Letters of Love and Encouragement

One of my newest most favoritest blogs is (in)courage.  I don't think there's been a daily post that I have not loved and/or been inspired to do something. It just speaks to my heart as a woman, a sentiment included in their blog header.

Anyway, yesterday they introduced me to a blogging phenomenon called More Love Letters.  You can read about it in this post.

I went web surfing and read about this endeavor of encouragement and can't wait to give it a try myself.

The premise:

Write an anonymous note of encouragement and either leave it in a public place or send it to More Love Letters. You can send a note to the organization for someone specific and it will be sent to them anonymously, say a co-worker who has just gone through a tragedy, or you can send letters that they can use in bundles to support someone going through a hard time.

We've all heard of Random Acts of Kindness, and while paying for someone's order behind you in the drive-through is a pick-me-up for that moment, a letter can have a lasting effect. It can be kept and reread again. There is something "magical" about getting a handwritten letter that expresses care and encouragement.

There are testimonials on moreloveletters.com and there are tips on how to get started. One of their suggestions was to have a group of girlfriends get together with stationery/pens/markers and spend an evening writing letters of encouragement to others. Wouldn't you feel great after an evening like that? I know I would.

I'm going to give this idea some more thought and see where the Lord leads me to encourage others. Check out both sites; I think you'll be glad you did.

In Everything Give Thanks

Join me and An Ordinary Hausfrau as we participate in 30 Days of Thanks.

I Thessalonians 5:17-18
pray without ceasing,  in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

O, Lord,

You are still on the throne. You are the King of Kings and we thank you for the freedom in America where everyone can have a vote and be counted. Today we thank you for a decisive win instead of a contested one. We are reminded that Your ways are not our ways and we trust You. It is your work to set kings and rulers in their place and your will has been accomplished. We pray that You will give us hope and strength to face the coming days. 

We ask for your mercy. Forgive our many sins and heal our land.  We ask that You move in the heart of our president to seek You and follow You. Father, may we continue to be a true friend of Israel. 

May we see believers mobilized to pray like never before. Thank you for the promise that You never leave us nor forsake us. Have mercy on America and bring revival so that we can see Your mighty works. 

Thank You for being our trustworthy Savior. May we find peace and rest in You today.

Romans 12 - my own words

I had dinner with a sweet friend last night and we talked about sacrifice. This morning I was drawn to the Scriptures which included that word and enjoyed some time delving more deeply with my study Bible into Romans 12.

Romans 11:36-12:2

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

In my own words:

I counsel you, because all glory belongs to God, brothers (& sisters), by the gracious, extravagant love, grace, righteousness and faith in God, that you offer yourself completely to God's control, a living offering, holy, acceptable to God, which is your logical response. Don't masquerade or act like the world, but be transfigured by being saturated and controlled by the Word of God so that you can be God-approved, morally and spiritually spotless, just as the sacrificial animals were to be.

Asking for the Holy Spirit

We have been studying John 15-16 in our small group recently and our conversation has mainly focused on the Holy Spirit.  We've talked about receiving the Holy Spirit, walking with Him, not grieving Him, not quenching Him, and being filled with Him.  Honestly, this is one of my favorite subjects and I have enjoyed the Scriptures that tell us more about this person of the Godhead.  

As many of you know from my devotionals and in talking with me, I have been studying various aspects of walking with the Lord (Spirit) for several years now. The subject will never be exhausted, but I was searching for a more effective way to walk with the Lord  than I have done in the past.  Many truths have been revealed to me during my personal study, however, none has been more enlightening that a simple truth that was shared this week.

Luke 11:9-13

⁹ “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

¹¹ “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? ¹² Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? ¹³ If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (emphasis mine)

We are to ask for the Holy Spirit. Many believers want to debate the filling of the Spirit. In my opinion, that argument can be simply explained with the indwelling of the Spirit at the time of conversion vs our surrender to continually live under His influence.  Whether you believe you have all of the Spirit you could ever get or you believe you can be "more filled," clearly, this verse in Luke tells us we can ask for Him.  

My small group leader shared that he and his family routinely ask the Lord to fill each of them with the Holy Spirit - to live in a way that is controlled by the will of the Lord.  He shared a word picture of this by using a glass of chocolate milk. When you have a glass of chocolate milk, at first the chocolate sits at the bottom of the glass. (chocolate=Holy Spirit.) We have all we need, but until it is stirred up we do not have chocolate-y goodness (influence of/control by the Spirit.) This asking for the Spirit is asking to be stirred up.  He summed it up with, "We should all desire that chocolate-y goodness." :)

Do we have within our own abilities/our own flesh to live according to the Lord's will? In Romans 7 Paul says I do what I don't want to do and I don't do what I want to do. We fight against our fleshly desires and we are supposed to die to them, but we can't do that in our own strength. It is only the work of the Lord in our lives that can change us to be more like Christ.  So if we don't do the work, who does? The Spirit within us. If it is He who grows the fruit of the Spirit, then doesn't it make sense for us to ask our Father in heaven for more of that Spirit to be evident in our lives. We are then asking for the best thing. Our Father knows how to give good gifts and desires for us to ask for His indwelling Spirit to be stirred up to control us.  

So many times I try to live the Christian life in my own strength. Instead I need to ask for the Spirit to do the work in me and then cooperate by surrendering to His still small voice. I encourage you to ask for Him today.

Pure Thankfulness

I'll be spending a few days with An Ordinary Hausfrau participating in 30 Days of Thanks.

I teach three classes at our Homeschool CoOp on Thursdays. I teach Choir for 1st - 3rd grade, Home Design & Decorating for Jr. High & High School girls, and Handbells for 4th-8th grade.  By the end of the morning I'm tired to say the least, but I get such joy being in the classroom!  I look forward to every Thursday with my students.

This summer when I was praying about what to teach in my classes, the Lord impressed upon me to begin each class period with devotions. I balked at first since we only have once a week to study and prepare for a concert, but when I realized I had an opportunity to share the Word with over 50 kids every week it dawned on me that there could be lasting impact from the devotions far more than anything else I would teach them. Saying "yes" to the Lord seemed like a "duh!"

Today our devotions centered around being thankful. I asked each student to share one thing they were thankful for and to use the month of November to practice thankfulness.  Their answers were sweet.  Many said they were thankful for "God," "Jesus," "my parents," which is wonderful, but I had to coax a few younger kids to really think about something.  One little girl was complaining about her brother and I said, "Ok, let's think of something you could be thankful for regarding your brother." She answered, "Well, he gave me half of his candy bar that he won for saying verses in church." I said, "That was very generous of him, wasn't it?" She answered, "Yes, but ..."  I immediately was struck with the thought about how often in my own mind and heart I say,  "I'm thankful for ____, but..."

This month I think I'll try to just be thankful (period). No buts...

No "thanks for bringing me flowers, but you know I don't like those kind." (Yep, I've said that!)

No "thanks for sweeping the floor without being asked, but how about your other chores?"

No "thanks for cooking dinner, but what about the mess you left behind?"

No "thanks for fixing _____, but when will you get to ________?"

This month I think I'll just practice "Thank You!"

Sharing devotions with my students might have more of a lasting impact on me, don't you think?!

Hodgepodge 100

See what others are saying for the 100th Hodgepodge over at Joyce's Place!

1. What creeps you out?
Nose pickers, maggots, vomit, and moldy refrigerator finds.

2. What's your least favorite candy?

Those peanut butter chews that come wrapped in orange or black at Halloween. I try one each year wondering if they've gotten any better. Nope.

3. Are you a fan of scary movies?  What's the scariest movie you've ever seen?

Not a fan, really. I once babysat for a family who had HBO and I stayed up until 1am watching Halloween 3 in 3D in a warm house full of open windows. I was freaked out for the entire summer. 

I still don't like to be out at night alone.

4. What part of life confuses you the most?

I don't get how people can deny the existence of God. You may not like the idea, but can you really deny His existence? 

5. Pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, poppy...what's your favorite seed?

Sunflower seeds are my favorite, although I like the other choices, as well.

6. Imagine your life ten years from today...what's changed?

Since we're imagining: I've lost 80 lbs., written a book, found time to make money with my favorite hobby, and best of all, have grand babies!

7.  What do you a) love the most and b) like the least about the Hodgepodge? 

I love the friends I've made through the Hodgepodge (and friends to come)!

I don't understand why anyone uses Word Verification anymore. Folks, if you use word verification on your blog, you are turning readers away.  

The spam folder in Blogger works well! It collects all the spam in one place and you can go in and delete in one keystroke. They won't be visible on your site. Please, check it out and turn off Word Verification.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

I had two opportunities (a staff meeting and a party) to dress up this Halloween season.) I haven't dressed up for Halloween since college, a very long time ago.  

My girls helped me find a long robe and I bought some pointy ears (that had to be glued on.) I made a pretty funny alien.

Being alien-ated by the girls at the in-home alien spa

I've got my eyes on you

Some co-workers have too much fun

Communion

 

My girls and I are reading through the American Girl Rebecca series. Rebecca is a Russian Jewish immigrant who lives in New York City in 1914. Although I have had exposure to the beliefs and traditions of the Jewish people, because these practices are set in a story I see how impactful they are on Jewish daily life.  Busy preparations leading up to Sabbath, followed by a solemn reverence as they worship were integral parts of their week.

Last night my family attended a Christian fellowship where the weekly act of taking the Lord's Supper occurs. On the way home from the get-together Mark and I admitted that our initial reactions was, "Weekly?"  However, after I adjusted to the idea I decided that I would do well to have a re-focus on Christ and His sacrifice for me more often than a couple times a year.

Commemorating the Lord's Supper was a regular and cherished practice in the early church, by which believers remembered their Savior's death and celebrated their salvation and eternal life.  I always think of the Lord's Supper as a realignment - getting back in synch with the Lord as I recall His great love for me.

I Corinthians 11:27-34 tells us not to take the Lord's Supper lightly.  We bring dishonor to Christ - His life, suffering and death - if we treat Communion with indifference.  If we take time each week (whether by observing Communion or not) to realign ourselves, asking for forgiveness of sin and asking for the Holy Spirit to renew His work in us then we bring honor and glory to all He has done.

Hebrews 13:15 "Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name."

I encourage you to take the time to realign yourself with the Lord this week, confessing sin and praising Him for His great work.

Wednesday Hodgepodge October 24

Join us at Joyce's for the Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1.  So, do you like beer? 

Never tasted it, never will. Smells horrible.

2.  What's your least favorite repetitive task? 

Laundry. It never ends.

3.  When was the last time you rode a bus?  Where was it headed? 

I can't remember when I last rode a bus; it's been many many years. The last time I got ON a bus was probably 9+ years ago. I was getting my daughter settled on a tour-type bus that would be taking her to Beach Week with our youth group. 

4.  What song from your childhood or from your own children's childhood could make a parent's nerves stand on end? 

Jeremiah was a Bullfrog. I used to sing it over and over while swinging on the swing set. Or it could have been the song about Running Bear and Little White Dove that we used to sing on drives to/from vacation. That one got us moved to the bed of the truck so they couldn't hear us anymore. : ) Joyce, there's an innate pleasure in remembering how those songs made my parents crazy!! 

5.  The US Presidential election cycle is drawing to a close (can I get an AMEN??), and the third and final debate was held last night...what was the last thing you 'debated about'?

Ideas and thoughts are challenged around here daily, but they're  so minor I can't remember the last one. 

I'm so thankful the Presidential debates are over!  

6.  Can a person make too much money?  How much is too much?

I don't think the question should be "Can they make too much," but "What do they do with it?" I believe money doesn't belong to you; it belongs to the Lord so what He gives/takes away is His doing. Our greatest concern should be what we do with what we've been given.

7.  Pop-soda-coke-something else...what's it called where you live?

"Soda" here in northern Virginia.  However, I grew up calling it "sodie." Really.  Central IL in the 70's. We had us some culture back then.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Recently my husband gave me the gift of a MacBook Pro, my first laptop.  He and my older kids have migrated over from PC's to Mac's, but I was very resistant. I don't like change. (See previous post here.) Anyway, Mark was tired of being tech support for me and my often buggy PC and he talked me into getting a Mac. I literally cried everyday for the first week. I went around the house grousing and complaining. I threw little fits when I really wanted to throw the MacBook. I hated how everything was "backwards." I chided them with "don't tell me everything is intuitive. It would only be intuitive if you had never seen a computer before!" It certainly wasn't intuitive for a PC user.

Fast-forward...I LOVE my MacBook Pro. Love love love it! No bugs, and it can do that all my PC did and then some.  It really does make sense once you figure out how those Mac Designers think. I have ventured into more programs and applications and given them a try without the help of any instructional books (which I always needed when learning something new on a PC.)  All I've had to do is explain my "problem" and someone suggests a Mac solution that has already figured out how to solve it.  Like many Mac Users, I will never look back.

I get a chuckle when I go to work and get on a PC and try to navigate it like a Mac. There's a joy in knowing I've been converted. :) 

Brought to you by my MacBook Pro!

Embracing Change!

A prevailing theme in my spiritual growth this year has been living moment-by-moment surrendered to the Lord.  No matter what material I'm studying or what message I'm listening to, the Father keeps bringing to light the truth of walking in step with Him.  He can get pretty creative in making His point on the many aspects of that central truth.

This week the variation of theme was change.  I am a girl who generally abhors changes. How boring, right?!  Early in the week I was given news about a possible change and I cried my way through it wishing that everything could stay the same. 

It can't. It doesn't. If change doesn't come in the expected, it shows up where we least expect it.

The next day my family and I worked in the yard for several hours in the drizzle of rain. It was mildly annoying, but refreshing, as well. Our conversation drifted to the weather and my boys remarked that I don't go outdoors because of the unpredictability of weather.  It's true!  I venture out a couple times a year on those slightly breezy days where the temperature hovers near 70 degrees and the sun indirectly peeks out behind fluffy white clouds.  The boys zoned in on the point: I don't like change. 

That go me thinking, "Could I truly dislike change to the degree of trying to avoid the weather?"  These  thoughts had me asking myself how far I extended my trust in God. Matt 6:33-34 tells us not to worry about our basic needs, but to seek the kingdom of God and not worry about tomorrow.  Inherent in those verses is the underlying message, "It's going to change! Life will throw you curve balls, but all you have to do is Seek Me (God.) I've got it covered."

Psalm 55:19 tells us what happens when we don't live this way. "...Because they do not change, Therefore they do not fear God." My study Bible says, "David's enemies were too set in their ways and too secure to pay attention to God."

I don't want that to be my testimony! Instead I want the testimony of 2 Cor 3:18 where by focusing on the Lord and His glory I am being transformed (changed!) into His image.

Here's to embracing change! (& maybe even going outside.)

Girl Talk - Being the New Girl

I receive daily posts written at (in) courage: home for the hearts of women.

Today's post was powerful!

I think we try to kid ourselves as adult women that we can handle being the "new girl," but just last week I went to a quilt guild meeting for the first time and I can tell you I felt like the little girl in the (in)courage post.  I will try again, but sometimes it takes time to feel accepted and welcomed.

Please, take the time to read the sweet post of a mom's heart for her daughter as she navigates a new season and then look for someone this week who is standing on the sidelines just waiting to be noticed. Reach out and give them some attention and encouragement. We all need to feel welcomed and accepted.

Best of all, when you have Christ in your life, you're never alone.