I Got a Spanking. :(

Jeremiah 13: 1,3,6 - Thus the Lord said to me... And the word of the Lord came to me the second time saying... And after many days the Lord said to me...

Hebrews 13:8 - Jesus Christ (the Messiah) is [always] the same, yesterday, today, [yes] and forever (to the ages).

Have you ever slept in and known you should get up? Well.... let's just say my 7:00 snooze on my phone went off until 9:36!!! YES! 9:36! I feel like I'm still trying to get into a regular bedtime routine & wake-up routine. Sure... we have routines, but now things are a bit different with Trinity being here... more things to do before bedtime now, which has pushed things back for actually getting to bed!

So finally... after our 11:30 breakfast (Jr wanted to take a bath when he woke up at 10:30), I am finally sitting down to journal & read my Bible before beginning a full day of laundry! Recently, the Lord specifically told me that I needed to wake up by 7:00, but that it will get earlier soon. So... my first acknowledgement after just telling Him "Good Morning" was this: Please forgive me Lord for sleeping in & not waking up when I was suppose to. This was the response I got, brace yourself, there were no warm fuzzies in what He responded:

It's really your loss Amy. I forgive you, but you are the one who loses when you don't spend extended time with Me. I do promise, you will enjoy your time with Me if you get up earlier! 

Booyah! Well... I know this to be true! It's just sometimes getting past my flesh in the morning. But praise the Lord that the Lord IS the same yesterday, today & forever! Just like in the day of Jeremiah. The Lord SPOKE to Him. In the verses above, we see 3 different times just in the beginning of chapter 13 where the Lord came to Jeremiah and was giving him instructions. So... why is it so crucial for me & for you to spend quality time with the Lord... I think first thing in the morning is the best. Aside from giving God the "first fruits" of our time, for me it means receiving INSTRUCTION for my day. As a wife, mom, business owner...also having recently moved with an abundance of boxes that still need unpacking... I want to do the things with my day that are the most productive! My goal is to NOT toil in my day. My goal is to do the RIGHT things with my time. When I don't take the time to acknowledge the Lord with my activities, I look back on my time and found I was doing things in vain. I was completely tasks that were not the best use of my time. Where if I just acknowledged the Lord, HE would let me know specifically what I should be doing.

Anyways! There it is.... Amy's reprimand from the Lord... a bit of a spanking, whatever you want to call it.  I'm going to do my best to LEARN from it and not snooze when I should be up! I know I have much to accomplish for the Lord and that requires TIME with Him.

What about you? Any areas you care to share? Anything you are working on???

Have a blessed day! I'm finally going to go get my day started at 12:20! :)

#237 - Strength

Good morning!  Things are getting back to normal here at the McCart home. Not "normal" quite yet.... but we're at least moving in the right direction! Due to "lack of time" this morning, I wasn't going to begin back or post anything today... but I figured I would share my short revelation and for me this morning, it was a bit of a kick in the pants. Like I shared with Alison yesterday... I do look forward to fully getting back in the groove of regular posts!

Proverbs 31:17 - She girds herself with strength [spiritual, mental, and physical fitness for her God-given task] and makes her arms strong and firm.

Strength. Quite an interesting word. Our Proverbs 31 friend girds herself with strength. Due to where life is for me right now and all of the life changes over the last 3 months (2 surgeries, adjusting to having another child, building a house, moving, family vacation, Christmas vacation, etc)... I am still excited to get back to habits that were very regular before "life" happened. As I look at the word "strength," while reading about the Proverbs 31 woman, it takes on a bit of a different meaning to me today than maybe it would have 6 months ago. I began to think about my "excuses" for not having gotten back into my regular writing schedule. I began to think about what draws from "strength" and why routines maybe have been hindered. Why maybe my alarm may go off at the "right time" in the morning... but this morning for example, every FIVE minutes for an HOUR & 45 MINUTES my alarm rang! Snooze. Snooze. Snooze. Snooze again.

So... what is my deal? I decided to read again Proverbs 31. Surely I've read it 100's of times before. But just like the Holy Spirit does, He has a way of pointing out just what you need to hear today. Just want you need to read or adjust in life today. A tweak to turn you back onto the course you should be heading. Have you heard if a pilot is traveling to a destination and according to his instruments is only a 1/2 of a degree off in the direction he's traveling, he'll NEVER get to where he wants to go. That 1/2 of a degree could potentially take him 100's of miles off course. The Holy Spirit is tweaking my 1/2 of a degree. He's getting me back on course.

Strength. What are some things that could "take away" from strength. Here are some things that were obvious things in my life, although the list is much more extensive than just these three items.

1. Proper Eating. Sure, it's a new year. For a lot of people "proper eating" usually goes out the window over the holidays. I think is OK for a time. It's OK to splurge and enjoy yourself... but at some point, things have to get back to a normal standard of eating healthy. With the move, our closing date was pushed back 4 different times.... though I continued to pack with much of our kitchen items in boxes in the garage as we prepared to move into our new house. The more that got packed, the less options I had in food prep. Guess what that meant for the McCarts? A regular diet of pizza! Every week... maybe a couple times/week. It was easy, and less of a hassle. But again... at some point, a regular standard of a healthy diet has to come back! Now is that time!
2. Proper Supplementation. I think we are fooling ourselves if we think we can avoid supplementing with vitamins. Most people, probably 99%+ of the population, don't eat the recommended amounts of food for our dietary needs. Even if we TRIED, we wouldn't get everything we need. From the time an orange comes off of the tree, the amount of Vitamin C diminishes DAILY, when it's not attached to the source of growth (the tree.) Knowing that, when we buy an orange in the grocery store (since most of us don't have an orange tree in our back yard), how long has that orange been off the tree?? Weeks? Maybe a month? This makes proper supplementation essential. I've been majorly dropping the ball in this area. My standard has been an all-natural company. I toured one of their farms once. It was amazing. From the time a plant is harvested to go into a supplement, it only takes ONE hour for that cherry, orange, apple, etc to begin the process of getting into supplement form. ONE HOUR!!! To me, this means I am getting the MAXIMUM amount of vitamin into my system when I take the supplement! And since I'm not a farmer, farming my own food, I get MORE of the good stuff than I would if I actually ate it! Anyways... their quality assurance is pretty amazing too. From Seed to Supplement, before it gets to my front door, it's checked 500 times to ensure quality. I was amazed at their standards of excellence! So... for me... in reference to the Proverbs 31 woman, I need to re-discipline myself about taking my vitamins! I know I have a TON more energy when I take them. I also know that I am not eating ALL of the proper food to give my body energy, so supplementing is essential! 
3. Rest. Sleep. Have I been getting enough sleep? For me, it means, NO MORE DILLY-DALLYING before bed! Get to bed. Get done with what I need to do, and get in the bed. This may mean avoid the next Netflix episode on "24," not beginning or completing the next craft.... whatever it is. I need to get in the bed! 

So... those are some areas that I need to work on! My goal is to achieve in life what the Proverbs 31 woman does.... so I'm going to get things back together! 

#37 - What is #1 in Leaving a Lasting Legacy?

Good morning. It's so fun to be a parent. Tyler and I walked in to "the boys" room this morning, as we frequently do... just to look at him. He was face-planted in his bed with his butt in the air. He is so funny! His sleeping positions make me laugh. And now... as we speak, it's funny to hear him... he just started moving around in his bed. He's playing with some toys and listening to himself make noises. It's so funny! He totally makes me laugh!! What joy a child can bring. 

Proverbs 20:11 - Even a child is known by his acts, whether [or not] what he does is pure and right.

Proverbs 31:29 - Many daughters have done virtuously, nobly, and well [with the strength of character that is steadfast in goodness], but you excel them all.

So... as I was reading this morning, as these verses jumped out at me, I felt like I had a few obvious observations. Like... if a child is known by his acts... what does that say about me? I am known by MY acts. Right or wrong, people look at me and judge me by what I do. People judge me by what I accomplish or don't accomplish. Am I responding in a situation or "off the cuff" reacting? Like a child is known by his or her actions, I am known by my actions also. What do I want to leave for this world to remember me by? 


Tyler & I have talked and thought about this. We know that we will one day, in a ripe old age, leave this world and go home to be with Jesus. Well... when that day comes, and we are home with Jesus, what will we have left for the world to remember us by? What will we have left for our great, great grandchildren to remember us by? Will we leave a lasting legacy? 


I have heard a lot lately of interviews done with older people in their 70's, 80's & 90's. One of their big thoughts & questions is, "What is the lasting effect that I have had? Has my life counted for anything? Am I leaving a mark?" I think of this because as Tyler & I have talked about it, we reflect on what we know of our great grandparents... or great great grandparents, and it's very little if anything. I'm sure they did good things, but I do not know them nor do I know what they did or if they did anything great. Tyler and I want to be the great-great grandparents that stories are told about... in year 2190 when little Gracie Jo is sitting on her mom's lap, she looks at the picture above the fireplace and asks her mom and dad again.... "Mommy, tell me some of the stories about Great, Great, Great Grandma Amy & Grandpa Tyler. Tell us again about the things they did... about the people they helped and how they changed lives. Tell us one of the stories about them. Please mommy, please." I want to leave a mark that meant something. 


SO... that was my "obvious" take-away... and what jumped out at me. BUT... that was what I saw on the surface. As I started asking the Holy Spirit... he took me a bit deeper and in a completely different direction. To do virtuously, nobly & well... what does that take? Let me share with a story....

A former president was interviewed. As he opened up about some mistakes he had made, some very key factors were revealed in why some catastrophic mistakes occurred. He talked of working late hours, of sometimes staying up through the night to try to handle some of the major decisions that were needed to be made. He made decision after decision, some nights only going off of 2, 3 and 4 hours of sleep. During these critical times some of the major mistakes took place. The reporter asked him if he could change anything, what it would be. He said one thing. One word. One activity. He would change one thing. Sleep. At the time of his most critical points of decision, he messed up partially because he was not alert, he was not sharp. He messed up because he was running on empty. He was running on lack of sleep. He tried to accomplish too much and it caused mistakes. 

There is a great tip to be learned in all that. Accomplishing is important... but rest plays a valuable role in accomplishment. As I was reflecting on this, the Holy Spirit said to me... 

People need permission to take a break. Permission to rest. Resting is important. Some people are too tired, they just need to rest.If the enemy can just get you to KEEP going, he knows when you are tired, he can get you to sin. He wants you working off of fatigue. 

I know for me, firsthand, this is the case. When I am tired, physically and mentally fatigued, I am walking in a danger zone of sin. I need to take a nap. 

So... if it was a Word you needed today... if you are running on empty, take it as a word to you! Take it as the Holy Spirit talking to you. Today, when you get home from work, do something different. Go take a nap (and don't feel GUILTY about it!)


Go take a NAP! There is something not only refreshing about it, but freeing! Especially when you do it GUILT-FREE! NAP! NAP! NAP! 


Do you want to leave a lasting impression on this world, leave a legacy that is a positive one, that generations to come remember you? To do so may mean taking a nap, getting your rest. Or, like the president... you may leave a lasting impression but it was due to the mistakes you made because you were too busy to sleep. Don't make the same mistake and be remembered for your major pitfalls. Get your rest and let the Lord lead you to accomplish what you were called to do! Leave a lasting legacy and start today by going to take a nap!


OK... I'm going to go give the boy his bottle and take a NAP! :) YIPPEE!