I have been experiencing confliction about Halloween this year for the first time ever. The Holy Spirit has prompted me to research, pray and engage other strong believers in a dialogue about this day. I grew up trick-or-treating and it was all about having fun. Nothing ghoulish or scary or evil. And I want that innocent fun for my kids (it's not high on the list of desires for them certainly!). But I just kept thinking, "Is this something that honors God?" So I read, I prayed and I sought counsel from several moms I respect and trust in their relationship with God. And the Holy Spirit brought me to this...
I don't think Jesus would have thrown a Halloween party for sure, but I also don't think He would be inside His house with the front porch light turned off. I think He would be out and about, sharing the glorious news of Him! So our light will be on and we'll hand out candy to the children, along with an invitation to our church. We've also been using this day as an opportunity to discuss sharing and giving with Lane and Landry.
This is what works for our family at this time. Who knows where the Holy Spirit will lead us in the future?! But I earnestly pray that even our fun honors Him and is a light into our dark world. May His Light shine brightly today through all of us who know Him!
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Thursday, October 25, 2007
I must praise Him!
Psalm 34
I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together.
I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man (woman!) called, and the Lord heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Come, my children, listen to me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; He protects his bones, not one of them will be broken.
Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems His servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him.
Do you hear it? Do you get it? If you are brokenhearted - cry out to Him, He is close to you! Are you afraid of something / someone / some situation? Cry out to Him, He will deliver you from it. Do you feel ashamed? Cry out to Him, He will not cover your face with it! Do you think you are lacking? Cry out to Him, in Him you lack nothing! Sisters, please don't settle for a mediocre relationship with Jesus - cry out, cry out, cry out. He hears you. He sees you. He loves you. He is close - call to Him!
If you look back several entries ago, you will see I was there, deep in a pit of despair. God delivered me! He pulled me out of the discontentment, discouragement and despair when I cried out to Him. When He knew that I knew that no one else could do it for me - not even myself. Especially not myself.
I must praise Him! My heart, my mouth, my mind cannot cease from doing so. I have never been more in love with Jesus, with my husband and my boys that I am at this moment. God has me overflowing with love. I must praise Him! I must praise Him.
Praise You, my Rock. My Redeemer, may my life glorify You in every way. May I always be radiant from looking to You. You alone are worthy, You alone are good.
I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together.
I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man (woman!) called, and the Lord heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Come, my children, listen to me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; He protects his bones, not one of them will be broken.
Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems His servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him.
Do you hear it? Do you get it? If you are brokenhearted - cry out to Him, He is close to you! Are you afraid of something / someone / some situation? Cry out to Him, He will deliver you from it. Do you feel ashamed? Cry out to Him, He will not cover your face with it! Do you think you are lacking? Cry out to Him, in Him you lack nothing! Sisters, please don't settle for a mediocre relationship with Jesus - cry out, cry out, cry out. He hears you. He sees you. He loves you. He is close - call to Him!
If you look back several entries ago, you will see I was there, deep in a pit of despair. God delivered me! He pulled me out of the discontentment, discouragement and despair when I cried out to Him. When He knew that I knew that no one else could do it for me - not even myself. Especially not myself.
I must praise Him! My heart, my mouth, my mind cannot cease from doing so. I have never been more in love with Jesus, with my husband and my boys that I am at this moment. God has me overflowing with love. I must praise Him! I must praise Him.
Praise You, my Rock. My Redeemer, may my life glorify You in every way. May I always be radiant from looking to You. You alone are worthy, You alone are good.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
I Want You Awake
God has been up to some pretty cool stuff in my life and the Holy Spirit woke me up this morning at 6:25am and said, "I want you awake! It is time to write!". Oh, I love Him so! Stephanie, maybe you helped encourage this with all your "Rise Up" talk yesterday. :) Anyway, He reminded me of something that happened recently that I thought I'd share.
Travis and I went away for a few days - just the two of us - to Las Vegas. Very interesting trip. We enjoyed marveling at the creativity of the different casino resorts - I've never been to Paris or Venice, but the way we humans can replicate things is pretty amazing. That's the trouble with Vegas (well, one of the troubles) - it's all an illusion. Everything is a duplication - a dupe if you will. There is nothing real and nothing is as it seems. Anyway, by Saturday we were so ready to get out of there and get home. Travis and I are in the middle of doing Beth Moore's "Daniel" bible study and how perfect that God would throw a trip for us to the heart of our hedonistic, Babylonian-esque culture while we're studying this man "full of integrity while living an enticing world". Ah, but I digress...
On our arrival back home at DFW airport, we walk out to catch our bus to get to the very-far-off-the-beaten-path parking lot (so we could save $2) and I notice Travis beginning to frantically look for something. I'm wondering, "What in the heck is he doing?" So I ask. He can't find the ticket with the phone number of the very-far-off-the-beaten-path parking lot. Yes, that's right - they don't just drive past every 10 minutes like the others. And we can't remember the name of the lot to even call information. I'm tired, I want to get home to see my babies - and I'm really about to get upset at him. My automatic reaction was to be critical and annoyed so I stopped and prayed. (I've also been studying Colossians with some women at my church and boy, did studying that book come in handy this particular evening!) I prayed, "Lord, I ask that you give me a spirit of helpfulness to Travis. And please send someone to help get us to our car!"
Well, don't you know, two minutes later, a women driving a bus for another lot stopped (we're now the only people waiting in the pickup area and it's 9:30 at night) and asked if we needed a pickup. Travis explained our situation and she said that she knew the name of the company and told us. We were so thankful at this point - hello! That is awesome - we have the name - yea! She began to drive off and then stopped - she opened her door and said that she found their number in her phone and that she used to work for them! Now this is even better! Thank you, Lord, for Your provision!
When our bus arrives, we get in and sit down and I happen to look up front where the driver is sitting and there is a sign next to the door that read: "Your protection is my number one concern: Jesus".
I love Jesus! I love God's sense of humor - hello, that our driver would be named Jesus cracks me up!!!
In all seriousness, I am thankful for this episode. He highlighted to me how I've grown in Him. Sometimes I've asked God to show me the fruit and He did here. I am thankful for His provision - it comes in ways so you know, only He could have done that. Oh, I love Him so!
I praise you today Jesus! May everything I do today glorify and honor You.
Travis and I went away for a few days - just the two of us - to Las Vegas. Very interesting trip. We enjoyed marveling at the creativity of the different casino resorts - I've never been to Paris or Venice, but the way we humans can replicate things is pretty amazing. That's the trouble with Vegas (well, one of the troubles) - it's all an illusion. Everything is a duplication - a dupe if you will. There is nothing real and nothing is as it seems. Anyway, by Saturday we were so ready to get out of there and get home. Travis and I are in the middle of doing Beth Moore's "Daniel" bible study and how perfect that God would throw a trip for us to the heart of our hedonistic, Babylonian-esque culture while we're studying this man "full of integrity while living an enticing world". Ah, but I digress...
On our arrival back home at DFW airport, we walk out to catch our bus to get to the very-far-off-the-beaten-path parking lot (so we could save $2) and I notice Travis beginning to frantically look for something. I'm wondering, "What in the heck is he doing?" So I ask. He can't find the ticket with the phone number of the very-far-off-the-beaten-path parking lot. Yes, that's right - they don't just drive past every 10 minutes like the others. And we can't remember the name of the lot to even call information. I'm tired, I want to get home to see my babies - and I'm really about to get upset at him. My automatic reaction was to be critical and annoyed so I stopped and prayed. (I've also been studying Colossians with some women at my church and boy, did studying that book come in handy this particular evening!) I prayed, "Lord, I ask that you give me a spirit of helpfulness to Travis. And please send someone to help get us to our car!"
Well, don't you know, two minutes later, a women driving a bus for another lot stopped (we're now the only people waiting in the pickup area and it's 9:30 at night) and asked if we needed a pickup. Travis explained our situation and she said that she knew the name of the company and told us. We were so thankful at this point - hello! That is awesome - we have the name - yea! She began to drive off and then stopped - she opened her door and said that she found their number in her phone and that she used to work for them! Now this is even better! Thank you, Lord, for Your provision!
When our bus arrives, we get in and sit down and I happen to look up front where the driver is sitting and there is a sign next to the door that read: "Your protection is my number one concern: Jesus".
I love Jesus! I love God's sense of humor - hello, that our driver would be named Jesus cracks me up!!!
In all seriousness, I am thankful for this episode. He highlighted to me how I've grown in Him. Sometimes I've asked God to show me the fruit and He did here. I am thankful for His provision - it comes in ways so you know, only He could have done that. Oh, I love Him so!
I praise you today Jesus! May everything I do today glorify and honor You.
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