The Plan I Have For You

Psalm 146 Praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord. 2 I will praise the LORD all my life. I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. 3 Don't put your trust in human leaders. Don't trust in people. They can't save you. 4 When they die, they return to the ground. On that very day their plans are bound to fail. 5 Blessed are those who depend on the God of Jacob for help. Blessed are those who put their hope in the LORD their God. 6 He is the Maker of heaven and earth and the ocean. He made everything in them. The LORD remains faithful forever. 7 He stands up for those who are beaten down. He gives food to hungry people. The LORD sets prisoners free. 8 The LORD gives sight to those who are blind. The LORD lifts up those who feel helpless. The LORD loves those who do what is right. 9 The LORD watches over the outsiders who live in our land. He takes good care of children whose fathers have died. He also takes good care of widows. But he causes evil people to fail i...

Ephesians 5:13-14   But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said:   “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you.” One of the things I won't soon forget about my time with the American Cancer Society is the drive home a fter an overnight Relay event.  The overnight Relay experiences sy mbolizes the hard, dark road walked by a cancer patient followed by the ho pe that comes at the end of their journey.   Watching the sun rise after a long Relay event has always been a magical experience.  As the li ght s preads its way across the field, it warms the soul and brings with it a re newed spirit .  However the light does not take away the exhaustion, nor does it wipe away the experiences of the dark night.  Only when the light begins to break does one realize just how dar k the night was before. Photo taken at the Dodge County, Minn., R...

This is one of the toughest posts I have been called to write.  Admittedly, it has taken more than a month for the words to come together to share.  It bears an issue with which I really struggle, and I know there are others here who deal with the same things.  I have heard too many of them around me lately. After praying for how to share, I was blessed with a testimony of Rhett Walker, lead singer of the contemporary Christian Group The Rhett Walker Band.  Rhett was a preacher's child who led a life of rebellion during his teen years and fathered a child.   He discussed the destructive behavior I call " self beating ."  You know the feeling, that nagging, second guessing of yourself, That voice reminding you often of the things that could have been better or should have been better.  " Oh if only I had," or "if only I hadn't. "  Satan is so wonderful to remind us of our imperfections and use it to keep us down. Don't you find it so much...

Today I would like to introduce to you a very special guest blogger, Paige Barnes.  Paige is my cousin by blood and my sister in Christ.  I had asked her to share on my blog several weeks ago, and when God gave her the words to say, it was the same subject I was preparing to write about myself.  So enjoy her post, and then check out her blog for more!  Thank you, Paige for sharing. Sucker Punched  By: Paige Barnes Realizing that you have not been truly obedient to God is like a  sucker punch to the gut.  It's like you think you are making progress, and then God speaks to you. And this time you can hear him because you are  really  listening.  And He tells you that you are not being completely obedient to him. You are partially obedient, but that is not enough. He has called you to more. He asks for and is due complete obedience. It's not because God is greedy and needs it, but He desires for me to be his pure and spotless bride. H...

My blog has been silent for a couple of weeks.  I've spent a lot of time listening, intensely, to the call God placed on my heart more than two years ago.  Until now I have been able to shove it neatly back into that corner, waiting on this huge opportunity for everything to fall perfectly into place as I wanted it to happen. God has called our family to make changes this year.  We started off looking at a relocation, to make things logistically easier.  Instead change has been about awakening our very complacent spiritual souls and reviving the heart of our family.  We have been so guilty of "going through the motions" of life, living by a checklist of what needs to be done, then falling into bed exhausted at the end of the day with nothing left to give. I have been so incredibly blessed with a job that has fed my passionate desire to help people.  Its been an honor to know that every day I worked, I made a difference in the lives of people acro...

Back to school means shopping for new supplies.  Its always been a favorite time of year for my daughter.  As soon as the list comes out, she is begging for her trip to the store.  She carefully considers each item before making her selection. We were ecstatic to be chosen to review Dayspring's line of Back to School Supplies.  For me, it is an opportunity to send my kids to school with a little reminder of God's love while they are surrounded with the great big world.  For my children, they have cool school supplies that make a statement. We received the "Forever is in my Future" and "Jesus is my BFF" set.  As soon as the box was opened, the binders, folders and composition notebooks immediately disappeared straight to my daughter's backpack.  She was kind enough to share one of the notebooks with me. Her favorite thing?  The encouragement that comes from them.  The composition notebook has a cover full of scriptures and one line en...

I am honored to serve as a guest post for Candice at Lilly Through The Valley today.  Please visit her blog at http://lillythroughthevalley.blogspot.com/.   Candice is a mother to a special needs child, a Proverbs 31 wife, and writes a great Christian inspirational blog.  The great big internet makes it possible for small town moms to share the message of Jesus all across the world!  The more people who see our blogs, the more lives we can change.  If you enjoy what you are reading, please share it with a friend who may need it. Feel free to message any prayer requests you have on my Facebook Page .  Have a great day!