Thanks to all of YOU who have read, inspired and encouraged me over the past four years! You are who make this blog interesting and worthwhile. These last four years have been a blast, and I look forward to many more! šš
joy
Like a Bomb or a Flower?
I saw this photo the other day, and it made me think about its meaning…
A flower is…
Beautiful. Delicate. Created by the Master Designer. Needs water, soil and sunlight to grow and survive. Some grow perfectly on the windowsill while others flourish in a great garden. Some attract bees, insects and spiders, but most all invite a gentle touch, a sweet smile and a deep inhale and exhale of stress relief. Some open up with beauty in the early morning hours and close up to shield their fragility as the sun sets. Some can weather the worst of storms and then be crushed by the tiniest of hands.
Flowers can represent friendship, love, jealousy and celebration. They can bring healing with their fragrance and comfort with their beauty. They can bring joy to brighten a home and peace to a grieving soul. They have even been known to bring healing to an ailing body and peace to a tearful spirit.
A bomb is…
Intense. Intriguing. Resilient and steadfast for the moment. Needs human hands to be created, moved or altered. Needs nothing to remain as it is, only a man’s touch to flip the switch. Once set, it is just as fragile as a flower under a combat boot. Some are extremely complex. Some are too simple to be described. Some are designed by madmen, while others are constructed by a genius of authority. Some are made to bring harm, while others are invented to protect the innocent and defend the weak.
Bombs can represent danger, fear, desolation and destruction. They can also present honor, courage and perseverance through the darkest of nights. They canāt bring healing, but the when used properly, they can bring deliverance from fierce enemies. They canāt bring love, but when executed with precision, they can bring guardianship against terror. They canāt bring peace, but when stored and presented with life, liberty and pursuit of happiness in the forefront, they can create almost a holy hush that no one dare to unravel.
As a woman, I will choose to be both, a flower and a bomb. Yet, the only way to be perfected in each of these is to be submitted to and placed within the hands of Almighty God. For, He is the only entity who controls the air I breathe and protects the ground on which I walk. He is the only Deity who can bring gentle restoration to the bones and a fierce security to the mind, all in the same nanosecond. Within my own strength, I can be too breakable and too dangerous for anyone’s well being; yet, with His divine wisdom, I, and all those around me, are safe within His grasp, because of His eternal love, grace and justice.
True POWER
Where do you find your power?
Where do you find your strength for living?
Where do you search for might when all seems lost, and you feel you can’t take another step or even another breath?
Ok, so this will be controversial, but I’m not really looking for a debate or a fight. Just gonna share with you what I know to be true in my life.
Some chase after fame, fortune or prestige. Some run after men/women, programs or jobs. Others seek for friends and family to bring them encouragement and stability. Still others try to find their strength, and even their peace, in a bottle, drugs or sex.
I’m here to tell you, all those things will fail you. All those things will, eventually, leave you broken, desolate and hopeless. Only One can bring you all the hope, peace, strength and power you need. His name is Jesus, and He loves you right where you are!
If you don’t know Him, just say His Name. Just ask Him to reveal Himself to you today. He’s pretty good at that. šš
How Do you Start the New Year?
Regrets or Do-Overs?
Remorse or Recommitment?
Sorrow or Joy?
It’s all in your perspective. What will you do with the past? What will you make is the future? Your choices in these few things can and will determine your tomorrow.
Choose cautiously. Choose wisely.
Choose Well
I saw this post the other day, and I thought, “This describes exactly how I’m feeling and what I needed to hear today!” It was Christmas Eve morning. I had 2 church services to attend, songs to sing while on praise team, a devotion to share during offering, Christmas gifts to deliver, people to greet and names to remember, smiles to give and necks to hug. All that before 11:30 in the morning, and I’m not exactly a morning person… Really, it was no different than any other Sunday (except the gifts), and I really do love what I do; yet, that morning, I was feeling frazzled, stressed out and insecure.
Honestly, I had stayed up too late the night before, and I was feeling weary. I had been excited about Christmas coming, and I had gotten everything done about 11:00pm; yet, I just kind of piddled until I got sleepy, an hour after midnight, which doesn’t fare too well when you rise at 6:00am on Sunday!
I was, also, going through a bit of an emotional battle, feeling unworthy, insignificant and internally “bluesy.” All of this was adding up to make the day a very sour lemon! Then, I came across this pic that I had just saved the night before, thinking I might use it for a blog one day, (lol!) and it was as if everything came full circle right a that moment. I was reminded of my philosophy for living: Life is what you make it. It’s all in your perspective and the choices you make.
I didn’t need to let my circumstances rule my emotions. I didn’t need to allow my feelings to be my guide, and I could not permit my choice of lack of sleep and struggling thought patterns to dictate how I would worship my God, engage with people, and follow through with the commitments I had made.
I had a choice to make, and I decided to choose well. I chose to breathe it all in. I chose to slow down, be deliberate and be aware. I chose to have joy, to rejoice in our Savior, and to be thankful in my heart and my head. I chose to savor life and those around me. I chose to smile and allow the wonder and happiness of the moments to not only fill my smile but to fill my soul and my whole being.
It was Christmas Eve, and this one only comes once. More importantly, it was Sunday, and we live in a free country where we can still worship as a congregation. We serve a great God who is worthy of all our praise! I wasn’t going to miss that! It was, also, the day I get to see a lot of people who may or may not be there tomorrow, because after all, none of us are guaranteed the next breathe, and in this crazy world, you never know what might happen!
It was an amazing day, and I am so thankful I made the right choices. š
We all have choices to make everyday, every hour, and even minute to minute. What will you choose today?
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Merry Christmas to you and yours! We pray this will be a joyous holiday season filled with laughter and good times! God bless!
Ps. Thank you for being a great reader; even though, my blogging has been pretty lax the last part of this year. My goal is to begin again just as soon as I can, and I believe I will have quite a bit of catching up (for you) to do! There have been many new and exciting things going on here, and I’ve just kind of taken a break from the daily writing habit, but I need to and will begin again soon!
*note: I do not possess or own this pic. Found it from a simple google search.*
Friday’s Friends #17
Today is Friday, and this is the day I get to share a new blog with you. I always love this time, because there are so many wonderful blogs out there to be shared! These blogs have inspired me, encouraged me, or simply challenged me, and I hope for you, they’ll do the same. š
Joyouslyhopeful is a great blog where you’ll find encouragement and an incredible story of survival. She wrote Broken Pieces last year, and if I remember right, that’s how I found her blog. I love the picture in this post and the symbolism it gives. We are all broken pieces which make up His beautiful masterpiece. Her personal story is one of broken pieces becoming a magnificent masterpiece.
I hope you will check out her blog today. Enjoy!
Eternally Grateful
Have you ever just gone up to someone who hurt you and given her a hug? What about you when someone was cussing you out, did you just walk up and give her a great big bear hug? Or what about the time someone punched you or slapped you? Did you smile, put your arm around him and tell him you forgave him?
Do you realize, Christ did this for us AND more? He made an eternal decision for an eternal life. We were guilty. We were condemned. We were on our way to an eternity of death and destruction, without any care or concern for Him. We were destined to bust hell wide open; yet, He decided to leave His glory, come to earth as a man and die for us! He didn’t do this, because we deserved it. He didn’t do this, because we were worthy. In fact, we caused this destiny of death to even exist; yet, He made the decision to change it all.
Why did He do this? Because, He loves us and longs to be with us. Can you imagine a greater King? Can you imagine walking away from a love like this? He offers it freely to you today. Not one cost involved. Not one cent. Not one sacrifice. It’s all been paid. Paid in full.
…ps. And by the way, He’s not still dead. When you decide to serve Him, you’re not serving a dead god, a statue or some inate object that has no connection or life. He’s a risen King who cares about and loves you in real time! š He’s just awesome that way!
Merry Christmas 2016!
Maybe it’s because we’ve had warmer temperatures this year, or maybe because it seems to have come so quickly, but it still doesn’t quite feel completely like Christmas to me. Today is Christmas Eve! I guess, I better start feeling it, or I’m just gonna miss it this year! Haha.
So, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOURS! We hope you have a wonderful time with family and friends! We pray your Christmas is blessed with making wonderful memories and joyous moments together.
Ariniel DeviantArt
It Is Our Story To Tell
āā¦that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting peopleās sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christās ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christās behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.ā 2 Corinthians 5:19-21
I have a friend who is dealing with the pain and agony of cancer that has spread across her body. Last month, I was notified of a friend who lost her 16 year old son in a house fire. Just last week, I ran across a FB post from a past church member who lost his wife tragically in a car wreck. It seems more and more I hear of friends going through a divorce, family members who are faced with illnesses and children who are lost and undone.
These stories hit close to home. I am a wife. I have a 15 year old and an 11 year old. Living is hard sometimes, and I find myself wondering why it’s so sorrowful at times. Yet, these tragedies make me realize so many around me are hurting. These moments of grief remind me that we weren’t made for this. We weren’t meant for these illnesses, these tragedies, this death. We are here but for a season…
This world is dying for peace, for healing and for love. If we will just look around us, we will see so many hurting souls right in front of us. Christ came to this earth that their stories might end differently. The story of Christ’s birth, life, death and resurrection are the very thing that can bring healing to their brokenness. These details don’t somehow miraculously make all things perfect. This account doesn’t instantly change your circumstance or your plight.
Yet, when you find Jesus, and you believe in Him, He does one special thing for you. He brings you HOPE. Hope to face the storm and come out on the other side. Hope to face one more day. Hope to see the sun on the horizon. Hope to breathe again. Hope to live beyond this current life.
His story is one of HOPE, and if we know Him, we should be sharing this with everyone we meet. You never know, that person beside you might very well need it the most!
the grizzle grist mill 