Missouri) we stopped by Lambert's! Home of the throwed rolls! So, we stuffed ourselves and brought home most of the food for lunch the next day! What? With all the "pass-arounds" we didn't have room in our tummies for the actual meal!!

On the way home we had another round of great conversation, which is the point of this blog today. To share what we discussed.

Being on fire for God is such a great feeling. Being overwhelmed with the holy spirit to where you can't contain your excitement is where it's at! I wish I was at the point 24/7!! What we talked about is How do we motivate others to do the right thing when the wrong thing feels so good?

Youth Ministry is HARD!!!!! I never knew until the past year or so! MOST, not all, teens today (and I'm referring to christian teens) love sex. They love drinking. They love drugs. Mostly? They love feeling accepted and wanted. If they don't, they want to kill themselves. They feel if they don't do all that stuff, then they are missing out on something, or they will disappoint someone. Disappoint a friend who wanted to get high with them, disappoint a significant other who wanted to experience the "act of love" with them. I could go on.

For me, it's a choice to not do those things because it's wrong. God commands us to live a holy life. Am I perfect? Heck no. Do I mess up? Of course. But how do you motivate others to do the right thing when they have 50 others telling them the wrong thing isn't that bad or isn't that wrong?

It's hard, but God understands. He's there to direct you on how to help others. Caring is the first way you can help. From there, God will turn you in the directions you need to go to make the difference He wants you to make. Be submissive. Be the example. Be Christ-like.

Book Review: Heaven is for Real

2011-07-05T10:54:00.000-05:00

I haven't ever been much of a reader until I hit college. Then I found that with the right book I actually really enjoy reading. Then 3 years ago when I started working at LifeWay I found there are a lot of books out there that I would love to read. Problem is finding the time to read them. Arg. So, the weekend is when I find the most time to read....so that's when I'll read...if I get the chance to read then.

http://www.lifeway.com/Product/heaven-is-for-real-P005323045
The last book I just read was Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo. Once I got into it a few chapters I couldn't put it down! I read the last 3/4ths of the book in one afternoon! This is a book he wrote based on an experience his son had, going to heaven when he was only 3 years old (he's only like 11-12ish now) when he was having emergency appendicitis surgery. Over the course of the next 2-3 years after the experience, Todd's son would tell him things that he saw while in heaven. Many of these things are confirmed in the bible and things that a 3 year old would have no clue about normally. Things that the book of Revelation discuss even! And a 3 year old knew about it!

It was crazy cool all the things he would describe about what he saw. He saw God. He saw Jesus and he saw the Holy Spirit?!! He met his unborn sister that he didn't know existed. (His mom had a miscarriage and never told him because he was so young...he wouldn't understand, and she miscarried before they even knew it was a girl!) He met his great grandfather that he never met and who his great grandmother had worried the past 30ish years wondering if he was in heaven or not.

So many crazy things!! It is so hard for me to believe he actually experienced all of this, but at the same time there is NO WAY a 3 year old would know all of the things he knew and answer all the questions he answered...and without batting a lash when answering!

Do I recommend this book? YES! If for no other reason, I want to hear your thoughts on the book and if you think you can believe it. I think I do!

God stresses in His word the importance of having a childlike faith. I think for me personally this is a time I need to have that childlike faith and believe this story and that this boy really did experience it!

Heaven really is for real! So is hell. Both are as real as the computer I am typing on. Eternity must be decided. If you don't decide on Earth, then unfortunately it will be decided when you die and you may not like the choice. Eternity is too long to spend in Hell. Christ made a way so we wouldn't have to endure it, but so we could spend it with Him and His dad! (as Colton put it in the book!)

Heaven is for Real. Are you going there?

Seek to Know God

2011-06-27T10:18:00.002-05:00

I am doing a bible study with a lady in the church. During the summer there isn't usually a bible study at church and I know that if I don't have something like this going on, it is a lot more tempting to just not have a "quiet time" with God every day. So, this is the great accountability that I need.

We are going through the study by Priscilla Shirer called Discerning the Voice of God. I want to say I have talked about things I learned in a blog a while back, so here's another! First of all, you have to genuinely WANT to hear the voice of God. We all know there are things that we are fearful to ask because we don't want the answer to be what we don't want it to be. So, first and foremost, you need to want to hear what He wants to say to you. Be open minded about it. He is God after all....He kinda has what's best for you in mind don't cha think?!

So, the new revelation for the week was what she said in the video of her teaching. She said someone came up to her and they were talking and asked how in the world do you hear the voice of God and discern His voice. She said, honestly, this lady was wanting some deep theological answer and she realized that it was probably the simplest answer ever! "The better you know God, the more clearly you can hear God."

That's the key! Seek to know God better and you will be able to know what He is saying to you! It just the same with family and close friends! You know them so you can predict certain behaviors and certain desires and sometimes can finish each others sentences!

Guys....God wants you to want Him and pursue Him the same way He wants and pursues you! We stress often about finding God's will for our lives and the key is to get to know Him on a deeper level and he will show you the way. Many forget the first part of this verse in Psalms that says Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart....I'm not quoting it cause it's from memory.... Once you get to know Him, He makes what you desire to be what He desires for you! Crazy cool right?!

Me? Selfish?

2011-06-21T12:26:00.002-05:00

I am the baby of 3 kids. I know, I know, I'm no baby at 29, but you know what I mean! Shaun is also the baby of 3. The difference I am guessing is that I'm a girl. Growing up (my sister will be more than happy to testify to this!) I seemingly always got my way. I, once older, rarely got punished for things. I was spoiled! Shaun, on the other hand, being a boy, he didn't get his way all the time. He learned to adapt to whatever was around him.

So, can you guess I struggle with being crazy selfish? This is something I've realized about myself since I hit college. I've struggled with it, prayed about it, but it is still a huge downfall of mine. I went the first 18 years of my life always getting my way and what I wanted. Poor Shaun for having to deal with that now! :P

This week is Crockett County's Project Acts. This is a (almost) week long missions event for the teens of the county. The churches that want to participate came together last night and will finish Thursday night. They go around the county doing local missions....pass out empty bags just to swing by later this week to get food to stock the local food pantry, free car washes (not as a fundraiser, just because!), random acts of kindness, etc. We are teaching our teens how to be selfless in such a selfish world.

In the opening Worship service last night, the speaker mentioned John 3:30 in talking about this week. "He must increase; I must decrease." He was emphasizing that this week is not about us, but it is all about God. It is about glorifying His name and spreading His love to others so they may see Christ in us and want what we have.

So, when I find I am being selfish, I remind myself of that verse and it puts things into perspective. How about you?

Where are you going?

2011-06-13T11:00:00.000-05:00

I've heard this saying before, but recently my Pastor says it a lot at the end of church. "It doesn't matter where you've come from, only matters where you're going."

That phrase can be in regards to your physical life but more importantly in regards to your spiritual life. I don't know why, but this idea has been on my mind a lot lately. Working with teenagers, you have to be careful who you let speak to them. It doesn't matter if you've had a crazy sinful background and then you found Jesus or if you really weren't a bad person it is all about how your testimony is presented.

There's two ends of this string.

On the one end you have a person who was heavy into sex, drugs, alcohol and whatnot. Their testimony can be crazy powerful....IF it is used properly. We don't want to give the teens the idea that it is okay to do it now because you can turn your life around later. (That is why we have to be selective in who we get to speak in that if they have that background, we need to know how they present their testimony.) We want the kids to focus on and realize all the greatness of what this said person has currently with Jesus...even considering what they have done in the past. The focus isn't necessarily where they've been, but it's where they are now and where they are going in the future.

The other end is a person, like me, who was a kid when I was saved, so I didn't really have time to do all the bad stuff. So how can my testimony be powerful? Well it is. God saved my sinful, dying and going to hell soul. But how can I relate with a person dealing with or used to deal with sex, drugs and rock n roll and they think God won't save them because of where they've been? What I realized lately though is that I can use God's word to help me relate to that said person. Paul! Tell them the story of Paul. He was a once MURDERER! Not only a murderer, but a murderer of Christians! Yet, God chose him to do all he did and to even author the majority of the New Testament! And if God loved Paul and forgave Paul, don't you think that He can love even us?! Isn't that crazy exciting to think about! It doesn't matter where you've come from! He loves us still! He forgives us still! He died for us still!

It ONLY matters where you are going!

Where are you going?

Trusting God

2011-06-06T09:45:00.000-05:00

I am proudly a Christian. I strive to be a "little Christ." I am not perfect though.

Most people can see all of my obvious imperfections. I nag. I'm persistent (which at times is bad). I can be nosey. Do I need to go on? We can point out our own, and usually other people's faults fairly easy. But what about the non-obvious faults.

Most people can also see that I am a very trusting individual. There are two ways of dealing with trust and others. 1. trust until they hurt you or 2.don't trust until they give you reason TO trust them. I fall in the first category. I trust way more than I should and at times, it ends up hurting me. I will be your great, trusting friend, until you give me reason not to trust you.

So, why do I struggle with trusting God at times? I think it might be because I am a control freak and I am too afraid to hand all my issues fully to God. I, just this past week, started the bible study with a friend called Discerning the Voice of God. Funny, the first couple of days it talked about trusting God. You don't hear an answer because you aren't asking because you don't trust, is what God revealed to me that second day of the study. Ouch. Yes, God you are correct. It is easy for me to ask God the questions that I feel pretty confident on what His answer will be. However, the questions that I need to ask that I am afraid to ask because I don't know his answer and am scared it may be the answer I don't want.

I'm sure it is easier for a parent to understand this more than a non-parent (which is what I am, so it is harder for me), that God has the best in mind for us. Like a parent for the child, they have the best interest of the child in mind when they make the decisions that they make, God is like that. He knows what is best for us....that's why He is God and we are not. So, why are we thinking we know more than God? By us not trusting God, it is like we are telling God to shove off....we know more than you. Wow. Not cool. Yet, that is what I do quite often...unknowingly.

God, I want to trust you. I do trust you now. I'm sorry for not doing so before.

Weddings

2011-05-30T15:42:00.002-05:00

Lately, Shaun and I have been to several weddings. One day it will be mine! ;)

But really, it's been really cool to see the different styles of weddings and how each couple does things a little different. There's another one to go to in a couple of weeks and I am anxious to see how it is unique as well.

No matter who does what in their wedding there is still one obvious thing that I am reminded of when I go to a wedding.

I am the bride of Christ.

As Christians, we all are the brides of Christ. He is our bridegroom. We can all understand and relate to this idea, Whether you are married or want to be married, the idea is the same. Just like the relationship you have with your sponse, so much better should be your relationship with Christ....as His bride.

I understand this idea may be harder for men to understand since on earth, they are the groom, but once you can grasp onto this idea and run with it, it is such an awesome, for lack of better word, feeling!

So, next time you go to a wedding or take time to reflect on marriage, be reminded of your marriage to Christ. He is coming back one day for His bride! Let's be ready!

Keeping Tucker

2011-05-24T13:53:00.000-05:00

ha! That sounds like a movie title. Keeping Tucker, brought to you by MGM studios and Beth's computer! hehe, kidding.

Last week I got the honor of babysitting my nephew Tucker. He is a boy that is simply all smiles. You can't look at him and not smile. He is happy, fun and an all-around good kid! He is my sister's youngest. He is four and a half years old! He is special needs. They don't know exactly what's wrong with him, but the basic gist is that he often throws up food and therefore doesn't want to eat. Can you blame him? I would be the same way! So, they went through a feeding clinic program about a year ago and he is back on foods. Somewhat. To supplement what calories he doesn't get during the day, he has a feeding tube to feed him while he sleeps at night. That is where the fun comes in. You have to be sure he isn't laying flat and on his back, because he will throw up in the middle of the night if not laid correctly. And for someone to throw up while laying down, well, that could result in things I don't want to think about. So, that makes for sometimes long, sleepless nights.

I admire my sister. She has had these type of nights for the past two-ish years. Yeah, she gets grumpy sometimes, but who can blame her! LOL I get grumpy when I'm tired and hungry both! I admire her being able to keep going and not get crazy mad at this situation and what all is going on.

She has a caringbridge.org blog of his progress. I think it is simply caringbridge.org/tuckerjacobs.....i think? She, at the end of each entry, always turns things back to God. God has blessed her/us with Tucker. He is an amazing kid. With all of the trials she has with him, she always finds a way to look back at God and feel blessed. I long to be that way. In all my frustrations in life or things that go wrong, I want to be able to look back at God and say thank you for all the things you have given me.

Last week was fun. We had revival at church and he made a new friend named Dawson! He enjoyed being there so much that on Wednesday he didn't want to leave! Like really? Did he know it was the last night of revival? It was crazy because the other nights he didn't act this way! Then on Thursday night we hung out with Shaun and his family at Casey Jones Mini Golf. (GREAT place for family fun! You should go check it out!!) He SO loved the trains and exploring the golf course and most of all he loved playing with the water hose at one of the ponds! hehe! He LOVES the water! Then Friday night we just hung out and just have lots of fun! It was hard to leave him on Saturday when we took him back to my sister! He seriously is a joy to be around!

We can look at him and think about ourselves and our attitudes. He is the happiest kid I know...despite the circumstances! We need to evaluate our attitudes and realize that it's all going to be okay. Praise God for what He has blessed you with.

Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. - paraphase...of course.

Eternity

2011-05-16T13:50:00.000-05:00

Recently, I have seen a lot of death. I've often heard that deaths come in sets of 3. I believe it....although it seems I have seen quite a few sets of 3.
My uncle past away a few weeks ago. He suffered from brain cancer. The cancer won. He, however, is the ultimate winner of heaven. That is much comfort to my family in thinking about his passing. We, being selfish, long for him to be here with us, but deep down we know he is better off. My aunt said, well...he has no more headaches anymore!
A co-worker's dad passed away after a long battle with cancer. He too is rejoicing in heaven.
Couple of people from my home town, home church have passed and get to praise Jesus in heaven.
More recently, I had a friend, or rather, Shaun had a friend who died. He was a great, caring and giving man. He struggled with depression along with other mental issues. Those issues won his battle and he took his life last week. He too is in heaven with no more issues!
There have been some to refer to him and comment on how he is eternally separated from God because he committed suicide.
I'm not sure how softer to say this but....those people are wrong. He committed a sin in doing that....he didn't lose Jesus as his personal Savior. It is so frustrating to hear people say things in that manner. He was no less a Christian just because he killed himself.
But since we are discussing it. (I never said I was a good writer or transition-er in my writing!) Hell, to me, is a very scary place to think about. I'm not just talking about the experience that one will go through, but that you will be forever separated from God. FOOOORRRRREEEEEEVVVVVVVVEEEEEE

EERRRRRRR (Sandlot? anyone?)
That is a scary thought. To be so apart from good. To forever be in bad. Never again getting to taste what is good from God.
Bin Laden was killed. Don't get me wrong, I am a believer in capital punishment, so I am pleased that the punishment came to the man that killed so many of our people. However, I am saddened to think about how there is one individual that we all know for a fact will be in hell. forever. So, have I mentioned how long one would be there? yeah. forever. for real forever. not just a seems like forever. But, forever.
Steve Gaines said on Facebook the day after he was killed, something along the lines of saying what if we as Christians had reached Bin Laden before he even became a terrorist? What if he had become a Christian? Life would be much different right now. We might even would still have the twin towers....and all those people would still be alive that were killed in the towers....and in war. We have a responsibility to the lost. A great responsibility. God gave us that responsibility. We can't use the excuse that we can't or don't know how. We have to. Reach out to the lost before that next person you intentionally don't witness to becomes the next Bin Laden and becomes a terrorist and then dies spending eternity in hell. I am speaking to myself too. I often walk past people and have a thought of witnessing.....and blatantly don't do it.

I know this was a dark blog for it to by my first one back in the saddle, but i figure, I only have two followers anyway, so, eh. why not?
Ones to come won't be this morbid. No worries. Just remember our responsibility and our true lack of excuses.

Expectations

2010-02-12T13:03:00.000-06:00

I know this sounds funny, but i have been thinking about the idea ofexpectations....and expectations in relationships. The funny part isWHY I have been thinking about it. Yes, I am one of the suckers thatwatch and get soaked up into the reality show The Bachelor. You haveJake, this cute, "nice guy" pilot. He always said the nice guys neverget the girl. Now he is juggling several girls. Real moral, i know.There is one girl on the show I have grown to really like and hopeJake picks her. Tinley. She is super sweet, cute and seemingly is the"nice girl." Perfect match in my eyes! But, we shall see.An episode or two ago they were on a date. You see, for those of youwho don't watch the show and don't know, Tinley is recently divorced.I believe even within the past year. She and Jake were eating dinner"getting to know each other" and Tinley asked Jake this question. Whatexpectations do you have for a wife? He didn't answer right away soshe continued, and this is a paraphrase mind you. Because we neverwant to talk about them but expectations DO exist in relationships.It is when we don't discuss those expectations that we have someproblems in our relationships that are completely unnecessary. Again,that is a paraphrase and is sort of my take on what she said.What do we expect? Do we expect out of our significant other, friends,or family things that we ourselves wouldn't/couldn't live up to? Idon't think expectations are bad and I agree with Tinley in that whenwe have them, we need to share them to some degree. No, don't tellyour significant other i expect flowers on these certain days or else! I don't mean that. However, don't get mad if that expectation isn'tlived up to. Things of that nature are more meaningful when the ideacomes from the giver of the gift.I am talking about deeper things. I actually just wrote a paragraphand then deleted it. In this paragraph I gave monitary examples ofwhat I mean. I think you know what I mean. I don't want to put thingsin your mind that aren't necessary. I know what I expect. Significanothers, friends and family who love me and let me love them back. Whoare honest with me and allow the same freedom for me. Who trust meand allow me to trust them. And these I mentioned are things thatmost people know without speaking them, but still they are important.The list goes on and on.I don't know. You may not think it that important of a thing to talkabout, but ever since I heard it put the way it was, I haven't stoppedthinking about it.Ah, I dont' know. Just something for you to think about I guess!

pondering thoughts on snow days

2010-01-29T20:15:00.000-06:00

So glad I had today off. However "enjoying" the snow alone, isn't as enjoyable as you might think! ha! I have enjoyed the down time I got today. I baked cookies. Sugar cookies to be exact. They are pretty good, but I guess I am not the best cook because they are a little hard now! lol ah, oh well. I also took a nice long, hot bath. I can't tell you the last time I did that! It was awesome! (idea thanks to my sis!) For dinner I also cooked. What did I have? ....PANCAKES!! and eggs. Eggs were really good too! almost liked them more than the pancakes!

I also did some pondering. However this pondering was overlapped from the week. I had an acquaintance/friend die this week. His name was Chris. He suffered from Cystic Fibrosis. I think that I am the only one that I know that has never heard of this before. I didn't know what it was and certainly didn't know Chris had to deal with this. So, when I need to know something where do I go? Google! I learned all about CF. It is such an interesting disease. Anyone with this disease, if they make it to adulthood they will not live past 35 or so.

Death is just so hard to process sometimes. It is like a two-fold thought when talking about Christians. If the person that died is a Christian, you know they are in a much better place than where I am, but it is still sad to lose the relationship you have had with that person. So, you want to be happy because they are in a better place, but you are sad they aren't with you anymore. I have had all my grandparents to pass away and that was really sad each time I dealt with it. But it is different when you are talking about someone dieing that is around your age. Someone you had fun memories with. Someone that when you think of them, they make you smile. Now, Chris and I weren't good friends by any means, and with the exception of once a few months ago I hadn't interacted with him in years, but it is still weird. I can't think of another word but weird to describe the feeling of someone you know, your age-ish dies.

Don't get me wrong, home alone watching the snow fall, I didn't think of death all day, and honestly I have been wanting to blog about this all week, and today was the first time i have had free to sit and type!

On the flip side I have a precious friend just itching to give birth. She really thought it was going to happen this past Monday, yet Josiah decided to stay in mommy's tummy a bit longer. She still hasn't "popped" as the saying goes, but when she does, that precious baby is entering the world into a God-fearing family that I am proud to call my friends. I pray he comes to know the Lord as his parents have and turn around and tell everyone around him the glories of God. I can't wait for Meg and John to welcome Josiah into their family. God has blessed them with 3 great kids and he will be no different.

God breathes life into us and God calls us home to Him. So great to know God is in control of everything. He is my comfort and my first love. He will never leave nor forsake you. Don't ever forget that.....

30 years old

2009-08-15T22:15:00.000-05:00

No, I didn't turn 30...well, I haven't yet anyway. Shaun, the love of my life, turned 30 yesterday! It is odd to say the least to say, yeah, i'm dating a 30 year old! I don't feel that old and still feel like I did in college and young 20's. But alas it is here. Getting older means getting wiser. Choices are getting easier....wait. who am I kidding, it just means different choices than before, not easier, sometimes harder. Asking for discernment from God is not always easy. I am afraid He will give me the decision I don't want to hear. When I think I might know the answer He will give and if I like the answer then I will pray for it just for the sake of praying for it. wow. That was admitting a sin to you guys. wow. Okay, so that is me. I need to learn to put my COMPLETE trust in God and not just in some areas of life. This will be hard. I'm so thankful He is forgiving. God, help in my need for sense of control. Remind me it is YOU who is God and not me.
Well, the birthday was fun I think for him! I threw him a surprise party and I think he was excited and overwhelmed too! He loved it! I'm glad, I had been planning for a while! yay for birthday parties! Love them!...and I love him!!! :)
Enough cheesy-ness!
I am going to try and stay up on this....we will see though...but guess I'll have to get more than 2 readers! lol oh well! I love you two! :)

Waiting and waiting

2008-12-27T15:10:00.000-06:00

Everyone but me. In God's timing is what I hear and what I know. Never easy though. It's hard when you know what you are called to do but have to wait for it. In Time.

I leave at 4:30 Monday morning for Lift This Retreats. Check it out at www.liftthisretreats.com I didn't know that 4:30 am existed. But I guess I will find that out on Monday eh? I am excited about it. Shaun and his brother Shane headed it up. I feel they did a fine job with it too! There will be over 250 participants for the retreat! More than ever before! How exciting! I am so proud of them! Pray I don't hurt myself in anyway in trying to ski! I have never done it before and am a little frightened! Should be fun though....right? :)

More later.