Dear Brett & Haley...

The following is the letter that Clay and I gave to our children this morning for Christmas.  I am sharing it with the world as a challenge to all Christians to show Christ's love in every possible way.  As a Christian we must live our lives not only for Jesus Christ, but like Him as well and that means giving our love away each day.  There is nothing in this world like the love that comes from our Father and as I see my children growing up so quickly I want to bestow the importance of living a life completely and fully devoted to Jesus Christ! I am far from a perfect parent, but if I can instill the love of Christ in my children, then I have done my job! 

I pray that everyone has a beautifully blessed Christmas and that you feel the unwavering love of our Father, Jesus Christ!

Dear Brett & Haley,

We are giving you this money, not for you, but for someone you don't even know. This is a gift that you must give away and when you give it away you will find that it will make your heart happier than any material gift you could ever receive.

You see our family has been so tremendously blessed by God and so we want to do something to bless others---we want to do our best to teach you the true meaning of Christmas, which is not receiving, but giving.

Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the son of God, sent to this earth so that each one of us can be saved. This is the day that God gave us the greatest gift---His Son. And with the gift of Jesus came the gift of love that He so freely gives to us every minute of every day. A love that is greater than our minds can ever comprehend, a love that will sustain us, and lead us through every moment, good and bad, of our lives.

Always know that we love you more than you could ever know, but never forget that Jesus loves you even more and it is He, that will always give you the wisdom, knowledge, and love that will guide you through this life.

So please take this money and pray about where it should go. Keep your eyes and your heart open to the people around you and God will let you know what to do with it. There are so many people in this world that are in some kind of need, but we all are in need of the love of Jesus Christ, so we don't just want you to give this money away, we want you to give your heart away too. We want you to live each day showing Christ's love to others.

We Love You,

Mom & Daddy
"These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. These things I command you, that you love one another. ~~~John 15:11-17

Who is Jesus...My Savior!

Who is Jesus to you?

Is he your friend, your healer, your savior, your guide, your redeemer, your King?

He should be all these things and more!

Jesus is so many things to me, but over the next few days I want to share a few of them with you. First of all, he is my Savior! I think that we use this word so much that we don't always think about the important meaning behind the word. He not only died to save me from hell, but he saves me daily! He saves me from selfishness, from evil, from so many things that I don't even realize---he is physically and spiritually my Savior.

I love the story of the woman at the well...she meets Jesus, runs in to town to tell the others, the Samaritans listen to her and then come out to meet him for themselves. Now the Bible tells us that they believed the woman, but they wanted to talk to him as well. And after talking to Jesus, they said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world." (John 4:42) So I ask myself, do I believe that Jesus is the Savior of the world because of what I have heard others say or because I have spoken and listened to him myself? We can't always depend on the word of others, we have to go to Jesus ourselves. Imagine their excitement, they could have said so many things about him, but after being with him, they use the words 'the Savior of the world'---it doesn't get any greater than that!

Then I think about Zacchaeus in Luke 19. He was not a man of God, but he sure wanted to see who this Jesus was and he would go to any length in order to catch a view of him. Zacchaeus didn't just stand around hoping to see Jesus, he did something about it---he meant that he was going to see him no matter what he had to do. And not only did Zacchaeus get to see Jesus, but Jesus saw him---more importantly, Jesus saw his heart and knew that, although Zacchaeus was a sinner, he had a sincere heart. From this story we hear Jesus say, "for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."(Luke 19:10)

You see Jesus is our Savior, but we can't just sit around and hope that we hear his voice or see his face---we must seek him like the Samaritans and Zacchaeus did. While these people did get to see Jesus during the time that he was a man on this earth, we actually have the advantage, unlike these people we know the whole story. We know all the miracles he performed, we know that he died for us, we know that he rose from the dead, and we know that he will one day return for us!

I am glad to say that Jesus is not only my Savior, but He is truly the Savior of this world!

How Is Your Relationship?

Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Hebrews 12:2

Alright, here it comes---I am once again going off the planned path of reading. While I was prepared to write about the 5th chapter of Ezra, I feel the need to share some other thoughts tonight.

With Dr. Billy Graham's 95th birthday last week and his message 'My Hope America' that aired last week, I have been thinking about the years of service he has put into spreading God's Word. I wondered what made him different, how was he able to reach so many people with basically the same message each night. His crusades were not full of any special affects, there were really no frills---just a simple stage, singing, and a message.

Sunday morning while reading a devotion and some scriptures it came to me...Jesus knew! Jesus was raised as a normal Jewish child, he grew up like everyone else and even became a carpenter just like his dad. I am sure he had a happy, peaceful life full of love from his family and friends, but he knew all that would change one day. He knew the day that he announced that he was the Messiah that his life would never be the same, it would never again be peaceful and everyone would not choose to love him. He not only knew this, but because he was God as man, he also knew every little detail that his future held. He knew he would be hated. He knew he would be betrayed by people he loved. He knew he would be beaten. He knew people would mock him. He knew he would be spit upon. He knew that he would be crucified, that he would die in one of the cruelest acts known to man. He knew all this but he did it anyway! He knew all this, but he loves us even more than all this pain and suffering. He knew all these things, but he also knew God and that makes all the difference! He also knew the miracles that would be performed through his hands. He knew the people that would come to know God because of him. He knew then and he knows now each soul that will come to him because of his sacrifice.

We should know too. We know that when we choose to become a Christian that our life will make a 180 degree turn. We may not know all the details like Jesus, but we know that there will be struggles, there will be heartache, there will be sadness, but we also know the same God Jesus knows! We know there will be joy, peace, assurance, blessings and miracles that will far outweigh all of our struggles! We know where we are headed, we know our reward, and we know that we will see Jesus face to face.

So, after all this---I got it! Dr. Graham's message is all about a relationship with Jesus Christ. Do you know Jesus Christ as your personal savior? Do you know Jesus Christ as your healer? Do you know Jesus Christ as your counselor? Do you know Jesus Christ as your friend? Do you really know him? Jesus was able to sacrifice everything because of his relationship with God. We will be able to sacrifice our life because of our relationship with Jesus Christ! Jesus does not want you to just know 'his story', he wants you to know him---he desires for you to know him more!


Please take time to check out Dr. Graham's message, 'My Hope America' at the following website:

http://billygraham.org/

Don't Stop!

Ezra 4

First of all, please make sure you read the scriptures that go along with what I write. I appreciate everyone reading and responding, but it is just my thoughts, whereas, the Bible is the ultimate truth and that is what we are to live by. Besides, I promise you will get more out of it!

Have you ever heard the phrase 'silver-tongued devil'? Well that is exactly what I thought after reading chapter 4. Isn't it just like the devil to show up right when you are excited about a great work of God! Isn't it just like him to discourage you when you are starting a new journey. He wants to stop what ever is good, and he will do what ever it takes to do that. He will lie, steal, cheat, kill and use any willing soul to go against the children of God. If you have been a Christian for any length of time, I am not telling you anything you don't already know. If you are a new Christian then listen up!

The letter that was written to King Artaxerxes not only attempted to turn the king against the children of God, but it was done in a way to convince the King that by stopping the building of the temple it would benefit him. It was lies written beautifully and that is exactly what Satan tries to do to us every single day. He takes lies and makes them look like they will benefit our lives, but no matter how good they sound, they are still lies. As Christians we need to be aware of the devil's schemes, however, we are not to focus or dwell on them. Instead, our focus must be on the Lord and we should dwell upon His Word. While the devil has some power and is the father of lies, he has no power when it comes to Jesus Christ, and if Jesus Christ lives within us then he has no power over us. The Bible tells us in Luke 6:24 that "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." We have to choose and if our choice is God then nothing can seperate us from his love (Romans 8:38-39). I am here to tell you that life can be real hard sometimes, but God is greater than anything that we may encounter. We have to grab hold of the truth of God's Word and never let go of it. We have to proclaim the promises of His Word, even in the middle of the worst circumstances. It is time for us to stop allowing ourselves to be oppressed---we say so many times, 'well it is just the devil attacking me'. Listen, God's Word tells us that we have power over the devil, we can rebuke him, and he will flew in the name of Jesus Christ. He shutters at the sound of the name Jesus, so why aren't we shouting Jesus' name to the rooftops?

We are to continue building! Even if our walls are being torn down as we go, keep on---don't stop! It will be hard, but God will carry you through! Even when you see no progress or even if you have setbacks, keep on---God will not let go of you! I can say this with assurance, I have had moments when I didn't think I could hold on any longer, but I did---I was holding on by a thread, but I never let go and all the while God was working a great work within me.  Don't let go and you will find yourself shining the light of Christ right in the middle of your trial! 

We Can't Wait!

Ezra 3

To better understand the many stories of the Bible I do a couple of things. First, I do my best to visualize the story, to picture all the sights and hear all the sounds within the story, and I also try to put myself in the middle of each story, I picture myself as one in the middle of the crowd seeing what is going on and feeling all the emotions that surround the event. As I read through chapter 3 of Ezra, my heart became excited when the people built the alter and gave the appropriate sacrifices to the Lord, even before the foundation was laid and with fear of the people that surrounded them, they put God first and showed the world how they felt. Then I began to cry when the older people wept aloud after seeing the new foundation laid. I am sure they had seen so much in their time, they had witnessed the betrayal of God's people, God's destruction, and now God's restructuring---how happy and sad they must have been. I also listened, as best I could, to the weeping and shouting that was so loud you couldn't tell them apart. So after reading this several times and my mind racing with so many different thoughts, God revealed to me that the point of this story is that His people didn't wait until everything was rebuilt, they didn't wait until everything was just right, they didn't wait to serve God, they didn't wait to build an alter and offer sacrifices, they didn't wait for the people they feared to move, and they didn't wait to shout His praises. They didn't wait and neither can we. We can't wait until our lives are going good, we can't wait until we have enough time, we can't wait until we have enough money, we can't wait until we are healed, we can't wait until we have the right job, we can't wait to sacrifice our lives for Christ's sake. We cannot wait, we have to do what we have been called to do now. The word tells us in Luke 16:10 "If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities." If God has called you, he has called you! It doesn't matter if we think the calling is 'great' or 'small', it is a calling of God and we are called to fulfill it regardless of anything that seems to be lacking in our lives.

One Purpose

Ezra 2

Wow, so many people coming together for one purpose, to rebuild the temple. How exciting it must have been for God’s people during this time. We are not sure exactly how many people because the Bible doesn’t give an account for all the menservants and maidservants, but we do know that there was well over 50, 000 people that came back to Jerusalem. This chapter lists a lot of names and while I know that the names are important and there is much meaning behind many of them, I want to focus not so much on the people but on the purpose. Why do we do the things we do? Is it to please people, to please ourselves, or to please God? As a Christian we should already know our purpose, but that does not always mean we are focusing on it. I once heard this question asked … "Where do you spend your time, your energy and your money?" In the answer to this question you will find what you are focusing on. As Christians, we seem so spread out---we have who knows how many denominations and we argue over the craziest things. I have said many times that I am no theologian, nor do I understand every detail of the Bible, but I do know this, that God’s greatest commandment is to love and we don’t seem to be doing that very well. We give our money and sometimes we even give our time, but too many times we are not giving our heart and when we don’t give our heart than the other things do not even matter. One purpose, serving Jesus Christ! One purpose, loving one another! One purpose, spreading the Good News! It is really that simple, but we seem to make it so complicated. I think about all these people and the deep excitement and love they must have been feeling when they journeyed back to Jerusalem. They gave their time and their money, and they did it with a heart full of love for one purpose to rebuild what had been destroyed. While the destruction came suddenly for these people, it seems to be coming slow but steady for us now. We see tragedy through man’s fault or natural disasters and for a moment we come together, we pray out loud, and we love our fellow man, yet we don’t continue with all this way, it seems to always fade with time. So I ask you tonight what are you focusing on and what will it take for us to come together for one purpose?

My Inspiration---Ezra!

II Chronicles 36 & Ezra 1

After reading chapter 1 in Ezra, I decided to go back and read the last chapter of the previous book, II Chronicles, in order to better understand what was happening in Ezra. I know just reading the last chapter of one book and the first chapter of another book can't possible allow me to understand everything that is going on, but it did make me think, pray, and seek God to understand His Word once again. What I have gathered so far is that God did everything to try and get his people to listen to him, to once again put their faith in him and follow his word, but they would not, they just continued on the path of ultimate destruction. You know the path, the one where you don't listen to the leading of the Lord and then everything just falls apart. King after king came and went in Jerusalem, but none stood for God and they all continued to do evil. The Word tells us that The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD rose against his people,until there was no remedy (II Chronicles 36:15-16). Then came Cyrus, king of Persia. Cyrus' heart was stirred and he proclaimed that the house of God in Jerusalem would be restored. King Cyrus called upon all the people of God to come and help him fulfill this task of the Lord. His proclamation came directly from God and through it God was able to stir the hearts of others to join Cyrus.

So I have to wonder what time we are in right now. We all know that history repeats itself and I do wonder how close we are to being like those people who wouldn't listen to God. You see, it wasn't everyone who did not listen and believe, but it was the leaders who did not. We know that there were Godly people who seemed to be oppressed until Cyrus came on the scene. How many leaders do we have around the world who are listening to the perfect wisdom of our God? It can be very scary when we think about the answer to that question, but we have to look a little deeper. We have to look within ourselves and ask 'am I doing everything that God has called me to do?' We have to be seeking and receiving wisdom from God ourselves before we can share Godly wisdom with anyone. What if God has called us to be the change in this world? What if it is you? What if it is me? We can 't always just wonder, we have to seek Him with all that we have and if it turns out it is you or I then we will be ready when God asks us to go. Either way, everyday should be a day of preparation for the service of the Lord.


On a side note, I want to congratulate two wonderful friends, Zeb & Lacy, on the birth of their beautiful son, Ezra Ben. I was inspired to read the book of Ezra after meeting this little guy and I am so glad I did. Love you guys and I pray that your lives are filled with all the blessings that can only come from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
　

Accountability?

 I am so appalled at our ‘Government Shutdown’.  Really?  We can just shut things down when we can’t agree with each other?  We can shut things down because we don’t like how things are going?  Now I do not know everything there is to know about politics or running a government, but I do know a little bit about working hard even when things seem impossible.   

As a school administrator I do not always agree with all the other administrators in our district and I certainly do not always agree with the state and federal mandates that we have to comply with, however, I am accountable to 520 souls, that we call students, and whether I agree or not with others in education I cannot just shut down my school, nor would I want to.  As a public school we face requirements that are almost impossible to attain, yet we never give up, we never shut down, we keep going, we keep trying, we keep pushing and striving for something more.   

Government officials are also accountable, they are accountable to us, the citizens of this great country that put them in office, but unlike me and many, many others, they do not have to face the people they are accountable to every day.  They do not see the people that are unable to purchase much needed medication, or put off a procedure because of the cost, or struggle just to balance everything, they do not look into the eyes of those that do not receive one dime in government assistance, but work every day in order to make ends meet.  That is the difference between them and me---I see the faces of my students daily, I know their struggles, their successes, their hurts, and their joys.  I feel the pain of students when I have to tell them they will not receive their high school diploma because they missed passing the state test by one point, a test mandated by the government.  I look into the eyes of those I am accountable for and I want to make it better for them, I want them to be successful, I want to do everything in my power to provide them the best education possible because I know that education is the key to success and that knowledge is something that no one can ever take from them.  And now, I am finding myself having to explain to my students why our government has decided to ‘shutdown’---how do you explain that?  How do I tell students that you never quit, you always keep going even when things get difficult, when our government is demonstrating the opposite of what I am saying?  I show them by not giving up on them; I show them by working hard every day, not for me, but for them.  I want every student at my school to believe that if you work hard you can do anything you want, regardless of what the world, including our own government, shows them!

 

At times I have questioned if I am doing what I was called to do, today I realized I am.  Simply talking to 3 of my students today about their future reminded me of why I do what I do.  These moments make all the long days and nights worth it.  I will never get rich as a public school administrator, but that is not the reason I chose this profession, I chose it because I wanted to make a difference and I pray that I am doing that.  I pray that I can look into the eyes of my students’ everyday and they know that the eyes looking back at them comes from someone that cares for them and about them!

Our Own Worst Enemy!

 

James 1

We are our own worst enemy!  While I am not sure where this phrase came from or from whom it came, I am certain it was someone who was frustrated with themselves for not following through with something they felt like they were called to do.  It is so true, we are the ones that get in the way of the plans that God has for our lives, we can blame no one but ourselves when we don’t spend time digging into God’s Word or when we don’t come to Him daily in prayer.  I have found that when I am in His Word and talking to Him continuously that all the other things work out, things get done, and I am so more at peace with myself and the world around me.  Why?  It’s simple, when we do these two things, we are putting God first!

After reading the first chapter in James, I began to think about how we get in our own way.  Verse 5 says if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.  Are you asking for wisdom or are you asking for God to just fix the problem?  Sometimes we don’t need problems removed from our lives, but we need Godly wisdom in order to deal with them.  This chapter also makes it very clear that God never tempts us, but every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed (verse 14).  Whether we want to believe it or not, we are our own worst enemy, we get, not in our own way, but in the way of God’s will for our lives.  Verse 19 tells us to be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath.  Now think about that one, what if we listened more than we spoke?  What if we didn’t jump into anger as soon as we heard something we didn’t like or saw something that disturbed us?  What if we listened more and then also listened to God before every choice made or word spoken.  I can only speak for myself, but I know, without a doubt, I would be a much better person if I did just those two things.

We are our own worst enemy; however, we also have access to the truest friend you could ever find.  Jesus Christ not only saves our soul, but can save us from our own selves if we will let him.  James 1:22 is very clear when it says, But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.  I have found that becoming a doer of the word keeps us focused on God and others, and we seem to forget about our selfish wants, which usually end up turning in to some sort of trouble for us.

While we will never live perfect lives here on this earth, we do serve a perfect Savior, and when we serve him with everything we have in us we can live as close to perfect as we possible.

Just Normal Please!

Normal: according with, constituting, or not deviating from a norm, rule, or principle--- conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern.

 A day with the family---eating lunch, talking, kids playing--- may seem normal to most people, but to me it is extraordinary.  Since my brother’s illness last year, I am always thinking about the little things and how precious they are.  I find myself in the most ordinary situations thanking God that I am there and that all is pretty well calm.   Life is not perfect now, but it is beautiful!  Today we celebrated my mom’s birthday together, nothing big, just some lunch and great conversation, but in the middle of everything I just kept thinking how grateful I was for today and this moment of just being together.  As soon as everyone was pulling out of the driveway I began to regret not telling them how special this day was to me while they were still there.  I regret not joining hands and praying together---not asking for anything, but praising God for everything!  So now I write and hope they understand how truly special each of them are to me.  My family isn’t perfect, but they are mine and I love them.  I am a better person for knowing each one of them.  I thank God that he placed me in this family, that he chose me to be Bill & Judy’s daughter, to be Bett & KB’s granddaughter, to be Eddie & Kelley’s sister, to be Felisha & Nikki’s sister-in-law, to be Clay’s wife, to be Brett & Haley’s mom, and to be Tyler, Will, Krista, Kellar, & Justin’s aunt.  So a normal day is quite fine with me, I will take it anytime because my definition of normal is extraordinary!

Extraordinary: going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary---exceptional to a very marked extent

Praying God's Will

Colossions 1

As I read through this chapter I kept thinking about what a true friend Paul must have been.  Not just a true friend, but a Godly friend.  Just listen to the words in verses 9 & 10… “And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”  What a prayer for another person, basically Paul is praying that these people find the God that he has found and that they are filled with as much of God as possible.  He is not just praying for their safety, for their health, or for blessings upon them.  His prayer, his words to God go much deeper than what the human eye can see.  He is praying for God’s will and if that means suffering so that they can become closer to God, then so be it.  I pray for people all the time, sometimes it’s because someone has asked me to and sometimes it is random people that God has laid on my heart, but most of the time it is specific to a need, usually a physical need.  I see that there is no greater need than to draw closer to God---to be filled with the knowledge of his will, to be given spiritual wisdom and understanding.  I can’t help but think of the time when God spoke to me while I was praying so intently for my brother when he was so sick---He spoke so clearly to my heart and let me know that my family and friends that did not know him were in worse condition than Eddie and that I should be praying for them even harder.  I know I tend to pray for the needs that I see, but praying for people the way Paul did can impact everyone more than I could ever imagine.  So tonight as I pray I desire to be a Godly friend and pray for my family and friends the way Paul prayed for the people at Colossae.  Praying God’s will can be the hardest thing we do, but it is also the greatest prayer we can pray.

Sing Your Song!

I wrote this on June 18^th, after attending the funeral of a friend, I didn’t write it to post, I wrote it because I just needed to write down my thoughts, but I just feel compelled to post it.

 

Today I was honored to be a part of a beautiful home-going celebration of an even more beautiful person.  I have known Charity her whole life, we lived on the same road for many years, went to the same church when we were children, had parents who were friends, had connections to lots and lots of the same people (this happens often in small towns) and went to the same school.  I was a couple of years older than her, but at a small school we all did everything together and everyone new everyone.  After high school we went our separate ways and would see each other occasionally, then she moved away and we hadn’t seen each other or talked to one another in a long time.  I kept up with her through some friends and family, and I prayed often for her when I heard she was diagnosed with cancer.  I tell you all this because I realized today that there is a great connection between children of God.  Although, we had not seen each other in a while, I loved her no less, I hurt for her parents, husband, and three children as if she were my best friend. Only God can give us this ability to love each other like this, and that is what I have been thinking about all evening---God’s love.  It is the most powerful thing we can have in us and the most powerful thing we can give away.  It is the one thing that you can give away and it will return, multiplied.  I have so many questions that I know I will never find the answers to while on this earth, but I can rest assured that no matter how many things I don’t understand, I do serve a God that understands it all and is working things out for our best interest.  I have thought of the words of Charity’s father, when he said to me, ‘we will understand it better by and by’ and thought how true and real those words are---in fact tonight I visualized meeting Jesus in Heaven and him explaining everything to me and then me thanking him for all the moments that I didn’t understand.  We do not know what the future holds, but we do know who holds that future.  Charity loved to sing, anyone that knew her at any point in her life knew that, and it was very fitting for the pastor to speak of Charity ‘singing her song’ with the way she lived her life.  Her song was Jesus and she showed him with everything she did.  We do all have a song to sing, but are we singing it?  My song is to write down the words that Jesus gives me and I want to sing it loud.  We will never know this side of Heaven how many lives Charity touched while here on this earth, but I do know my life was impacted greatly by knowing her.  While my heart continues to hurt for her precious family, I cannot think of her without smiling---mainly because she was so great at making everyone else smile!  

 The Lord is my strength and my shield;
    my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
    and with my song I praise him.

Psalm 28:7