'Twas the Night Before CHRISTMAS

This is a beautiful version of the story 'Twas the Night Before Christmas by my friend Victoria Bierman Jenkins.   I pray that it will bless you as it has me.


'Twas the Night Before CHRISTmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
None of God's creatures were stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In truth, it was Christ's birth that had put them there.

God’s children were nestled all snug in their beds,
Unlike the baby Jesus, with no place to lay His sweet head;
Mother Mary and Joseph, and some shepherds perhaps
Watched over our Savior as He peacefully napped.
When up in the sky there arose such a clatter,
That three wise men grabbed the best gifts they could gather.
Away to the Messiah they flew like a flash,
To see our Redeemer in the flesh at long last.

The star in the sky gave off such a glow
Shining with the luster of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to their wondering eyes should appear,
But the stillness of the star showing they must be near.
It's unclear how long they traveled, but it was quite a bit,
Still they knew by the star's pause that this must be it.
Three gifts they brought to little Jesus when they came,
And they rejoiced as the angels had as they praised His name;

"Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom He favors!
To the top of the mountains!
To the bottom of the sea!
Our Savior is born to save both you and me!"

As God's children sleep, safe in their beds,
Both Father and Son watch over their heads,
Loving them enough to number each countless hair,
We've no way to earn their love, but every way to share.
Giving gifts as the wise men did is a fun tradition,
As long as the point of Christmas never goes missing.

Deck the halls and trim the tree,
Hang the stockings and dance with glee.
Share the joy of CHRISTmas which no wrapped gift could match,
Tell of the Babe wrapped in cloth who brought us freedom at last;
A bundle of joy lying in the manger,
Sent to save us from unspeakable danger.
His life for ours, what an amazing gift!
He was born so that man might no longer perish!
His life was as pure as the day He was born,
As He taught us the greatest lessons we'll learn;
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love,
Don't try to be pleasing to man, but to God above;
Build on the Rock and not the sand,
Keep an open heart and an outstretched hand.

So many people are in need this Christmas,
Let God use you to fulfill their wishes;
Give as you've been given to,
You provide for others and He'll provide for you;
So speak of His Word, and get straight to His work,
Always giving Him the glory since it all came from Him first.

Remember, it's God's children in this world that are the light,
Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

And The Winners Are...........................

Today's the day to announce the four winners of From the Trash Pile to the Treasure Chest: Creating a Godly Legacy  by Leah Adams.

So without further ado, the winners are:


Marilyn in Mississippi from Walking in Truth

Tiffany from Tea with Tiffany

Vivian Childs 

Cindy from Consider it All Joy
 

Congratulations ladies!  I will have your books in the mail by Thursday, November 18th.  Thank you for entering the drawing.

It's Give Away Time!

 In honor of my friend Leah  I will be giving away four autographed copies of her Bible Study,  From the Trash Pile to the Treasure Chest: Creating a Godly Legacy.

This excellent Bible study will help us examine our legacy and guide us in creating a godly legacy that will honor God.

All you have to do to enter for the drawing is to leave a comment.  I will choose the winners in a very scientific way; your names will be drawn out of a hat by my sweet hubby on November 15th.

What kind of legacy do you want to leave?

A Good Connection

My Blackberry was on it's last legs. The screen would freeze, making in difficult to use unless you turned it off and then back on several times a day.  I am not technologically savvy at all but I decided to get a new Android phone that is really cool.  My niece works for our wireless carrier so when she brought me the new phone, she and her brother gave me a thorough tutorial.  Very soon I was familiar enough with the phone to do all sorts of cool things.  However, I failed to learn how to retrieve a call!  After several missed calls I finally got the hang of answering a call.  By now you have probably figured out that I am not always the sharpest crayon in the box.

Today in Bible study during Leah's prayer, one of our ladies' phone rang.  She had forgotten to silence it.  She managed to silence the call and then another ladies' phone rang.  She silenced her call as well and we had a little giggle during our prayer.   As Leah was praying, she thanked the Lord that he never silences our calls.  I am so thankful for that.  He always takes our calls.  He never mutes us.  He never sends us straight to His voice mail.  He never screens our calls even when He sees on His caller ID that it's me.   Our calls to Heaven are never dropped and there is always a good connection.  He is "on call" 24/7.  His network is always available.  He can "hear us now".  Praise Him with me that He always hears our prayers.

 "Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all you heart."  Jeremiah 29: 12-13

 "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."  Jeremiah 33:3

Life is Good,

Cindy

Hoarders

Some of you may have watched the television show Hoarders but  I had never seen an episode until last week.  I was flipping through the channels on Labor Day hoping for a Criminal Minds or NCIS marathon but instead I happened upon Hoarders.  And I was mesmerized.  And heartbroken for the hoarders.

 The A & E channel defines it like this : "Compulsive Hoarding is a mental disorder marked by an obsessive need to acquire and keep things even if the items are worthless, hazardous or unsanitary."  Some of the hoarders have had some circumstance in their life that triggered their disorder.  I was amazed that some of the homes had gotten to the point that they were uninhabitable.  The hoarders are embarrassed and overwhelmed.  Most of the houses had gotten so bad that the hoarders had no clue where to start and seemed hopeless.  Some of the hoarders did not realize that they had a problem.  Families had been torn apart by the hoarding.  The only way for a compulsive hoarder to change is through therapy.  It was so easy for me to be judgmental and disgusted.  But like I said my heart was broken.

The Holy Spirit began to whisper that we as Christians can be hoarders too.  What?  Did I hear you correctly Lord?  While we may not hoard possessions we can sometimes hoard our emotions.

• We hoard forgiveness when we fail to extend it to someone who might have wronged us. 
• We hoard mercy when we fail to show compassion to others.
• We hoard patience when we are easily annoyed by others.
• We hoard joy when we let our circumstances dictate how we feel.

When we hang on to these things instead of sharing them with others we are basically hoarding Jesus!  Jesus paid too high a price for us to keep Him too ourselves.  I don't want to be a hoarder.  How about you?

Different Denominations (and I'm Not Talking About Money)

Our church just began having a contemporary service in our Fellowship Hall on Sunday mornings in addition to our more traditional Sunday morning worship.   W.I.T.H  or Worship in the Hall wasn't a change in theology, but a different style of worshiping the same God.  It is an amazing worship service and it got me to thinking about different denominations and the different ways that people worship the One True God.

I think it's really neat that we as the body of Christ can choose how we worship and belong to the denomination of our choice.   It would be boring if everyone were alike.  Some prefer chocolate, some vanilla.  And so it is with worship, we have different preferences.

Sunday morning before last I turned on the television to hear a popular Atlanta pastor as usual before leaving for church.  I couldn't find him, so I settled for a different channel and different pastor.  I never did find our his name because I was listening from another room as I got ready to go to church.  But it was a very interesting explanation of denominations.

He surmised that  different denominations possibly existed in the Old Testament.  I know what you're thinking, probably the same thing I was; huh?   After the Egyptian Pharaoh released the Hebrews after 430 years of captivity, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and other laws.  He later gave him detailed instructions on building a sanctuary or Tabernacle for Him so that He could dwell among the people. The Israelites  were divided into 12 tribes and each tribe set up camp around the Tabernacle, the position of each tribe's campsite had been determined by instructions from God to Moses. 

Each of the twelve tribes had different standards or banners that they flew over their tribe.  Even though they were all Jews and they had all been enslaved in Egypt there were differences in each tribe.  Every tribe had a set of values; personal values, traditional values and core values.  Personal values could be shaped by circumstances in their lives, their jobs, etc.  Traditional values were held by each tribe, and came from traditions that had been passed down from the families in the tribe from generation to generation, like what dishes they ate their Passover meal on, whether they watched the Passover football game, etc. (I'm just kidding.  But you get the drift.)  And core values are the values that they all held as God's chosen people.   These core values were absolutely non-negotiable.  "You shall have no other gods before me, You shall not make for yourself an idol, You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, Honor your father and your mother, You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not give false testimony, and You shall not covet".

We who are Believers have our own set of personal and traditional values.  Some of us are quiet in our worship, and some of us clap our hands.  Some of us like the old hymns and some of us like the new praise songs.  We are Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Catholics, and Lutherans to name a few.  But our core values are the same.  We are followers of Christ.  We believe that Jesus died once for all, taking on our sins and on the third day rose from the dead, giving us eternal life and preparing  us a place with Him in Heaven.

 
  

Putting on My Armor

Hello again.  It has been forever since I've seen you!  I've missed you.  I had no intentions of being away so long, but God had other plans.  This has been a hectic year.  In March and April I battled the flu for a month and in May our daughter got married.  In my last post I told you that God had me in a place of quiet rest to recover from all the excitement.   I really didn't expect my rest to be an extended one, but in July I came down with what the Doctor thought was bronchitis but turned into pneumonia.  The symptoms lasted over a month and then I was diagnosed with asthma.  That explains why it was so hard to get over the flu and pneumonia.


I have to be honest with you, while I was going through the flu I began to feel so defeated.  I don't think I had ever felt that bad and it got to the point where I wondered if I would ever feel better again.  And even though I knew that it wasn't the truth, I even felt like God had forsaken me.   Those were lies straight from the enemy himself. When I got sick with pneumonia I briefly entertained those lies again.
Both times when I was sick, I was unable to sit up and just generally felt lousy, not even like reading.  So I let my Bible reading and my Bible study lapse.  Big mistake.  One that I will never make again. 

Today in my Bible study on Covenant,  I read Ephesians 6.  I have read this passage many times, but today God showed me something new.   Kay Arthur says: "  The word "struggle" in Ephesians 6:12 is the Greek word pale.  It is a wrestling term - meaning to throw to the ground and hold there.  Could this be why so many who profess Jesus find themselves pinned to the ground by the Enemy?"  That is exactly how I felt!  I realized that during my illnesses, I had not put on the FULL armor of God.  I had select pieces on, but not the full armor.  My feelings were due to something that I had not done.  God had not forsaken me, I hadn't done my part.   Listen to me my sweet sisters, we cannot function at all unless we are FULLY armored!  We cannot stand firm against the enemy's schemes without God's complete suit of armor.  We cannot resist his lies unless we are fully armored.   It is impossible to stand against his evil ways without His complete armor. 

Ephesians 6:10-17 (New International Version)

The Armor of God

 ¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. ¹²For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.









       

Rest

Hello friends!  I have missed you all.  But for the last several weeks God has had me in a place of quiet rest.  A place of rest in Him.  After the flurry of activity leading up to my daughter's wedding I was ready for ttanquility, both physically and mentally!  The Lord had me to refrain from any blogging or blog hopping in this season.  I was just supposed to be still in Him. 

I've been able to read 6 books so far this summer, something I haven't done in a while.  I am one of those readers that gets completely and totally lost in my book and can't put it down.

I also began a new Bible study that I am enjoying greatly, From the Trash Pile to the Treasure Chest: Creating a Godly Legacy by my very good friend Leah Adams.  Perhaps you've heard of her.  Leah is in the process of final edits and it will come out in the fall.

Anyway, I've missed you.  So tell me, what has God been up to in your life?
 

We Are Blessed

After many months of prayer, planning and preparation, the time finally came for our daughter's much anticipated wedding.  The week leading up to the wedding had proved to be typical weather-wise for May.  It rained off and on nearly every day with afternoon thunderstorms.  Saturday morning it looked like more of the same.  The day dawned overcast with dark clouds.  I had prayed for no rain because although the wedding would take place under a covered pavilion, it was quite a hike to get there and even being shuttled on golf carts the guests were bound to get wet.  I prayed for God's favor, but we knew that it was in His hands come rain or shine!  By mid-morning the sun was out and it was a beautiful day.  And we experienced the unmerited favor of the Lord.

Caitlin was one of the calmest brides I have ever seen. She woke up that morning beaming, with the biggest smile on her face.   We had a couple of minor emergencies; one of the groomsman's tux pants didn't fit and he had to make the two hour drive back to Men's Wearhouse to exchange them. They wouldn't meet him halfway.  The zipper on one of the bridesmaid's dress malfunctioned. Through all of this Caitlin was cool as a cucumber.  She commented that it didn't really matter what happened because at the end of the day I will be Mrs. Jody Jenkins.  I think a nuclear blast could have occurred and it wouldn't have fazed her.  Here she is getting ready with her bridesmaids.

The weather was still beautiful when it came time for the ceremony.  My heart was so full of emotion.  My little girl, now a grown woman beginning a family of her own.  Walking down the aisle on the arm of her daddy. 

The ceremony was so sweet.  They were married by the Youth Minister at our church.  He and his wife were such an important part of Caitlin's spiritual life and she couldn't imagine anyone else marrying them.  Instead of lighting a unity candle, they chose to enter into a Salt Covenant.  It indicates a binding contract, uniting their grains of salt for eternity.  Then they took communion as their first act of worship together as a married couple.

One of the most touching things in the ceremony were the unashamed tears of one of Jody's brothers and of Caitlin's brother.  I hadn't seen my 19 year old son cry for a very long time.  But his tears flowed freely.  He said, "I'm just so happy".  Here's Jody and his brother Toby.

We are so blessed to have gained another son.  He loves my daughter with all of his heart and we love him.  We also love his family and had such a good time with them as our families were joined together. 

  Here are a few photos from the reception:

  

I didn't have the presence of mind to take any pictures, so thank you to all of you that sent me pictures.  And thank you for indulging me and letting me share our special day with you.



Life Is Good,

Cindy

Waiting

But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Savior;
             my God will hear me.
            

This is my grandpuppy A.J.  Recently I got to puppysit while his mommy and daddy went to their premarital counseling.

He sits at the door eagerly waiting on his people to come back.  I try to get him to play and he will for a little while, but he knows that they will return for him and he anxiously waits by the door so he won't miss them.

He made me think about waiting on the Lord.  Am I eagerly waiting to hear from Him, eager to see what He has for me each day?  Am I watching in hope, knowing that He will hear me?

Life is Good,

Cindy

Happy Mother's Day

On this Mother's Day, I am so thankful for my precious Mother.  She was a beautiful example of what a godly Mother should be.  She is a prayer warrior and I remember her studying her Bible daily.  Thank you Mom, for taking care of me, and loving me always, especially those times that I am hard to love.  Thank you for being a wonderful role model and giving me the tools I needed to become a mother myself.

                                           My mother,  my daughter and me

And thank you to the loves of my life.   Life with you has never been dull,  motherhood was a wonderful adventure.  You've made life interesting and have kept me on my toes.  You are fun and funny and I am blessed to be your mother.  I love you both so much.

Life is Good,

Cindy

So Long, Insecurity

On April 24th, my friends Leah, Kristen and I joined about 10,000 other ladies at First Baptist Church in Woodstock, GA and 300,000 worldwide to hear Beth Moore speak on her book So Long, Insecurity. Yes, I am slow but it has taken me this long to process everything. It was wonderful day of worship and fellowship with old friends and new. I am ready to say goodbye forever to my insecurities. They have taken up too much space in my life

Here are some of the points of the day: A Secure Woman is:

1. Saved from herself (Insecurity is a twisted from of self-interest)
2. Entitled to truth (The more we live withdrawn, the darker our thinking becomes)
3. Clothed with intention (We can't be weak willed women)
4. Upended by grace (Grace is the only thing that we can give away that we can also keep)
5. Rebounded by love (We are loved by God regardless of our pasts)
6. Exceptional in life
   

We traveled to Atlanta the day before the event for some girl time. I hadn't seen Kristen for several months and there was a lot of catching up to do. Kristen had never been to Phipps Plaza and so we decided that it would be a good place to get a bite to eat and do a little shopping.

We then met a group of Siestas at Pappasito's for dinner. I knew a few of these women through their blogs but hadn't met them in person. It was a great time with about 30 ladies. And the Mariachi Band!



Our friend Kristen

Karen, Leah and Abby

Tammy


Lora and me. I was so excited to meet her. I feel like I have known her forever. I also met Yolanda and Georgia Jan, but failed to get a picture of them. I was so excited it's a wonder I got any pictures at all!

And no Mexican dinner is complete without a Mariachi Band!

He Knows Our Name

For the past month, I have battled the flu, a sinus infection and an allergic reaction to two different types of medication. I don't remember ever feeling quite that sick in all of my nearly 50 years. I was sick enough that I couldn't do much of anything but I didn't even feel like doing my Bible study for several days because I was in the bed for the better part of two weeks.
Because I felt so bad, and because I was not immersed in the Word I allowed the enemy to just come on in and have a field day in my mind. And doesn't the enemy just love to kick us when we are down? He brought up my past, my fears, my failures and it was a dark and scary place. He wants to keep us in captivity, confined in a small place. But Psalm 18:19 and Psalm 31:8 tells us that God wants us to inhabit a spacious place.

Our Bible study group just completed a study on Ruth; Loss, Love and Legacy by Kelly Minter. As I felt better and was able to finish this wonderful study the following points stood out and I felt that God wanted me to share them with you. When Satan, the accuser tries to condemn you for your past history, remind yourself and the enemy of these points:

1. Our history doesn't have to read like prophecy. God can redeem anything from our past. We are redeemed through Christ. Jesus was the ransom used to buy us back from the clutches of sin. He bought back the rights to our past and all its failures. He can turn all our failures into something useful for His Kingdom. With Him there is full redemption (Psalm 130:7). Praise God, our heritage is not a deal breaker for Christ.
2. He has summoned us by name (Isaiah 43:1). He knows us in a personal loving way. While others may label, judge or condemn us because of our names or lineage, our names hold no negative associations for Jesus. Kelly Minter says, "Because I know as women we are plagued with insecurities and pasts that haunt us, I can't pass over this striking symbol of what Christ has done for each one of us and how He knows our full names." It doesn't matter what name the world calls us. God has a new name for us! (Rev. 2:17)
   
3. God can use us regardless of our history or our circumstances. Look at Ruth, a Moabitess, a foreigner, who God used in a mighty way. Consider Rahab, a prostitute. She's listed in Hebrews 11 in the roll call of faith. And in Matthew 1 both women are listed in the genealogy of Jesus! Kelly says, "This should give us tremendous hope that God can delight in using us, no matter our culture or histories."

Life is Good,


Cindy

Mother-Daughter's Day Out

On Friday, my daughter took me to downtown Atlanta for a fun day at a cute little spa where we got a pedicure and a manicure. She had purchased this treat for me as a Christmas gift when she found an online special for a 75% discount on their services. So not only did we have a delightful time, she didn't have to spend a lot of money on it! That made it even better. The spa had only been open for a few months and overlooked a water fall spilling into a small pool, which made it all the more relaxing. It was a gorgeous day, with lots of sunshine. Spring came out to play that day!

We are smack-dab in the middle of preparations for her May wedding, so it was a nice diversion from wedding details! I have enjoyed all the planning for the wedding, but it was nice to relax for a little while without having to make any decisions except for what color to polish our toenails!

This was probably one of the last days that we would spend together just hanging out before she becomes a married woman. I couldn't help but remember her sweet childhood and look in awe at the wonderful young woman that she has become. It was a bittersweet day. When I left her I thought of all the marital wisdom that I wanted to impart before her big day.

As I reflected, I hoped that she looked at her Dad and I as good role models for marriage. We aren't perfect and our marriage is far from perfect, but we made a choice 26 years ago that we would give it everything we had.

Here are the things I want to share with her regarding marriage:

• God has to be invited into the marriage in order for it to work.
• Your husband is the head of the family.
• Marriage will be one of the hardest things you will ever do, it takes work.
• You have to love your husband above yourself.
• Never go to bed angry with each other.
• You will have arguments, this is inevitable.
• Be forgiving, don't hang on to little hurts.
• Your husband is only human.
• You must show him respect. It is one of the most important things to a man.
• You have to choose to love him every day, even when he leaves the toilet seat up.
• Marriage is wonderful.

Domestic Diva

I have a confession to make: I am not a domestic diva. More like a domestic disaster. And I am not like the Proverbs 31 woman. I so want to be. I am so scattered that I will begin to clean in one room, go to another room for something I needed and then find something there to distract me, so that I just sort of wander around aimlessly from room to room, wondering why I am there and wondering why every room in my house is messed up.

And don't even get me started on cooking. I have never enjoyed cooking. My mother and sister have always been fabulous cooks and they enjoy it immensely. When we were little girls, I would always beg not to have to cook, but would promise to wash dishes instead. It isn't that I can't, I just don't like it. Somehow, I think the love of cooking skipped my genes or something. My husband used to say that when I called my children for dinner, they immediately went and got in the car. I take a lot of good-natured kidding from my family about my lack domestic skills.

When I do cook it's usually good, but more often than not, something goes wrong. One night after it had snowed most of the day I decided that we needed something warm and comforting for dinner on this cold winter's night. My husband loves my homemade chicken noodle soup so I decided that it would be the perfect meal for the night. Soup and a yummy cake of cornbread. I got out my ingredients and was already anticipating how delicious it was going to be. Then I realized that I had everything I needed, except the chicken. Chicken noodle soup with no chicken would simply be noodle water and my man is a meat and potatoes kind of guy and I knew he wouldn't go for vegetarian noodle soup. So I reverted to Plan B; sandwiches. But the night just called for something warm so I opened a can of Campbell's™ Cream of Mushroom soup to go with the sandwiches. It's good soup, but I decided that I could tweak it a little to make it taste more homemade. I added some cheese and a shot of worcestershire sauce and a few other things and was delighted with my creation. Until Robert and I actually sat down to eat it. I added too much worcestershire sauce and it was very strong. And it wasn't very good. But Robert ate it anyway, he's good like that. He did have one comment: "That's why Campbell's™ makes their soup the way they do, because it's edible". It didn't even hurt my feelings. I know it was bad.

One time not too long after Robert and I were married I attempted to cook chicken livers in the oven. It was a fiasco. It was a disaster. But Robert ate them anyway. The dog took one sniff, turned up his nose and walked away. He was having no part of this meal.

Then there was the time when Robert asked me to make him a strawberry cake. And being a good wife I was more than happy too. I baked the cake, (it came out beautifully by the way) and was letting it cool before I iced it. He wanted a piece right then so he pleaded with me to go ahead and ice it. I tried to explain to him that it really needed to cool before icing but he just couldn't wait. So I made the icing and iced it. Of course the icing wouldn't stay on the hot cake very well, but it didn't matter to him. He finished his cake and closed the cake up in it's container. By the next morning the cake had grown hair. Apparently because it hadn't cooled properly and then was completely covered it caused some sort of mold to grow. Imagine our surprise. Robert couldn't wait to tell his family. That happened over 25 years ago, and they still like to remind me of it.

Or the time that I caught the oven on fire while I was cooking cornbread. I could go on, but I just don't know how much more you could bear to read. By now I am sure that you are so mortified and embarrassed for me that I'll just quit there.

Aren't you glad that we don't have to be perfect or even good to come to God? If that were the case none of us would stand a chance. Look at Psalm 130:3: If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? (NIV)

Jesus took our sins and nailed them to the cross. If we confess our sins God doesn't keep a record of our mistakes and blunders. He won't remind us of something we did 25 years ago. Micah 7:18 and 19 says :

¹⁸ Who is a God like you,
who pardons sin and forgives the transgression
of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever
but delight to show mercy.

¹⁹ You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.

Oh, and by the way, Proverbs 31:15 says: "she provides food for her family". It doesn't say she always cooks for her family. Could she have possibly gotten take-out sometimes like I do? Maybe there is hope for me yet.

Care to share some of your kitchen disasters with me?

More Thoughts on Worship

In my last post I revealed an embarrassing incident that God used to speak to me about how we let things hinder our worship. That particular day it was an article of clothing for me. God let me know that worship has everything to do with the condition of my heart and I alone am responsible for my worship experience. God is always the same. I'm the one who gets distracted.

For the past few days, worship has been on my mind. The Holy Spirit kept bringing up the word circumstances. We are to worship God regardless of our circumstances, not just when things are going well and we feel like it.

In Genesis 22 we find Abraham on the way to Mount Moriah to sacrifice his only son Isaac. He tells his servants that he and Isaac were going to worship and they would come back to them. Abraham was facing the most difficult thing a parent could ever imagine, giving up a child, and yet he still trusted God enough to worship Him. He didn't let his circumstances keep him from worship.

In 2 Samuel 12 we know that after David learns of the death of his son, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Difficult circumstances.

Daniel 6 finds us in Babylon. The government officials were determined to get rid of Daniel for good, so they convinced the king to issue an edict that anyone who prayed to any god or man other than King Darius should be thrown into the lions' den. Even though Daniel knew about the decree, he got down on his knees and prayed to his God as always. Daniel knew that this could land him in the lions' den. Death is a pretty dire circumstance. He worshiped anyway.

In Acts 16 we find Paul and Silas. They had been severely beaten and thrown in jail. We see them in their chains, yet they were praying and singing hymns to God. Worship in the worst of circumstances.

This past weekend we learned of some difficult circumstances that someone close to our family was experiencing. It rocked our world. We were heartbroken for them and my husband and I shed many tears for them. We had a choice to make; we could stay home from church on Sunday and wallow in grief, or we could go to church and worship our God who is bigger than any circumstance. We chose to worship. We were able to give the circumstances to Him and in return we had His assurance that He had everything in the palm of His hand. We came away refreshed, with lighter hearts.

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness; Psalm 29:2

How Firm a Foundation

I will never forget that particular Sunday morning. I was going through the normal Sunday morning routine preparing to go to church to worship my Jesus. It was a pretty ordinary day until I remembered that I had purchased something new called Spanx. Spanx™ are a type of undergarment designed to reshape you.The saleswoman told me that this “foundation garment” would change my life! So I decided that this would be the morning that I would reshape myself and have a life changing experience.

With eager anticipation of a new and svelte me, I carefully pulled the undies out of their package. Out came something so small that it looked like a pair of footless tights that belonged to a toddler. Good grief! How in the world was I supposed to get into these tiny little things? I was not going to let their teeny, tiny size deter me from my goal! So with much determination, I began the life changing process of getting into this fashion miracle.

I put one foot in, then the other. So far, so good. I managed to pull the garment up to my shins and then it quickly became apparent that I was going to have to really work to get them up any further. So I began to hop and pull on the Spanx™ at the same time. It kind of reminded me of the potato sack races we used to do in grade school. Finally, I was getting somewhere. I hopped and pulled, and hopped and pulled, and was making great progress. Just as I had almost achieved the impossible, the unthinkable happened. My feet got tangled up and down I went, sprawled out in the floor, the perfect picture of grace. A quick word of advice: NEVER try new undergarments on Sunday morning without giving them a trial run first!

While I was lying there trying to catch my breath, Robert walked in, looked at me lying in the floor and said, "We are going to be late for church". And then he turned around and went out to the car to wait for me. Ummm, thanks for the concern honey.

By this time, I had worked up quite a sweat with my little hopping and pulling aerobics. I was also having a hard time breathing, due to the constriction of the Spanx™. And then wouldn't you know it, I had to use the restroom. Oh. My. Word. So I began the arduous process of removing the Spanx™. And then it hit me; what in the world would I do if I had to use the restroom during church? What if I couldn't get them off? And seriously, it really was hard to breathe. All these things started rolling around in my mind. I was so focused on my uncomfortable predicament that I totally lost focus on what the day was all about.

And then an amazing thing happened. The Holy Spirit said, "This garment would hinder your worship." Wow. The Sovereign God of the universe used something goofy that I had done to teach me a lesson on worship. I had become so concerned with my uncomfortable garment that it would have been impossible to keep my mind on why I was going to church. My discomfort would have been my primary focus, not Jesus. He reminded me that worship is at the heart of my relationship with Him. It has to do with the condition of my heart. And if my heart is divided and distracted by other things I cannot possibly worship Jesus in the way He desires to be worshiped.

Is there something that is hindering your worship? Ask God to point it out to you. We owe Him nothing less than our undivided hearts.

Life is Good,

Cindy

Prayer for a Friend

I am asking for your prayers for a precious friend that has just been diagnosed with breast cancer. Her name is Krista and she is the wife of our Youth Pastor at First Baptist. You can read about what she is going through on her blog.

I have had the privilege of being with Krista on many youth trips in the past. She has a wonderful sense of humor and we have spent many hours laughing together. She is facing this battle head on, still with her sense of humor intact.

Her surgery is scheduled for January 20th. Stop by and visit her blog and offer her your encouragement and prayers.