This post is prompted by a blog post my daughter shared on facebook last week. It was by a lady that was writing about her own experiences and it was well thought out and well written. I have watched my daughter struggle ever since teenhood in the area of making friends. She has sat through many sermons and lessons about "showing herself friendly to have friends". She has always been shy but vocal about her opinions when she feels comfortable around a person. She was talking to me about her concerns a couple three weeks ago on not having any close friends living near her and about feeling excluded in her own church. (this is common in many churches tho most won't admit it).
She was looking at the verse during a sermon she was currently hearing about having friends and making friends and the whole thing. In the verse it says "A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly." - Proverbs 18:24. Well, something jumped out at her (I think the Lord was comforting her and revealing to her that it might not just be her problem!)...This verse says a man that HATH (present tense). So, if you already have a friend, you must be friendly...be a friend. This verse (tho preachers like to yell it) doesn't say that being friendly is how you GET friends. I know, that it is true that you should be friendly. But that only goes so far. You can be friendly and cordial all day long but that doesn't mean that another person or group of people will allow you into their inner circle and befriend you. Preachers also preach that you need to step outside your comfort zone and not be shy and just go up to people. Don't you find it funny and down right ironic that the one being asked to go out on a limb and change is the shy person?! If someone is outgoing then they should be able to easily make the effort to include, accept and bring another person into their inner circle. When are we going to hear a sermon about how someone should change and "tone it down a bit" from their over zealous outgoingness (is that a word?!)? No, we just want someone who is painfully shy and feels awkward to come out of their shell and become naturally bubbly and talkative. Here's a hint...for shy people that is almost torture! Mostly because they have occasionally ventured out and then been made to feel dumb or inadequate or actually been made fun of at the time.
I say that too often it is the fault of the group (clique) who will not allow anyone else in or to get close. The new person is kept at arms length, never invited to someone's house for dinner, or on a group outing, or to a party or even into a discussion that is already going on in the hallway. If no one invites you into the conversation, a shy person doesn't feel comfortable barging in on a conversation. Let's face it...you can only stand near in silence waiting to be allowed into the conversation until you feel awkward standing there. You finally just walk away. Now, I do not have that problem. I can step into a conversation in the middle of Walmart with perfect strangers and not bat an eye. But, I was not that way until I was in high school. I made the varsity cross country team and gained some confidence. I rarely spoke to people to that point unless you were family and/or I knew you for years. After my dad died at age 12, I almost completely withdrew but then, I made the cc team and everything changed. Also, if I got angry, I would let her fly even as a kid.
I have watched my daughter struggle and it is hard. I want to take the hurt away but I can't. I reckon my plea is that you include people. Let someone besides your "bestie" in! Make an effort to talk to new people (especially if you are outgoing) and get to know them. You may just make a new close friend. And, you will surely calm and ease that person's nerves and give them a glimmer of hope and joy in their heart to feel included.
July 14, 2015
June 19, 2015
My Husband's Hands
My husband's hands
Are calloused and strong
Yet there's a gentleness in his touch
For which I daily long.
My husband's hands
Reached out in discipline and love
As our children grew up
They learned respect for God above.
My husband's hands
Willingly help and labor
For those in need
Whether family, friend or neighbor.
My husband's hands
Are loved by me
For safe in them
Is the place I want to be.
June 16, 2015
Increasing Faith
Wow! Two posts, two days in a row! This topic has been on my mind for some time now but I didn't have time to really sit down and do a study on it before I blogged about it. Gonna try now to plunge into it.
In Luke 17:5 the disciples ask the Lord to increase their faith. I don't know why when I read that I wanted to understand the request better. I have always said that the simplest definition of faith is TRUST. But, really that isn't the case. ---at least not in the New Testament. Did you know the word faith is only found twice in the Old Testament?! I was very surprised to find that out! In the OT it does mean trusting or trustworthiness. It is used in Deut. 32:20 and Hab. 2:4. However, in the NT it means belief, or moral conviction of a religious belief, or assurance of truth.
This definition gives a better understanding of Romans 10:17 which tells us that Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Belief comes by hearing the word of God...not trust. Now, I suppose if you want to get knit picky and say that once you believe then you have trust...well OK but faith in the NT doesn't have the meaning of trust.
So, back to the statement of the disciples request. They wanted Jesus to increase their belief. Belief in what, you may ask? I say, in Him, in what He was saying and what He was doing and what He was telling them to do. In that passage, Jesus goes on to tell them that if they have faith like a grain of mustard seed (which is a whole other lesson I won't go into now cuz I think it is often mis-taught and is not the jest of the passage anyways), but he does tell them that if they do their regular duty (what is expected and commanded of them) then they still haven't done all they should. In other words, we are to go above and beyond the call of duty. When our belief has increased within us, we will do more than the bare minimum.
So, the Bible doesn't clearly state HOW our faith (belief) is increased but I have a theory. I believe that our faith is increase through experience. As we see God work in our lives, and see answered prayer and see how He provides, then we believe in Him and His Word more and more with each experience. Each experience allows us to be more willing to turn palms up and give our lives over to God and not try to hold on or control the things that are not ours to control anyway.
I don't know if any of this post made sense to anyone but it sure helps me to understand things better. I love when the Bible is opened up to me better than it was before. God gives us an enlightened understanding as we grow and mature in our walk with Him.
In Luke 17:5 the disciples ask the Lord to increase their faith. I don't know why when I read that I wanted to understand the request better. I have always said that the simplest definition of faith is TRUST. But, really that isn't the case. ---at least not in the New Testament. Did you know the word faith is only found twice in the Old Testament?! I was very surprised to find that out! In the OT it does mean trusting or trustworthiness. It is used in Deut. 32:20 and Hab. 2:4. However, in the NT it means belief, or moral conviction of a religious belief, or assurance of truth.
This definition gives a better understanding of Romans 10:17 which tells us that Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Belief comes by hearing the word of God...not trust. Now, I suppose if you want to get knit picky and say that once you believe then you have trust...well OK but faith in the NT doesn't have the meaning of trust.
So, back to the statement of the disciples request. They wanted Jesus to increase their belief. Belief in what, you may ask? I say, in Him, in what He was saying and what He was doing and what He was telling them to do. In that passage, Jesus goes on to tell them that if they have faith like a grain of mustard seed (which is a whole other lesson I won't go into now cuz I think it is often mis-taught and is not the jest of the passage anyways), but he does tell them that if they do their regular duty (what is expected and commanded of them) then they still haven't done all they should. In other words, we are to go above and beyond the call of duty. When our belief has increased within us, we will do more than the bare minimum.
So, the Bible doesn't clearly state HOW our faith (belief) is increased but I have a theory. I believe that our faith is increase through experience. As we see God work in our lives, and see answered prayer and see how He provides, then we believe in Him and His Word more and more with each experience. Each experience allows us to be more willing to turn palms up and give our lives over to God and not try to hold on or control the things that are not ours to control anyway.
I don't know if any of this post made sense to anyone but it sure helps me to understand things better. I love when the Bible is opened up to me better than it was before. God gives us an enlightened understanding as we grow and mature in our walk with Him.
June 15, 2015
Why So Many Christians Struggle
Hello readers! I'm back...it has been extremely busy the past month or so and really is going to continue for a couple more months but I do not want to neglect this blog even tho I only have two followers. This blog is an outlet for me and I certainly haven't been using it enough lately.
I just got back from church camp on Friday and as usual I believe I get as much from the camp experience as any of the kids we take. I hadn't got to go since 2010 and I sure did miss it! It is tiring and this year was crowded and hot but the Lord always works on me so it was a blessing. I got to see some friends I hadn't seen in a couple years and some I hadn't seen since 2010. It was great to catch up.
I'm going to talk about some things I learned from one of the sermons I heard on Tuesday morning. The preacher covered what I had believed for quite some time. He talked about why so many Christians struggle with their commitment to church and their Christian walk and why they often leave the church all together.
1. Many people make it about rules instead of relationship. They see it as a bunch of rules handed down by judgmental hypocrites. (that is just an excuse...what I've observed over the years is that when folks start chanting the "I feel judged" song, it is usually their own conviction screaming in their heart and mind) If you weren't feeling bad or strange or uneasy about your looks, words or actions, you wouldn't care what others think. The Christian walk is and should be about your relationship with Jesus Christ and a sovereign Holy God. Let me explain...yes, God gives a whole book of rules, commands and instructions for us to follow. But when your heart is right with Him, you WANT to please Him and follow those rules not because you must follow the letter of the law but out of love. I am a married woman. I love my husband. He treats me very well...with kindness, and caring and love. I made vows and promises to him. I conduct myself in a certain way BECAUSE of my relationship with him. I WANT TO! So, because of my relationship with my husband, it is not a chore or difficult to keep the rules and promises between us. Get it?
2. There's a cost. Everything in the world except salvation has a cost. Some Christians don't like to pay the price. They don't want to be committed to church or get involved or help serve in any way, obey God to receive His blessings, read their Bible, pray (until they get into trouble and then they take God off the dusty shelf and want Him to wave His magic wand like a genie in a bottle and fix it all...they have no time for God until they need Him). God tells you straight up front in His Word what it takes for salvation (free!), for blessings from him (obedience) and what happens when you disobey (chastisement). He tells you. Satan does not! He lures you with pretty packages, success, lusts of the eyes and flesh, temptation after temptation and never ever reveals the cost til it is too late. Sometimes the cost is your family, your health, a baby out of wedlock, jail time, a ruined reputation, etc. Yeah, sometimes Christians would rather not pay the price to God for a blessed and abundant life but they'd rather pay Satan and do what they want to do right when they want to do it.
3. Second-hand Christianity. Too often, people have made their Christianity based on their parents walk with God, their spouse, their friends and have never made it truly their own. They are riding on another person's coat tails. A true Christian walk, walking with the Lord must be personal. It it YOUR walk. How close you are with God depends totally on you. It doesn't depend on your parents, your spouse, your pastor or your friends. Others can pray for you. Others can encourage you to pray, read and study your Bible, attend AND serve at church but ultimately the relationship is up to you. How sweet of a relationship do you want to have with the Lord? You are as close with God as you want to be right now. He is ALWAYS there and ready. So, it is up to you and you alone. Closeness in any relationship cannot be forced. No matter how hard one may try. God desires to be close with each one of us. He is our heavenly parent, the ultimate parent. He only wants what is best...even when we don't see it or understand it. So, the closeness is not because God doesn't want it; it is because YOU don't. The better you know someone the closer you are to them. The best way to know God is to get in His Word and see what He says and desires. It really is simple. It is all about the heart and the relationship you want to have.
I just got back from church camp on Friday and as usual I believe I get as much from the camp experience as any of the kids we take. I hadn't got to go since 2010 and I sure did miss it! It is tiring and this year was crowded and hot but the Lord always works on me so it was a blessing. I got to see some friends I hadn't seen in a couple years and some I hadn't seen since 2010. It was great to catch up.
I'm going to talk about some things I learned from one of the sermons I heard on Tuesday morning. The preacher covered what I had believed for quite some time. He talked about why so many Christians struggle with their commitment to church and their Christian walk and why they often leave the church all together.
1. Many people make it about rules instead of relationship. They see it as a bunch of rules handed down by judgmental hypocrites. (that is just an excuse...what I've observed over the years is that when folks start chanting the "I feel judged" song, it is usually their own conviction screaming in their heart and mind) If you weren't feeling bad or strange or uneasy about your looks, words or actions, you wouldn't care what others think. The Christian walk is and should be about your relationship with Jesus Christ and a sovereign Holy God. Let me explain...yes, God gives a whole book of rules, commands and instructions for us to follow. But when your heart is right with Him, you WANT to please Him and follow those rules not because you must follow the letter of the law but out of love. I am a married woman. I love my husband. He treats me very well...with kindness, and caring and love. I made vows and promises to him. I conduct myself in a certain way BECAUSE of my relationship with him. I WANT TO! So, because of my relationship with my husband, it is not a chore or difficult to keep the rules and promises between us. Get it?
2. There's a cost. Everything in the world except salvation has a cost. Some Christians don't like to pay the price. They don't want to be committed to church or get involved or help serve in any way, obey God to receive His blessings, read their Bible, pray (until they get into trouble and then they take God off the dusty shelf and want Him to wave His magic wand like a genie in a bottle and fix it all...they have no time for God until they need Him). God tells you straight up front in His Word what it takes for salvation (free!), for blessings from him (obedience) and what happens when you disobey (chastisement). He tells you. Satan does not! He lures you with pretty packages, success, lusts of the eyes and flesh, temptation after temptation and never ever reveals the cost til it is too late. Sometimes the cost is your family, your health, a baby out of wedlock, jail time, a ruined reputation, etc. Yeah, sometimes Christians would rather not pay the price to God for a blessed and abundant life but they'd rather pay Satan and do what they want to do right when they want to do it.
3. Second-hand Christianity. Too often, people have made their Christianity based on their parents walk with God, their spouse, their friends and have never made it truly their own. They are riding on another person's coat tails. A true Christian walk, walking with the Lord must be personal. It it YOUR walk. How close you are with God depends totally on you. It doesn't depend on your parents, your spouse, your pastor or your friends. Others can pray for you. Others can encourage you to pray, read and study your Bible, attend AND serve at church but ultimately the relationship is up to you. How sweet of a relationship do you want to have with the Lord? You are as close with God as you want to be right now. He is ALWAYS there and ready. So, it is up to you and you alone. Closeness in any relationship cannot be forced. No matter how hard one may try. God desires to be close with each one of us. He is our heavenly parent, the ultimate parent. He only wants what is best...even when we don't see it or understand it. So, the closeness is not because God doesn't want it; it is because YOU don't. The better you know someone the closer you are to them. The best way to know God is to get in His Word and see what He says and desires. It really is simple. It is all about the heart and the relationship you want to have.
June 5, 2015
How To Make Culottes | Sewing For Beginners
I thought I would share an easy tutorial on how to make culottes. I can whip these out in hardly no time at all. I make the legs a little wider and longer but they are simple. Great way to get ready for church camp. I have made 11 pairs of these in the past month or so. I have even used this and then made a skirt over the top to create a skirlotte (which has become very popular in the IFB church camp circles). This lady has many sewing tutorials on youtube and she explains things very well and puts it in simple layman terms.
April 30, 2015
The Man Between
This post has been rolling around in my mind for quite some time, but it has been extremely busy here in Okie land so this is the first I've been able to ponder on it and put it into type.
A couple years ago, my son had us listen to a song by Sound Doctrine called Between You and Me. It is probably one of the best "separation" songs I've heard. A while back, I was thinking about how so many Christians blend right into their surroundings, into the world and allow their friends and family to have much more influence in their lives than they should allow. Then the words to that song came to mind. It is about a man who gets saved and then realizes that he can no longer participate in certain things or have a close friendship with a person participating in certain things BECAUSE of the man on the cross that now separates them. That man on the cross has come between the saved man and his friend. That is exactly how it should be. Jesus (the man on the cross) should stand between us and sin, between us and people involved in wicked or immoral things. He should be the reason we no longer participate! See, Jesus separates us from our sin. When we accept His work on the cross as the payment for our sin that we owe God, then he removes us (separates us) from our sin as far as the east is from the west and buries it in the depths of the sea....so live like it! Before we participate in sin, the thought of Jesus suffering and dying should flash through our minds and that should detour us. He is standing between us and the evil and wicked. We just need to stand and live like it.
This thought also occurred to me a couple days ago. Not only does Jesus stand between and separate but he binds us too! When we get married there should always be a third person between you and spouse. (and not someone to cheat with!) Jesus stands between Bob and I and binds us together to Him. Only God could do that! Both separate and bind! He sent Jesus to die on the cross to separate us from sin and bind us to Him. He should always be a reason to be bound to our spouse. To reach for love and forgiveness and stick to the commitment we made during our vows. Because He says so. The man on the cross also stands between us and other Christians in binding agape love and fellowship. He is our common bond to work and serve together in a common goal...the furtherance of God's kingdom.
As the song lyrics go... The man on the cross stands between us.
He both separates and binds! What a profound thought!
A couple years ago, my son had us listen to a song by Sound Doctrine called Between You and Me. It is probably one of the best "separation" songs I've heard. A while back, I was thinking about how so many Christians blend right into their surroundings, into the world and allow their friends and family to have much more influence in their lives than they should allow. Then the words to that song came to mind. It is about a man who gets saved and then realizes that he can no longer participate in certain things or have a close friendship with a person participating in certain things BECAUSE of the man on the cross that now separates them. That man on the cross has come between the saved man and his friend. That is exactly how it should be. Jesus (the man on the cross) should stand between us and sin, between us and people involved in wicked or immoral things. He should be the reason we no longer participate! See, Jesus separates us from our sin. When we accept His work on the cross as the payment for our sin that we owe God, then he removes us (separates us) from our sin as far as the east is from the west and buries it in the depths of the sea....so live like it! Before we participate in sin, the thought of Jesus suffering and dying should flash through our minds and that should detour us. He is standing between us and the evil and wicked. We just need to stand and live like it.
This thought also occurred to me a couple days ago. Not only does Jesus stand between and separate but he binds us too! When we get married there should always be a third person between you and spouse. (and not someone to cheat with!) Jesus stands between Bob and I and binds us together to Him. Only God could do that! Both separate and bind! He sent Jesus to die on the cross to separate us from sin and bind us to Him. He should always be a reason to be bound to our spouse. To reach for love and forgiveness and stick to the commitment we made during our vows. Because He says so. The man on the cross also stands between us and other Christians in binding agape love and fellowship. He is our common bond to work and serve together in a common goal...the furtherance of God's kingdom.
As the song lyrics go... The man on the cross stands between us.
He both separates and binds! What a profound thought!
April 2, 2015
What Grandma Means
Last week, on March 24, 2015 at 3:56 a.m. I became a grandma! Bob and I have been waiting for quite some time for this. We have had lots of practice over the past two years with babysitting my niece, Amelia who is 2 1/2 now. Becoming a grandma is every bit as exciting as having your own first child...without the nine months of carrying and getting fat and the labor, etc. The sense of love and pride that comes over you at that exact moment you look at and then hold that baby is awesome!
I just wanted to take a few moments and blog about what being a grandma means to me.
When you have your first child they say that it means that you forever have a piece of your heart wandering the world. I suppose that is very true. You are experiencing new things, learning as you go and having little sleep at first. You learn alot through trial and error...even if you've been given some good advice. Everyone has to figure out what things work for them (except for the things God spells out for us in His Word---just do those!).
Being a grandparent means that you watch something you long ago started, with God's help, come full circle! There is something very satisfying and a feeling of completion that comes as you watch your child hold their child.
When you have your first child they say that it means that you forever have a piece of your heart wandering the world. I suppose that is very true. You are experiencing new things, learning as you go and having little sleep at first. You learn alot through trial and error...even if you've been given some good advice. Everyone has to figure out what things work for them (except for the things God spells out for us in His Word---just do those!).
Being a grandparent means that you watch something you long ago started, with God's help, come full circle! There is something very satisfying and a feeling of completion that comes as you watch your child hold their child.
One thing that is great about being a grandma is that you can pass on things you already learned to those unsuspecting young people trying to manage their way through new parenthood! Leaning when to back off and when to step up and help is more of a challenge! he he he
I'm so excited about Addelyn Jane who entered the world at 5 lbs 7 oz and was 20 inches long! I love her and miss her terribly. She lives 4 1/2 hours away in Texas. Praying that changes someday! But God's will - not mine!
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