Not Going Back!

2 Samuel 22:19-22 - ¹⁹ They came upon me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay. ²⁰ He brought me forth into a large place; He delivered me because He delighted in me. ²¹ The Lord rewarded me according to my uprightness with Him; He compensated and benefited me according to the cleanness of my hands. ²² For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.

Jeremiah 29:11 -  For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.

As I sit and reflect on how good my God is, I just stand in awe with gratefulness. I reminisce on days of my past when I was walking that tightrope with Him. When I was partially in the world, and partially with God. At that point of decision, when I was so close to choosing the world. When dangled in front of me, the luster, the temptations, the shiny glimmer and luring promise of what the world had to offer. It wasn't even a promise though. Because who knows this, everything that is not God is a lie, it may just be a shade, it may just be the beginning of a lie, but if the ROOT is not in God, it is a lie.

I remember that time when what I saw, what was drawing me in was so strong, it was so powerful and it felt so right and so wrong. The danger of the world, but the temptation to choose it over my God was so powerful. During that time, maybe you have had a time like this too, where I held a choice of the world, the other the choice of my God. If I chose one way, I would begin and remain down a path that led to and was defined by godliness. The other would take me down a path that would forsake the Truth, would forsake a true moral compass, would choose flesh over what was right, would ultimately be filled with lies, deceit, compromise. Though the path would feel good at the time, if chosen, I would have ended up miserable.

When I think back to that VERY MOMENT of decision, with all the wrong, with all the bad I had done, with all the forgiveness I needed. It is amazing to me to think GOD WAS THERE! He saw it all and still loved me. He saw it all and still loved me. Even when I had turned my back on him. Even when I made mistakes. He still loved me. AND, He loved me enough to give me a CHOICE. He didn't force me to choose Him, He allowed me the CHOICE to choose Him or the world. He was such a gentleman. In my mental anguish, as I went back and forth. Would I forsake all, throw in the towel and just choose my flesh & the world. Or, would I do the hard thing? Would I give up the things that were holding me back? Would I sever ties that were binding me to the world & its ways?

Praise God in that time, He accepted me. Weak, hurt, disheartened. He accepted me.

He loved me. He never left me.

I think back to that time, almost 15 years ago, my life could have been so different. A life without God, indefinitely would not have given me the promises that the world dangled. Because promises from the world, are not really promises. Promises from the world would have ended up in lies, disappointments, bad roads, bad paths.

THANK YOU LORD!!! Thank you for staying near me even in that time.

With GOD we have the promise of a FUTURE! A good future! A bright future, one with hope!

I don't know about you, but I AM NOT GOING BACK!!! When I look forward, the ONLY way I see a bright future, one with success and happiness, is a future founded on the Word of God. Once you have seen, you can't go back! Once you've seen what God wants for your life, nothing else is better. He promises a good future. An awesome life.

So are you with me? Let's MOVE forward this year! In 2013, lets plant our stake in the ground! Lets determine that WE ARE NEVER GOING BACK! We are MOVING FORWARD! We are accomplishing the dreams in our heart. Those God-given desires that were placed there, in 2013 we are going to pursue them!

In 2013, lets move FORWARD! Lets only use the rear-view mirror for a short glance of how far we've come. But the highway ahead of us, let's put it in full gear, drive and let's DRIVE! Let's hit the road to success God's way! The Success that He has planned for us since before even in our mother's womb when He knew us! We were created with a purpose. We were created with a plan. Let's fulfill the calling on our life. Let's begin today!

#214 - Two Paths

Proverbs 8:2 - On the top of the heights beside the way, where the paths meet, stands Wisdom [skillful and godly];

Proverbs 31:30 - Charm and grace are deceptive, and beauty is vain [because it is not lasting], but a woman who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord, she shall be praised!

Have you ever found yourself at a decision point? A point in life where you have 2 paths, 2 distinct paths. One path you are more drawn to, it is more comfortable, it may even feel better. You see the lights & glimmer, lots of possibilities with the first path. The first path makes you feel good, IF you can avoid the uncomfortable gnawing in the pit of your stomach. IF you can ignore the gut feeling that quietly tries to prompt you NOT to take that path.

There is a second path. The second path does not seem to make logical sense. From first glance, it seems to be drawing you away from your ultimate destination, what seem to be your goals, your dreams, the opportunities that are jumping at you. The second path seems rougher, less obvious, it seems to show less glitter, less possibilities, less glamour. For some reason, this 2nd path, though you don't want to be drawn to it, you feel like it is the path you should take. All the reasoning in your mind, you try to shake it off, you try to tell yourself the other path is fine, it's the path of "opportunity & advancement."

You know the path, don't you? You've seen both of them. Maybe it is the path of career advancement. It appears glamorous, but with just a hint of "the world" and "compromise." Maybe it is the path of the comfortable relationship. You're dating, he is not a Christian and has no desire to make that decision, but you are great friends, comfortable, other than your faith, you have a lot in common. Maybe it's the path of honor. Honoring your father & mother, or holding on to bitterness & unforgiveness to wrongs that were done you. Maybe it is the path of destiny. Do you continue in the job where you are comfortable, make good income, unfulfilled, but doing well? Or do you jump out into what you are really called to do, what you are really passionate about? You've always wanted to write a book? You've always wanted to be a teacher? You've always wanted to own a restaurant and cook for people? You've always wanted to be a minister? You've always wanted to be a missionary and share the gospel?

As I continue to read and study about the Proverbs 31 woman, she has chosen her path. Her path leads her to reverently & worshipfully fear the Lord. Her path leads her to make decisions based upon her respect & honor for the Lord. Her path leads her down the road less traveled. Her path leads her on pursuits she maybe never imagined, pursuits that she started maybe uncomfortable, unsure.... the path where she did not know what the next step was, pursuits nonetheless where at the end of the day, she prospers.

I encourage you today to look at the paths that lie ahead for you. Do you take the path that leads to godliness or the path that leads to compromise? Do you take the path that honors our heavenly Father or the path that ensures worldly success? Do you take the path that is merely comfortable or the path that causes you to fully rely on the Lord?  

I anticipate, as the following poem reads.... if you take the path of the Lord, it will make all the difference!

The Road Not Taken

Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveller, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could 

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back. 

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I --

I took the one less traveled by, 

And that has made all the difference.

The Road leading to Jesus does make all the difference!

#209 - Forgive Me?

Proverbs 28:13 - He who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes his sins will obtain mercy.


Proverbs 31:11 - The heart of her husband trusts in her confidently and relies on and believes in her securely, so that he has no lack of [honest] gain or need of [dishonest] spoil.


Have you ever known you needed to ask for forgiveness, but knew if you pushed it under the rug, no one would even know? The uncomfortableness of "asking for forgiveness" would mean that you were wrong. It would highlight your shortcomings. Not to mention, having to ask for forgiveness makes you feel shameful. I hate feeling shameful. But, the alternative, is going through your day or days, with this "sin" hanging over your head. It's like everywhere you go, you can't escape the feeling of the shame, it doesn't go away, it follows you. Until, finally you decide to give in.  You decide to go to the person and just ask for forgiveness.

Recently in a Quiet Time, the Holy Spirit addressed this topic with me. I had asked Tyler & the Lord for forgiveness about something the day prior. It was uncomfortable and it felt shameful. Like Proverbs 28:13 says, I did obtain mercy. He did forgive me. But, the next morning in my Quiet Time, the Holy Spirit addressed the importance of asking for forgiveness. Tyler and I have a "confession" rule with each other, if we mess up in whatever area, we've agreed to ask for forgiveness. It's uncomfortable, but it holds us accountable to one another. The Holy Spirit prompted me again of the importance. He said though I may not like confronting an area of sin, it helps. The Holy Spirit pointed out that the alternative would be a hardening of my heart. I know I do not want to get to a point where my heart is hardened to sin.

The Proverbs 31 husband is able to trust & confidently rely on his Proverbs 31 wife. I would like to believe Tyler can trust me. Granted, we both know that I'm not perfect, but he knows despite how difficult a situation may be, I will confront him if I need to. I want him to believe in me & trust me securely as it says in Proverbs 31:11.

So... in person, over text, over the phone.... you will often hear us say the uncomfortable words, "I messed up, will you forgive me?" Praise the Lord for mercy.

What about you and your relationships? Do you have any safeguards for sin? I would love to hear about them!

#192 - Focus on Obedience

Good morning! :) It's a beautiful day out here in Columbia! Birds chirping, a cool breeze and blue skies. Let's get started in the Word because Junior will be getting up soon! :)

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.

Matthew 6:27,31 - And who of you by worrying and being anxious can add one unit of measure (cubit) to his stature or to the span of his life. Therefore do not worry and be anxious, saying, What are we going to have to eat? or, What are we going to have to drink? or, What are we going to have to wear? 

This morning I had a some questions for the Holy Spirit... primarily on specific direction. I sat, in my mind I felt a little bit scattered, like I was just saying, "Well, what about this? What about that? Should I do this?" It was as if my thoughts were running out ahead of me to try to answer the questions. My thoughts were hurried and seemed chaotic. I slowed down enough to listen, and from that comes today's main theme, "Focus on Obedience."


The root of my 'firing of questions' to the Holy Spirit stemmed from anxiety or worry, but it was as if He had to slow me down. Re-focus me. Re-ground me. Remind me of my current tasks at hand, projects He's told me to work on. As I hurriedly listed off all the things that I had questions on and seemed to feel a bit of stress rising up on the inside, I just heard that still small Voice say, "Just focus on obedience." An area, where just two days ago, I had to ask forgiveness.

Columbia summers are hot, humid. Sometimes just walking out of the house or car, it feels as if the air is sucked out of you for a split second until you get acclimated to the heat & humidity. Once you adjust, it's usually OK... but a summer without a pool would be tough down here. Our development has a pool conveniently about 100 yards from our house. It's very nice to just be a short walk away. Well... we had not paid for our pool pass for the summer yet. We still had our key-fob that would allow us to get in, but just hadn't paid or gotten the newly issued ID cards with our picture on it. Not really thinking about Proverbs 31:29, and her "strength of character," I proceeded to periodically scope out the pool to see if the "pool man" sat checking ID's. I found that there was normally no one there in the morning. Confession time. So, a few times Junior and I rode our bike by the pool, seeing no guard, rushed back home, got on our swimsuits and headed to the pool for a few hours of refreshing, cool swimming.

I know, I know. Some of you may be laughing and my deceitfulness... some of you may have gotten your stones out already! Well... let me tell you the rest of the story. No, I did not get caught. No, I did not get in trouble. Honestly, if I weren't telling YOU publicly right now, I don't think really anyone would have known. I reasoned that, we were going to buy our pool pass soon, we just hadn't yet. Once we did buy it, it wasn't even going to be pro-rated, we'd pay the same price as everyone else. We just hadn't paid it yet. I reasoned that it was OK for now. I didn't really like having to sneak. It felt dishonest, which isn't typically a quality I hold. Tyler and I joked about me "not being a rule follower" because he has always been pretty straight and narrow... I have usually been the "spontaneous" or "adventurous" one of the two of us. I'd joke about "not following the rules" and getting in to the pool, he would chuckle a little, but shake his head. Monday after dinner, Honest Abe Tyler, Tyler Jr, and I played outside in the backyard in the sprinklers. We did have a blast. Tyler Jr was loving it! He just ran around laughing, getting soaked, it was definite entertainment! Before bed I was reading and that's when the conviction began. I couldn't shake that what I was doing was wrong. We hadn't paid for the pool, so I shouldn't be going. Tuesday morning I made up my mind. Tuesday at lunch, I told Tyler I wasn't going to the pool anymore until we paid. Junior and I would just play out in the sprinklers or the hose, or stay inside where it was cool. And... I had to obviously ask for forgiveness from my Father. Tyler was surprised about my newly-found "pool honesty" and our day continued.

Wouldn't you know it, Tuesday afternoon, Tyler told me that he was going to surprise me but that I could go down and pay for the pool passes and get my picture taken! I was so excited! Yippee!!! Would it have happened if I had continued in deceit? Or would it have been another few weeks?

So, this morning when I was reading about the Proverbs 31 woman, and read about her "strength of character," I couldn't help but think about my temporary relapse. It's hard to be blessed when walking in disobedience or walking in a lie, even if it seems like a little one. A lie is a lie. I thought about her. Her strength of character stems out to even her honesty. Someone with a strong character is honest, trustworthy, they do the right thing.

"Just focus on obedience," I'm reminded of the Holy Spirit's words this morning. I don't know what it is for you. Maybe it's something like my "confession" above. For me, this morning, it was about being obedient to the things that Holy Spirit has directed me to work on. It was about being obedient to the current tasks He has me working on, not trying to bring on other things to do, but just focusing on the few things HE has directed me to do. Spending my time doing those things. If I do that, my daily accomplishments will not be in vain, they will actually be fruitful and purposeful.

What was the last thing the Holy Spirit told you to do? Are you working on it? Are you working towards completion? Have you gotten distracted with other things that seemed good to you? Have you forgotten what the last thing the Holy Spirit directed you to do? Maybe it's time to re-visit. Maybe it's time to check again, are we on the right track? Am I doing what I'm supposed to be doing? Am I being diligent? Am I focusing on obedience?

______________

Here's Tyler Junior and I at the pool yesterday! GUILT FREE! Having a great time! Look at how brave he is!!! Tyler said, "Maybe an Olympic diver?".... any cheerleaders out there know that it actually is a pretty good extension! :) (Though, I'm not speaking my son is going to be a cheerleader! HA!)

#141 - How to enjoy TODAY

Good morning! :) Well... I have a PRAISE report for yesterday! :) The boy turned 15 months and had his 15 month "Well Visit" with Dr. Sooros. This weekend on Saturday he had a fever, and on Sunday the fever had subsided but when he was walking he was extremely off balance. Well... Tyler and I just did what we know to do based on the Word. "Lay hands on the sick and they shall recover." (Mark 16:18) "By Jesus stripes we ARE healed."(Is.53:4-5, 1 Peter 2:24) "When 2 or more come together in together and AGREE upon anything you ask for, it will be done for you by your Father in heaven." (Matt. 18:19) - So... we laid hands on Tyler Jr. and thanked God for his complete healing and restoration. From the symptoms, it would've appeared that he had an ear infection, but we just thanked God that our son was healed! He was whole, restored and walked in divine health! The report from the Doctor was good! He was perfect! :) He's in the 92nd percentile for height and 45th percentile for weight. So... he's tall and slender. :) Such a cute boy! :) It amazes me because he usually eats more than I do! Where does the boy put it?!? So, that was definitely a praise! Thank you Father for being true & faithful to your Word! 


Let's get started! Lately.... I've not been getting past Proverbs. I've been getting so much good stuff out of Proverbs! Psalms will just have to wait. :) 

Proverbs 15:13, 15, 29 - A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken. All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances]. The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the [consistently] righteous (the upright, in right standing with Him).

Man... do I know these scriptures Oh to well! But praise God for HIS Word that we can receive truth and revelation! :) I looked up the word "desponding" in the dictionary. This was the definition: to be depressed by loss of hope, confidence, or courage. There was a period of time where I felt like the word of "desponding" would have described me. On the outside, maybe one could not tell.... I smiled and did my best to have a Positive Mental Attitude. But in my heart, hope was shallow at best. My heart had grown weary and sluggish. It was like my heart had been running this race and I was just worn out. If you picture a person in a desert, shoulders hunched over, arms dangling, head hanging low.... or a (not in shape) runner who has run 20 miles, just exhausted.... I picture my heart looked like that if it was walking. My heart was just sluggish, slooping over, tired. My hope, confidence and courage were down. AND... one reason they were is because I was doing EXACTLY what this verse talked about! I had anxious thought and "forebodings". My thoughts were continually in the future, not in the present. I was anxious over the future. I was constantly thinking about the future which paralyzed me from enjoying my "TODAY." I missed the scenic view of my journey because I was so focused on where the end destination would take me. I was longing to live in the future I saw in my mind. I was so longing to live there, that every day in my present was a disappointment because I hadn't "arrived" at my destination yet. 


PRAISE GOD for GOD and HIS WORD! Praise God for my husband. Praise God for revelations! I somehow realized, probably greatly due to Tyler, that I could not live in the future any more. ALL I could control was my today! All I could do was enjoy my today. Sure... have goals, yes! But once I had my goals, work them backwards to figure out what the daily action steps are and then just consistently DO those daily actions. Not dwelling on or staying at the "end" but focusing on the daily actions I can do today. And while doing that, enjoying the journey. A JOURNEY WITHOUT TOIL! Enjoying the smell of the roses along the way. I realizes that being anxious was AGAINST the Word. If I was being anxious, I was trying to control something that was not MINE to control... ie: the future or other people. ALL I could control was my today... my RIGHT NOW. Not next hour or later tonight, or tomorrow. All I could do was control my right now. Enjoy my right now. Tyler STILL has to catch me and correct my thinking because I occasionally still try to live in the future. Or... get anxious, my mind would get bogged down because I'm thinking about all these things I need to learn or do... but they are things that the outcome hasn't even been established!  No need to be anxious. What's the wonderful verse say, "Be anxious for NOTHING, but in EVERYTHING with prayer & petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God." Phil 4:6.


The VICTORY in it? Check out Proverbs 15:29!!! :) What VICTORY! What GOOD NEWS! He hears the prayer of the righteous!!! GOD HEARS US!? Are you born-again? Are you saved? God HEARS you!!! Do you have sin in your life? Well, ask forgiveness, get things right. And then pray to God. Submit your request! God HEARS you! I actually recently was holding "offense" against a few people. When I realized it, I knew exactly what I had to do! Just what it talked about in the new testament. It says something like: If you are holding anything against your brother, leave you offering at the alter. Get up, go, get things right with your brother. THEN, come and make your offering. 


So, even me! I had to get offense right. I had to ask forgiveness from God, and my "brother/sister" in Christ. 


GOD HEARS OUR PRAYERS! That is GREAT NEWS! Something DEFINITELY to rejoice about! PRAISE GOD! And do you know, you can have a GLAD heart REGARDLESS of your CIRCUMSTANCE! Because you have the FAVOR of GOD on your side! If things look impossible... just smile and laugh and THANK GOD outloud - I HAVE THE FAVOR of GOD on my side! GOD EVEN MAKES MY MISTAKES TO PROSPER! :) I HAVE GOD'S FAVOR! :) 


Have a great day! Live in TODAY! Enjoy TODAY! Tomorrow has it's own worries. Tomorrow will take care of itself. Therefore, enjoy your TODAY! 

#118 - I forgive you.

Good morning! Well... it's been a good morning so far. Not completely normal, but at least partially on schedule! SO... I have a pretty great "lesson" from yesterday. If you noticed, yesterday I did not post anything.... also... it was NOT my Day of Rest. I feel like after yesterday I know what a lot of people feel like EVERY DAY when they do not have a "Quiet Time" in the morning. 


So... let me lay out my day. Got up and ended up sitting at the table with the lap.... one thing led to another and I started finishing up some Christmas presents, doing this or that. 10 minutes turned into 1, 2, 3 hours. And before I knew it my morning was GONE! GONE! By the time I sat down, it was 1:15 in the afternoon! Sure, I got out my Bible, read a little. But really, when I opened up my journal, the Holy Spirit had things to say to me right away. This was what he said, "This is why you don't do other things in the morning. It will get you off and you will not have time for your Quiet Time and blog. It's OK. I forgive you. But LEARN!"


10-4! Eye, Eye Captain! I did reap the consequences of it though. I went about my day and it seemed a bit like a whirl-wind of chaos and busyness. Sure, I was still productive and got a lot of things done, but by 8:00 I was truly just exhausted. I was ready to go to bed. I don't typically feel exhausted at the end of the day. Normally, everything just is great, my day is great, I feel happy & refreshed throughout the day, and when it's time to go to bed, I happily hop in to snuggy with my hubby. But yesterday, it was most definitely different. Exhaustion & I felt a bit ragged. I have some friends who it seems like that is how their every day is. Just being in their presence I feel the spirit of chaos versus peace. And...I know that they have allowed life to steal their Quiet Time with the Lord, they have told me so. Well.... from experience, I have determined, it is MUCH better to have a quiet time than to not! SO, I'm posting a BLOG today! :-)

Proverbs 16:16 - How much better it is to get skillful and godly Wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

Proverbs 16:32 - He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, he who rules his [own] spirit than he who takes a city.

Get skillful & godly Wisdom! You can do this any time of the day. Sure, an actual Quiet Time, time spent with just YOU, your BIBLE & journal, & the HOLY SPIRIT,  is a great time to receive skillful & godly Wisdom. It's a time when you are in a position open to receive, ready to receive & ready to write down WHAT you have received. It allows you to track your progress, your emotions, what you have read in the Word, what you feel like the Holy Spirit may be saying to you. (Don't know "HOW" to listen or hear His Voice....maybe this devotion will help too? "Who do you Follow" talks about how I learned to Listen.) 


Slow to anger. Have you ever know someone who just seemed mad all the time? Whenever you talk to them, they seem annoyed or angry about something. The word "joy" is NOT the word that comes to mind when you think of this person. Being "angry" is not always bad. If you remember, even Jesus got angry and went through a RAGE of turning over the money changers tables. He was angry because they were perverting the house of God. (Matthew 21:12-13) Anger becomes a problem when the seed of it takes root and controls your spirit and life. When forgiveness is forgotten, and anger takes control. 

• Ephesians 4:30-31 - And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God... Let all bitterness and indignation and wrath (passion, rage, bad temper) and resentment (anger, animosity) and quarreling (brawling, clamor, contention) and slander (evil-speaking, abusive or blasphemous language) be banished from you, with all malice (spite, ill will, or baseness of any kind). 

Did you GET THAT? Bitterness grieves the Holy Spirit! Quarreling, evil-speaking spite grieves the Holy Spirit! Let's rewind even a little bit further, you can see where you can be ANGRY without SIN! Really?! Check it out: 

• Ephesians 4:26 - When angry, do not sin; do not ever let your wrath (your exasperation, your fury or indignation) last until the sun goes down.

SO... are you angry? Well, if it's gone longer than 24 hours, we need to get OVER it! The spirit of anger will make us miserable! Day in & day out, the spirit of anger will cause us to walk in misery on this earth. So something happened to you that wasn't fair, are you going to allow that situation to make your LIFE miserable? Are you going to keep going back to that event and replay it in your mind. Replay it with your words? Retell the story of the injustice done to you? What about forgiveness? The seed of anger begins to eat at your heart and your joy and the spiral affects of it can be detrimental. The ONE thing that would hold someone back from forgiving is pride. (And I know of a verse, have you heard it? - "Pride cometh before the fall.") Forgiveness doesn't have to mean that you agree with it. Forgiveness doesn't mean that you have to believe what someone did was right. But forgiveness does allow us to walk in the blessing of the Lord. When we walk in forgiveness we are saying, "God, I'm walking in obedience to you. I am forgiving this person of the wrong that was done to me."  Unforgiveness is a BLESSING-BLOCKER! When you walk in unforgiveness you are holding something against that person. Jesus won't even LISTEN to you! Do you want to see scripture to back it up?! Matthew 5:24 - Leave your gift at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come back and present your gift. - Jesus won't even ACCEPT our gift to him if we hold unforgiveness in our heart. He tells us to, "GET UP! Go! When you have forgiven that person, THEN you may come back to me and offer a gift or ask for something. But right now, I DO NOT HEAR YOU!" 


Anger. If you are walking around in anger, there is someone you need to forgive. Maybe they didn't know better, maybe the situation was out of their control, maybe "HARK" maybe they just got into sin and said something or did something ugly - they are not perfect either! Or maybe you are walking around in anger with yourself. Maybe you are mad at something you did. Then today is the day to FORGIVE YOURSELF! Stop beating yourself up! Cut yourself some slack. 


Anger & unforgiveness only lead to the PROBLEM and do not lead to the SOLUTION. 


We are so close to Christmas. It is such a great season to be joyful. Choose this season, before Christmas that you are going to forgive. Forgive the wrongs done. Forgive the words said. FREE YOURSELF to be able to walk in the blessings that God has for YOU! HE is just WAITING for YOU to forgive. YOU CHOOSE. You are in the drivers seat of whether God is going to bless you. YOU choose to walk in bitterness, and no blessing or walk in forgiveness and the blessing! Today... who is it that you need to call? Who is it that you need to go see? Who is it that you need to say, "I forgive you." 

#90 - Some Truths Can Go Unsaid.

Good morning. It's raining here in Columbia. I'm still enjoying the morning though. Sometimes rain is nice. Out on my porch, it's rather comfortable. As I've been writing my book, it brings me to such different places.... the journey of going back in time and reliving some of the events. It is definitely not always fun. The heaviness of my heart this morning was then confirmed by the scriptures I read today. It's amazing how God does it. The importance of guarding our mouth, guarding our words.... that is what we are going to visit today. 

Proverbs 25:26 - Like a muddied fountain and a polluted spring is a righteous man who yields, falls down, and compromises his integrity before the wicked.

Psalm 25:7 - Remember not the sins (the lapses and frailties) of my youth or my transgressions; according to Your mercy and steadfast love remember me, for Your goodness' sake, O Lord. 

Psalm 55:14 - We had sweet fellowship together and used to walk to the house of God in company. 

Proverbs 31:26 - She opens her mouth in skillful and godly Wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness [giving counsel and instruction].

Well, it is a definite "Praise the Lord" that HE forgets our sin. The moment we ask for forgiveness, our sin is washed away. Like we've talked about lately, as far as the east is from the west, our sin is forgotten. What a wonderful thing! Though that is great, in regards to our words, when sin is accompanied with our words, things we have said, to some, those words may never be forgotten. 

I'll take you back to early on in mine and Tyler's marriage. We were young, obviously still growing in our walk with the Lord, as we still are, and just excited about life. Living life to the fullest. Accomplishing goals. Accomplishing dreams. Chasing God's calling on our life. (Still things we do today!) But, in all that, the key is, we were "raw". We were un-finished, definitely un-polished, and at times our zealousness maybe came off the wrong way to people. 

My best friend while I was in college still lived back home. I was most definitely focused on specific things Tyler and I were pursuing. We had some specific goals, with a time-line and we were very focused. It had been close to two years that I had lived in the south. Living several hundred miles away from someone, being newly married and someone taking the #1 'earthly' spot in my life, and in a focused pursuit of some goals left my friend feeling very unimportant. As I have thought back on the season in my life when we were best friends, it truly was sweet fellowship. We would spend hours talking about the Lord, so green, just so excited to seek Him out and learn about Him. We would read our Bibles together, I'd go visit her and we'd stay up late into the night talking about God and the hopeful plans for our life. Most of our late night talks did revolve around the "boys" in our lives. For me, it was Tyler. I couldn't get my mind off him. I just knew that one day God would reveal to him that he was going to marry me. 


We did have a sweet friendship. But until one day, she confronted my "lack of putting enough effort" into our friendship. It seemed this was a constant guilt trip I had been feeling whenever we talked. I felt frustrated and I felt smothered. Things had definitely changed. In my "raw" way, I finally told her the things I was pursuing with Tyler, my marriage and our goals in our marriage were more important. Yikes. Our conversation quickly ended. I felt horrible, but what I said was true. I maybe didn't have the people skills to do it more tactfully, but what was done was done. 


And that was the end of that. Our friendship never recovered. She was hurt. I was hurt. What I said and the way I said it definitely did not reflect the "law of kindness" like the Proverbs 31 woman. They were things that were true, they were my feelings, but they were not said in kindness. My invitation to be a bridesmaid in her upcoming wedding had soon been recanted, and our friendship left a dark pit in my heart. 


Sure... God forgave me. Many times over through the years that I talked to God about it. Asked for forgiveness, and even asked for my friends forgiveness, but what was done could not be undone. Forgiven, yes. Forgotten, no. 


Will anything ever come of the friendship I once shared? I'm not sure. She was a very dear friend during a very pivotal time in my life. A time when I needed a Christian friend, she was there. Sure, I felt a bit smothered at times.... but she was a great friend. 


I've learned from it. I'd like to say I'm more polished now, more studied in the Word, less raw. I know now, if we ask God's direction, seek His face, He always has an answer. Like the Proverbs 31 woman, it is an answer wrapped in kindness. And.... I have definitely learned that some truths can go unsaid.


Guard your tongue today. God will forget, but sometimes people have a hard time forgetting. If in doubt, don't say it, just be quiet. Some truths can go unsaid. 

#81 - What Sin?

Good morning! Well... I thought I'd share a couple pictures of "THE BOY" in case we aren't pals on Facebook! This was the other night at dinner!! WHOA! I know! IT WAS ALL DAD!!!! I just am not a fan of the gross mess, but dad said, "Let him be! Let him do it! He can feed himself." AHHHH! So, reluctantly I held in my urge to help. I warned Tyler up front that if Tyler Jr was going to feed himself that I was not going to do the "clean-up" OR "bath time!" Sianara! No way Jose! So, Tyler Sr agreed and here is the fruit of that decision! One word: MESS!!!

For real, this is the happiest baby!! He is such a joy and blessing!
He will be a great big brother when that time comes! 

This shows a little bit of his personality! Tyler Jr is SOOO funny!
We just laugh all the time at our house!

OK... well, we have MyGym today, so let's get rolling! I'm still getting used to "remembering" that whole "MyGym" thing! You'd think it would be well implanted in my mind! Anyone that sees me Tuesday nights, feel free to REMIND ME about it!!! HA! :) 

Check the reading schedule for what we read today. And let's do this! It's some GOOD STUFF today!! I'm excited to see how the Holy Spirit brings it all together. I was just jammin out while I read! I was saying, "WOW! For real! This is all so good!!" Isn't it fun when you are in the Word and you have times like that?! When you are just like, "FOR REAL GOD!??!! This is some good stuff!" It's like, "Duh. Of course it is!" lol! Ok... I'm going to quit humoring myself and get started! Oh... one more thing.... a "PS" if you will.... a shout out to Danielle H! She is the one who said, "Amy, I like it when you put pictures up." So, the pictures are for you Danielle! :) Have a great day at work! hehe!

Psalm 6:6 - I am weary with my groaning; all night I soak my pillow with tears, I drench my couch with my weeping. 

Psalms 36:1-2 - TRANSGRESSION [like an oracle] speaks to the wicked deep in his heart. There is no fear or dread of God before his eyes. For he flatters and deceives himself in his own eyes that his iniquity will not be found out and be hated.  

Psalm 66:18 - If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.  

Psalms 66:9-10, 12b - Who put and kept us among the living, and has not allowed our feet to slip. For You, O God, have proved us; You have tried us as silver is tried, refined, and purified.... we went through fire and through water, BUT You brought us out into a broad, moist place [to abundance and refreshment and the open air]. 

Psalm 66:16, 96:3 - Come and hear, all you who reverently and worshipfully fear God, and I will declare what He has done for me! Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous works among all the peoples.

Psalm 126:5 - They who sow in tears shall reap in joy and singing. 

OK... WOW! This is some good stuff! Brace yourself! A quick synopsis before we start. SIN. VICTORY. ACTION. Hopefully you are reading a "color-coated" computer or SmartPhone. So we are visiting SIN, then the experience of VICTORY, and then the ACTION we are called to take here. This is good stuff. 


Psalm 6... as I read the amplified and I read that David here was weeping in his PILLOW, a soft spot touched me. Weeping in his PILLOW?! I mean... for real?! If you think about someone weeping in a pillow, who comes to mind? A big military leader? A king? Yah, I didn't think so! That didn't come to my mind either. What came to my mind was a young girl, crying over a boyfriend, or some gossip going around at school. I didn't picture this "Man after God's Own Heart", not just crying, but WEEPING into a pillow. Weeping. Remorse. Guilt. Sorrow. 


Psalm 36 carries us into our sometimes naivety in the area of sin. Our naivety when we think that our sin will not be found out! It says that this person who is holding in this sin deceives himself. To think our SIN won't be found out? To be pious enough to think that we can RUN from our sin? That we can hide? Where can we go to hide? When I think about hiding, I think about running down to the playground down the road from where we live. To hide there. Or... like a child, to hide under my covers. To do what I have often done, and pulled the covers up over my head and just stay in bed. I will hide in my sleep. If I sleep, I can hide. My sin won't be found out. But the reality of it all is, we can continue to run or we can continue to try to hide, but in God's omnipotence, he knows all along where we are. As we run, it is as if he watches his favorite child running away. He sees the back of us as we are running down the sidewalk. Our Father, stands back at our house, His face just longing for us to come back. His face, filled with sorrow, hurt and pain. He understands the guilt we are feeling, our hurt. And His greatest desire as we come running back repenting and asking for forgiveness is to tell us, "My child, what sin? My child, I love you. What sin? Your sin is as far as the east is from the west. All I see is my child, white as snow. Unblemished. Darling, what sin?"


When we hold that sin in, the longer we keep it close to our hearts, the colder we become. The more callous our heart becomes, our spirit, our outlook on life. We begin to build sin upon sin. Lie upon lie. We continue to just cover up our sin. And until we come to repentance, the Lord will not hear our cries. 


God wants us to know the outcome. "Child! Please just come to Me! My Child, come! Come! Draw near to Me! In this place, with Me is abundance Child. In this place is wholeness. In this place you don't have to run. In this place you are safe. In this place (your name), I have EVERY good gift for you! Everything that you have been praying for, it is here. Everything you have been longing for, it is here. The secret desires that you have just kept in your head, Darling, even those are here. I have those! Don't run. It just takes you humbling yourself, laying it down. Don't keep carrying that sin. Don't keep carrying that care. Lay it down here. Lay it down at my feet. Lay it down at the alter. My Child, my desire is for you to have abundance. I want to bless you. If your heart is cold and turned from me, I can't hear you. Through the tears you have cried, joy and singing will come. Morning will come. Draw near to Me."


What sin? What sin? When we humble ourself before our Almighty Father, shame, guilt, sorrow, torment..... when we take that step, often such a hard step, to repent his comment to us is, "What Sin?" As far as the east is from the west, when we repent, He has already forgotten it. Praise the Lord. We no longer have to carry around the shame or the guilt. The actions, the things that we have done that we feel shame about, dirty, disappointed, those things are literally cast into a SEA of FORGETFULNESS! They are GONE! So lay down your burdens once and for all. Lay down the sins that have been so easily entangling you. Lay them down at the feet of Jesus so they can be forgotten and you can walk into a world of freedom and abundance. Declare HIS faithfulness! Declare what He has done for you! Declare His freedom!


You can be forgiven. Nothing is to bad. And your Father will literally forgive and forget! His desire is to say, "Child, What sin?" 

#77 - Prosper & Walk in the Blessing

Good morning! It is definitely a chilly day here in Columbia, SC. I'm sitting on the porch in JEANS and a JACKET! WHOA! Can you believe it?! It actually does feel like fall. How awesome is that?! I could even sit out here in a sweatshirt and it would be super comfortable. I love fall. What a great season! Fall clothes are just awesome. Sweatshirts and jeans, does it get much better than that?!?

Alright... I have an appointment, so we are going to jump right in! (Also...side-note - The bug man was here today and sprayed! Can we all say PRAISE THE LORD! We're sending ALL those cockroaches to meet Jesus!! HALLELUYAH! Especially after I was interrupted in my BATH last night by an intruder who wanted to swim! I yelled! Tyler had to come running to help me! YUCK!!) Ok... focus Amy, focus! They just have a way of getting me FIRED UP! Urghhhh! Let's get into the word!

Proverbs 28:13 - He who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes his sins will obtain mercy.

Psalm 118:8, 18, 25 - It is better to trust and take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in man. The Lord has chastened me sorely, but He has not given me over to death. (25) Save now, we beseech You, O Lord; send now prosperity, O Lord, we beseech You, and give to us success!

Psalms 148: 13a, 14a - Let them praise and exalt the name of the Lord, for His name alone is exalted and supreme! He has lifted up a horn for His people [giving them power, prosperity, dignity, and preeminence]...

Proverbs 31:10 - A capable, intelligent, and virtuous woman--who is he who can find her? She is far more precious than jewels and her value is far above rubies or pearls. 

Who knows that prosperity is a good thing? I would venture to say, not everyone thinks that. Some people have grown up with the thinking that there is something pious or religious about having less than you need, or not having very much money. Like there is something godly about living in lack. If money is so bad, why isn't Satan pounding down your door to give you some? Because he knows that money in the hands of good, God-fearing people can make a BIG dent in his plans to bring people to hell. Prosperity, wealth, in the hands of Christians who are SOLD-OUT to helping the gospel reach the ends of the earth is a threat to Satan's game plan. 


I like Psalms 118:25, O Lord; send now prosperity, O Lord, we beseech You, and give to us success! - Give us SUCCESS Lord! Give us PROSPERITY! That's a prayer. Have you prayed that before? Good for you! We serve a God who loves to bless his children. Who loves to bring them success and prosperity! 


We do get a key here to how NOT to prosper... check it out: He who covers his transgressions will not prosper. Once you have sinned, if we try to cover it up, that is one sure way not to prosper. Even the hidden sin, that maybe NO ONE knows about. Maybe it's just a secret that only we know.... well... news flash, God knows! There is no sin that is hidden from God and if we try to hide or cover up a sin that we have committed, He knows. It is still sin. 


When we are living in sin, it may happen that we are chastened by the Lord. Like when your child sins, or when you were growing up and sinned, mom and dad may have spanked you. You may have gotten grounded, but one way or another, you were punished. That is why it is so important for us to immediately run to God and ask for forgiveness. He is a God that will forgive, no matter how big of how small the sin, He will forgive. When we walk in that forgiveness, blessings are able to flow. When we walk in sin, blessings are blocked from our life. 

We pray Lord that you would forgive us of any sins we have committed. Lord forgive us. Forgive us Lord! We desire to bless and honor You! We desire to do YOUR will and grow Your Kingdom! Father, thank You that YOU are a Lord that forgives! Help me Lord to not sin, help me to crave you so much that I am far from sin. That I would hunger and thirst for righteousness. That is my prayer. That my greatest hunger would be for you, to please you Father. Lord, forgiven, we come to you and pray, SEND NOW your prosperity, we pray, GIVE to us, your Children success! Thank you that it is YOUR desire to bless us, to give us success and prosperity. It is your desire that we, your children live in the blessing. We love you Father. We thank you. We pray this all in the MIGHTY Name of Your Son, Jesus. Amen!

#73 - Stay On GUARD!

Good morning! Wow! I feel a little bit overwhelmed. Did you feel like that when you read today's chapters? Wow. It is so full. It just filled my heart with a heaviness... but filled it with goodness also. A goodness for direction. A goodness for safe-guards. This morning, let's dive in and look a bit into the life of King David. 


Today's Daily Reading: Proverbs 21, Psalms 21, 51, 81, 111, 141, Proverbs 31:10-31

Proverbs 21:29 - A wicked man puts on the bold, unfeeling face [of guilt], but as for the upright, he considers, directs, and establishes his way [with the confidence of integrity].

Psalm 51:1a,2-3, 7b, 16-17 - HAVE MERCY upon me, O God ... Wash me thoroughly [and repeatedly] from my iniquity and guilt and cleanse me and make me wholly pure from my sin! For I am conscious of my transgressions and I acknowledge them; my sin is ever before me....wash me, and I shall [in reality] be whiter than snow. For You delight not in sacrifice, or else would I give it; You find no pleasure in burnt offering. My sacrifice [the sacrifice acceptable] to God is a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart [broken down with sorrow for sin and humbly and thoroughly penitent], such, O God, You will not despise.

Psalm 81:11a, 12a, 14a, 15-16 - But My people would not hearken to My voice... So I gave them up to their own hearts' lust and let them go after their own stubborn will... Speedily then I would subdue their enemies...[Had Israel listened to Me in Egypt, then] those who hated the Lord would have come cringing before Him, and their defeat would have lasted forever. [God] would feed [Israel now] also with the finest of the wheat; and with honey out of the rock would I satisfy you.

Psalm 141:2, 4, 5 - Let my prayer be set forth as incense before You, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. Set a guard, O Lord, before my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips. Incline my heart not to submit or consent to any evil thing or to be occupied in deeds of wickedness with men who work iniquity; and let me not eat of their dainties. Let the righteous man smite and correct me--it is a kindness.

Proverbs 31:16a - She considers ...

Man! Let me just say... today is loaded! I don't feel I will have a chance to cover everything that I received from the Word today... but it is full. I pray you will have time to meditate on today's Word and see what the Lord is speaking to you about. Revel, marvel, soak in what it says. 


We are familiar with King David being called, "a man after God's own heart." Psalm 51 shows us the heart of David after being called out by the man of God, prophet Nathan. Nathan has just busted David for his sin with Bathsheba. David looked upon her, naked as she bathed on a roof-top, took her as his own, and since she was married, King David had her husband positioned strategically in battle so that he would be killed. The prophet of God, Nathan, approaches David and in rebuke confronts his sin. In Psalm 51, if you read the whole Psalm again, you may read it completely different when you know the heart that is going into the words. David immediately is filled with remorse. He cries, "HAVE MERCY ON ME, O GOD!" David does not try to justify his sin, but he embraces it, he takes it as his own, which it is. David holds it out before God, repentant and cries out for forgiveness. David recognizes that sacrifice is not what God is looking for here. That offering up a burnt offering, or slaying a ram to place on an alter is not what the Lord wants here. The Lords GREATEST desire is for David's HEART! Is for a heart that cries out, "LORD! FORGIVE ME! LORD I HAVE SINNED! FORGIVE ME LORD!" The Lord's desire was for a heart that would cry out for forgiveness, full of repentance and awareness of the sin that was committed. Like it says in Psalm 51, David offers "...a broken and a contrite heart [broken down with sorrow for sin and humbly and thoroughly penitent]..." Not that we need to remain with a broken and contrite heart, because we can RECEIVE forgiveness because of what Christ did on the cross. But here, David here is penitent. Penitent - feeling or expressing sorrow for sin. David expresses his brokeness here. He is truly repentant. 


When we sin, I believe that is where God wants us to be. He wants the sin to cause our hearts to be broken. That the sin so greatly weighs on our hearts, the sin, so heavy, the feeling of remorse so great, that we FALL ON OUR FACES before the LORD. We CRY out to the LORD, "O LORD! HAVE MERCY ON ME LORD! FORGIVE ME LORD! FORGIVE MY SIN!" That our guilt, our remorse would cause us to RUN FROM SIN the next time it approaches us. RUN FROM SIN the next time we are up against temptation. That the remembrance of the remorse would be so real to us in a time of sin, that it would keep us from sinning again. That our desire to PLEASE THE LORD would be greater than our desire to please ourselves and our flesh. 


Then when we look at what the prophet Nathan really did, we can see where Psalm 141:5 REALLY does play a HUGE part here!! "Let the righteous man smite and correct me--it is a kindness." King David KNEW that Nathan was a RIGHTEOUS MAN! He did not throw Nathan out! He did not REBUKE Nathan. He counted it as KINDNESS! He accepted it as TRUTH. HE accepted the rebuke, and I believe deep down, David was GREATLY THANKFUL to have been rebuked. For his error, his sin to be brought into the light. With his sin being brought into the light, it allows him the opportunity to FULLY RESTORE his relationship with the Lord. It allows him to come back into the FULL blessing of the Lord. And, to this day, we still know David, a man who sinned greatly as "A MAN AFTER GOD'S OWN HEART." 


Look at the RISK in Psalm 141 if WE as Christians, as believers don't take SIN seriously... But My people would not hearken to My voice... So I gave them up to their own hearts' lust and let them go after their own stubborn will. The prompting of the Lord will not be forever. If WE, Christians continue to sin, and run from righteousness, as it says in Romans 6, sin will lead to death. So much for the whole promise of "a long life" if we continue, relentlessly on a path of sin, not hearkening to the voice of the Lord. 


Further in Psalm 141, it says what the Lord WOULD HAVE done if the people would have turned from their sin. The Lord WOULD HAVE SPEEDILY defeated their enemies, and permanently. He WOULD HAVE filled their mouths with the BEST wheat (aka, the best food!), and He WOULD HAVE filled their mouths with honey from a rock. The Lord DID HAVE GREAT things in store, but the people would not HEARKEN unto His Voice. They remained stubborn, they continued to chase their lust. 


In our Proverbs verses, it talks about how the righteous man, or in the case of our Proverbs 31 friend, the righteous woman, CONSIDERS their ways. The RIGHTEOUS do their very best to keep their hearts sensitive to prompting of the Holy Spirit. The hearkening of the Holy Spirit. Even the rebuke of the righteous man or woman of God. The righteous count REBUKE from a RIGHTEOUS man or woman of God, they count that as KINDNESS! WHY is it KINDNESS? Why is REBUKE kindness? Because it is keeping them from DEATH! It is keeping them on the road to life! 


May you walk forth, as it says in Psalms 141 - Lifting up of YOUR hands as the evening sacrifice. May YOU Set a guard, before YOUR mouth; may the Lord help to keep watch at the door of YOUR lips. May YOU incline YOUR heart not to submit or consent to any evil thing. 


A CONSISTENT, DAILY, ROUTINE time with the Lord is so important. The Enemy is out there to STEAL, KILL AND DESTROY... like a ROARING LION seeking whom he can destroy. As a brother or sister reading this, my prayer is that you would STAY ON GUARD. I pray a hedge of protection around you today in Jesus Name, that you would STAY ON GUARD. 


Bless you. Bless you today.