Pep Talk

Just a random video on fb yesterday that made me smile...need a pep talk? Check out this kids enthusiasm!

"I'm on your team, be on my team." "Keep going..." "We were made to be awesome."

"Give the world a reason to dance!" 

Heaven Themed Dates

I really enjoy going on theme dates or creating them. I've done several over the years but I had been praying about doing something new. As I was asking God for ideas, He put it on my heart to have a heaven themed group date!

Sign leading up to the house

Dinner for the 'saints' - angel hair pasta & fix'ns. Wings attached
to the chairs so that when you looked across the table people looked like
they had angel's wings!



Ambiance



Candles & Music: playing Libera & harp music

Angel food cake for dessert!

Friends: 

Heaven scriptures

Heavenly clouds

Close up of the wings: made from cardboard & white coffee filters!
Attached with masking tape and covered with tinsel...



My friend came over to hang out during the day. While we were praying I happened to open my eyes and was moved to tears! So after we finished I asked her if I could take a picture so she could see what a saw!!!!

Dreaming about heaven is refreshing!

Wreath Creations

Here are some new wreaths I finished. Because they were Christmas presents I needed to wait to post them. I've made a few yarn wrapped wreaths and a ribbon wrapped wreath. They have turned out super cute!

I had another yarn wrapped wreath with smaller yarn. I made the yarn flowers & love how this turned out!

Hear Me Roar :)

Often when I read scriptures of Jesus and his interaction with women, I think to myself, "He gets us! Jesus totally understands me." Every time he is speaking to a woman and calls her "daughter" my heart melts. Jesus makes me really thankful and proud to be a woman. This morning that reminded me of the lyrics to that old song..."I am woman, hear me roar." LOL

Well, I came across a great video and wanted to share it with you because it inspired me, challenged me, and reminded me that I need to remember why I do what I do so that my heart stays connected and motivated.

• I sponsor children through Compassion International - to reach girls & young women early to help them financially, to teach them about their importance, and to show them how much Jesus loves them.
• I do personal bible study's with women to share with them how much God cares and loves them, so that they can change the hurtful patterns we get in to and so they can have a unique and personal relationship with Him plus the confidence that He wants to use us in amazing ways. 
• I try to mentor women in local reentry programs who have been incarcerated & young women who have aged out of foster care because life is hard and because I know that God is the God of second chances, and they need change and hope too.
• I financially support single women and widows in developing countries through Kiva because as women, we want to make a difference in our communities.
• I want to inspire women toward a deep walk with God...and keep myself refreshed - this is why I have a blog!

A Stronger Work Ethic

Work.

I've been thinking a lot lately of how I can put even more heart into my work. Let's face it, things aren't always fair at our jobs. In my greed, I want fair but I have to remind myself that God doesn't place me at any job just for me...he has me there to remind people of HIM! I should always be pointing to God. So as I've gone to the bible, certain scriptures keep coming up and I thought I'd share them since they fit well as I consider my thoughts/actions/attitudes about work. Let your pride fall to the side here...because I'm writing about the slave-master scriptures. These are a great reminder of the work ethic and heart I need to have as a woman who follows Christ. [1 Peter 2:20-23] 

Here are some verses I'm meditating on specifically...it might be worth thinking about them in relation to your employee-boss relationships:  

Ephesians 6:5-7 Slaves and Masters

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good [s]he does, whether [s]he is slave or free.

Colossians 3:22-25 Rules for Christian Households 

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.

Titus 2:9-10 What Must Be Taught to Vairous Groups

Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.

1 Peter 2:13-20 Submission to Rulers and Masters

Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. Live as free [wo]men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king. Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if a [wo]man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because [s]he is conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.

It is the Lord Christ I am serving! Wow-I need this reminder every day. This 1 Peter scriptures specifically rock my heart. And thankfully, God notices our work always...yay for that work 'bonus' ! :]

Crave the Victory!

This topic keeps coming up among friends so I thought I'd share a post from the past.

Ladies, learn to crave the victory more than the sin!

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I was watching Joyce Meyer one day and she asked the question, "Are you an investor or a gambler?" What a simple yet deep question to guide you with almost any daily decision. (I've been reflecting on this a lot lately concerning my health too)

Do you get up every day and make choices based on the word of God or just "roll the dice" and hope not to get a bad consequence? What areas are you just taking a gamble? What areas do you need to be more of an investor? What areas are you doing great in and can celebrate a victory? These questions can even make a difference in your purity. Let's talk about that...because purity is the one area I've seen Christian women fight with more than anything else.

Two things have helped me a ton as a Christian in the area of purity and I'd like to share both with you.

• I invest instead of gamble - 2 Timothy 2:21-23 (NLT) "If you keep yourself pure, you will be a utensil God can use for his purpose. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work. Run from anything that stimulates youthful lust. Follow anything that makes you want to do right. Pursue faith, love, and peace, and enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.”

In the sentiment of what we pursue and follow, I created the poster (shown below) to remind me that I need to be an investor and not a gambler. I was shocked to see how many of these areas can make a difference in my purity and how important it is to invest. Think about it!

• I fight negative with positive. "Imagine yourself walking along a path. Notice the air. Is it warm or cool? How does the path feel under your feet? Become aware as you keep walking that this is a safe path. Now notice that slightly ahead, you are coming to a fork in the path. One way looks hard and dark. The other way is beautiful and green. Jeremiah 6:16 reads, “This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls…” Choose to walk down the beautiful path. As you continue, you hear water just beyond a bend of this path. You have come upon a river. It’s the Jordan River. You see Jesus walk up besides the water’s edge with his hand stretched out toward you. Go over and take his hand... look into his eyes...smile...and just as a child would…run and jump into that river with him...a free spirit, unencumbered, natural.

If you are struggling with impure thoughts, you have to shift your thinking! So to do this I come up with images that really motivate me. For example, I start to consider the holiness of the place where Jesus was baptized like in the illustration above. Also, because my “trigger” is hopelessness that lead me into patterns of negative thinking, when tempted with impurity or immorality, I imagine not all the scriptures that tell me to be pure, but the result of my purity.

Some examples: picturing myself as a bride getting ready in her chamber for God, or I imagine not giving in and dreaming of Jesus kissing my check because he is proud, or I hold on to an image of God exclaiming at judgment for me to come forward, “My righteous daughter, victorious one!” Those have been more motivating than anything. The verses I hold to are: Song of Solomon 4:12 Jeremiah 2:2 Revelation 15:2

We reap what we sow and that lesson shared over and over in scripture.  I hope you can spend some time reflecting and become the best investor ever!

Free Rice: the World Food Programme

Have you ever heard of a site called Free rice dot com?

I found this site a few years ago. Then somehow I forgot about it until recently when it came across my path again as I was searching for ways to help the poor and hungry. Freerice is a free online game and learning tool, that allows players to raise rice to fight world hunger while learning through educational, multiple-choice games. It's great! And for every question you answer correctly, 10 grains of rice are donated to the World Food Programme. Wiki says the "available subjects include English vocabulary (the original subject with which the game launched), multiplication tables, pre-algebra, chemical symbols (basic or intermediate), English grammar, SAT, basic foreign language vocabulary for English speakers (French, German, Italian, Latin, and Spanish), human anatomy, geography (flags of the world, world capitals, country identification and world landmarks), the identification of famous artwork, and literature (classic and popular books). Total score is displayed as a mound of rice and the amount grains."

Right now I'm reading the book of Proverbs. It has many scriptures that help me gain more conviction about my calling to help the poor. [since it helps impact my heart even more when I read it according to my 'gender' I've done that below]

• The woman who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God." Proverbs 14:31
• The woman who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward her for what she has done. Proverbs 19:17
• If a woman shuts her ears to the cry of the poor, she too will cry out and not be answered. Proverbs 21:13
• A generous woman will herself be blessed, for she shares her food with the poor. Proverbs 22:9
• The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern. Proverbs 29:7
• ...and of course the famous Proverbs 31:20 "She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy."

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On the Freerice website they write, "Freerice is a non-profit website that is owned by and supports the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).

Freerice has two goals:

• Provide education to everyone for free.
• Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

(I hope you'll check it out - click here to go to the site Freerice.com)

In my heart...

In my Coffee and Cozy, I began singing a old African-American prayer song. As I sang, I was stirred by how perfect it is for prayer. I love the simplicity! You can change the lyrics to almost any character trait you desire as a Christian. Today I sang about how I want to be more hopeful, more joyful, and to totally be more like Jesus in my heart.

There are many versions of this song to listen to but the one below is the first version I ever heard so I just picked it :)

click here to hear Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

El Camino de Santiago

Have you ever heard of the Camino de Santiago?

Also know as the Way of St. James, this route has been a well known pilgrimage since medieval times and moves across Spain to the place where the remains of the apostle James are said to rest. 

I first learned about it while reading a book where solo traveler, Abigail Seymour, wrote about her adventure on the trail. Then a few months later, I happen to see an interview with Emilio Estevez & Martin Sheen discussing their film called "The Way." So when I saw the movie at Target a few weeks later, I felt compelled to buy it and I really enjoyed it!

“The Way” tells the story of an American doctor who receives news that his son has died in Europe as he was walking the Way of St. James. While there Sheen's character decides to finish the pilgrimage for his son.

In one article Martin Sheen shared, “In the journey, he becomes himself. It’s a story of renewal and healing. It’s also a story of redemption and faith." The pilgrims, or Peregrinos as they are often called, begin to open up to living in the moment, to community, and to adventure while setting down the internal baggage they carry with them (anger, mourning, worry, dull heart).

It's, of course, a bit sad at the beginning but gets lighter and more rich as the movie develops. And now I want to begin hiking again. There is something so refreshing about getting out in nature and walking. It can clear the mind and spirit...just like Martin Sheen shared...it can bring such renewal and healing.

Will I be placing a journey of the Camino de Santiago on my dream list? Actually, yes. My Dad was talking to me during our New Year's celebration and asked if I'd like to hike the Guadalupe Peak Trail with him. As far as it's size, the peak very much mirrors the mountain I climbed in Iceland, Mt. Esja. Our goal is to make that hike this September. We have also decided to make this our training hike! Once we get in shape to conquer this, then our training will shift to make it our goal to walk the Way in 2014. We won't be walking the traditional 500 miles across Spain but at least 62 miles which is the minimum needed to be given a Pilgrim's Certificate of Completion or compostela. Most likely the plan will be to travel from Sarria To Santiago De Compostela (113 kilometres / 70 miles). Both of these walks will require much prayer, discipline and totally God's guidance to accomplish. But amen...cause with God's help, my Dad and I can do it.

So let the training begin! And as is share while walking the way...I wish you a buen camino, my friend.