The Most Thankful is the Most Joyful

"You thrill me, Lord, with all you have done for me! I sing for joy because of what you have done." Psalm 92:4

Our greatest joys can be found in the simplest of things.

The most joyful person is the most thankful person.

She Said...

"Be as creative as you can be. The sky is the limit." 

We laughed the entire time making this. Thanks to Pops it turned out great. 

Are You Godly?

Two ways to tell

1. "The godly person gives good advice, but the tongue that deceives will be cut off." Proverbs 10:31

2. "The godly speak words that are helpful, but the wicked speak only what is corrupt." Proverbs 10:32

This Doesn't Come Close

He was my Pastor for 4 years. He has been my mentor, best friend, accountability partner, and even my competitor in dominoes, for the last 7 years.

There are an endless amount of words to describe how amazing he really is. G and I could spend hours on end telling you what a blessing he has been in our lives. We have laughed and cried with him and his precious wife many times over.

We have spent many Thursday nights competing in dominoes, stayed up late visiting and doing lots of eating.

There has not been a time G and I have not savored being with him and his precious wife.

He is the most humble man who oozes integrity and Jesus in the most amazing way. He never takes credit for anything, rather he always gives God the glory.

He is loving, yet firm in his faith. He never sugar coats the truth. He is passionate about the Lord, the Word, the Church, and people.

He has a love for his family that radiates out of each one of them. His wife is his greatest companion who is always keeping him on his toes and making him laugh. She is the greatest encourager and helper to him. There are only a few like her and God blessed him with one of them.

Do you know there are people God gives you specifically? God gave me him. He has been the greatest encourager in my walk with the Lord, in this blog, and in my teaching. Most people use commentators, I use him. (We laugh about this)

His knowledge of the Lord amazes me daily.

I can't express how much I love and respect him. There is a not a day that goes by that G and I don't thank the Lord for two of the greatest best friends.

I could fill page after page telling you about the amazing qualities God has filled him with and the way he has blessed me and my family. But rather I want to tell you that this man, today much like Paul is struggling with illness.

His body is tired, but his Spirit is as willing and strong as ever. Like Paul, he keeps pressing forward doing all that God has called him to do, sharing the message of Jesus Christ. These words from Paul describe him exactly.

"As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God." 2 Timothy 2:6

Tonight, he could use faithful prayer warriors, those who commit to praying when they say they will. He could use many flooding the Most Holy Place on his behalf for healing. And not just prayer for him, but for his family as well.

Would you commit to praying for him for the next 10 days, PLEASE!

Why just 10, because I believe that our God can do abundantly more than we could ever dare to ask or hope for, and I believe that our God can move mountains. I also believe that with unwavering faith that God can and will do something amazing and jaw dropping in 10 days. And please understand, as we have already visited about this, he and I know that however God chooses to heal him, is gain!

So with that, I am asking you to pray for one of the most precious and amazing men in my life for the next 10 days.

I have left him nameless, due to the fact that he never wants attention draw to himself, rather he wants God to receive all the attention. He is humbly crazy amazing like that!

I will give you a few specifics to pray specifically for.

1. Wisdom and discernment for the doctors
2. Peace and comfort for him and his family
3. Rest for his tired and hurting body

My tears daily flood the Most Holy Place for you sweet one.

Altar Sunday

Awaken Church! Let the power of God move you to revival!  

When Clarity is Given

When God clarifies your purpose, and opens your eyes to the reality of what it entails, a sense of understanding and peace fall upon you.

"For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to right teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever they want to hear. They will reject the truth and follow strange myths. But you should keep a clear mind in every situation. Don't be afraid of suffering for the Lord. Work at bringing others to Christ. Complete the ministry God has given you." 2 Timothy 4:3-5

How to Stay Focused

How do you keep your focus on Christ in the midst of all the craziness?

Three ways

1. Pray
2. Read the Word
3. Trust His Promises

When You Work

"Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically." Romans 12:11

When you work…

Work joyfully
Work diligently
Work enthusiastically
Work thankfully
Work selflessly
Work lovingly
Work humbly
Work intentionally to please Him, honor Him and reflect Him.

"Work hard and cheerfully at WHATEVER you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people." Colossians 3:23

Brotherly Love

This is the sad face of a little boy who LOVES his brother so much he cries when he leaves.

This is what we hear every morning,"Bye Avery, I love you so much. I am going to miss you. I love you." Then the door closes and it's tears for this little man. 

Heartbreaking but heartwarming all at the same time.

Love that these two love each other so much. 

Always

10 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it." Isaiah 55:10-11

All we have to do is make ourselves available and useful to The Lord and He will do the rest. 

You are never a waste. You are loved and desired. He wants to help you fulfill the purpose he has placed within you. 

This should excite us. It should drive us to do more for Him. Jesus never fails! His Word will always accomplish what He wants it to and it will always produce fruit. 

11 
    

You Choose

I am loving my study of Proverbs. I love the simplicity that is found within every verse.

The Lord makes it so clear the benefits of being godly verse the destruction of being a fool. Every passage gives us a choice. Will we choose to be godly and live a godly life, reaping the blessings, OR will we choose to live foolishly reaping the consequences?

Here's a little example of how I break each passage down, and yes I am going passage by passage. I want to make sure I digest every ounce of wisdom God wants to pour over me.

This is one example.

"Disaster strikes like a cyclone, whirling the wicked away, but the godly have a lasting foundation." Proverbs 10:25

The Fool
-Will be whirled away

The Godly
-Will have a lasting foundation

It's our choice. Will we choose to be the fool that will soon be whirled away or will we choose to be godly and stand on our lasting foundation, which is Jesus Christ?

Then to really grasp what the Lord is saying I do some major cross referencing along with what I call CAB (Command-Application-Benefit)and I LOVE IT!

Matthew 7:24-25-"Anyone who listens to my teaching and obeys me is wise, like a person who builds a house on a solid rock."

     -What Command is God giving in this passage?
            *To Listen and Obey

     -How can I Apply this today?
            *Speak less and listen more-then go and DO what God has commanded me to do. Jesus help me to always have my eyes, heart, mind and ears open and ready to hear from You. 
            *Listen to the advice of the godly. Listen to the voice of God. Listen to my family when they speak.
            *Do what God has commanded of me-love, be gentle, react calmly, react when the Holy Spirit prompts.

    -The Benefit (s)
         *I will grow in wisdom, I will remain on Christ's lasting foundation that is solid and unwavering.

There is so much to gain when choosing to be wise.

Psalm 15:1-5 is a continuation of the benefits of being godly.

"Who may worship in your sanctuary, Lord? Who may enter your presence on your holy hill? Those who lead blameless lives and DO what is right, speaking the truth from sincere hearts. Those who refuse to slander others or harm their neighbors or speak evil of their friends. Those who despise persistent sinners, and honor the faithful followers of the Lord and keep their promises even when it hurts. Those who do not charge interest on the money they lend, and who refuse to accept bribes to testify against the innocent. Such people WILL stand firm forever."

I don't know about you but I choose to be godly and live a godly life. To me the choice seems simple and the benefits of living a godly, wisdom filled life far outweigh any worldly benefit.

What will you choose today?

Altar Sunday

Jesus came to set us free. He paid the debt for our sin, let's walk in His deliverance. Let's approach the altar of freedom and be set free from the bondage of sin.

Ladies, A Challenge.

Ladies as we approach another new week, let's seek to build our spouses up.

Our sweet men carry such a big load. 

They carry the load of...

Being the leader of the home

The finacial leader

The provider

The protector

The Spirtiual leader

The need meeter (I know meeter is not a word, but is my lovely word.)

The mind reader (Yes ladies we do expect this)

The encourager 

The helper

And so on. It's a heavy load! 

So here's the challenge.

Rather than place more on them by expecting things from them only Christ can fulfill, let's focus on helping ease their load. 

How do we do this, for starters, let's nag less and encourage more. Then, let's look to Christ to be...

Our Leader

Our Provider

Our Protector

Our Need Meeter

Our Helper

Our Encourager

When we take this off our spouses and place it upon Christ, not only will it lighten their load, but it will place our trust in the One for whom it should be in, in the first place-Christ!

Ladies, if we put Christ first in our lives and focus on serving, pleasing, and honoring Him, we will then desire to serve, honor and please our spouses. 

Christ should always be our main focus! 

This Sweet Lady

Kassie Garlock is the precious woman who did an amazing job updating my blog. She is very talented, and knew exactly what I wanted, even when I was unable to explain it. I am so thankful for her vision and guidance in making this blog so amazing. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do. If you are ever in need of a face lift for any of your Social Media, give her a shout. You will be blessed! Thanks Kassie for making this experience so wonderful.

Be a Student that Studies

"But don't just listen to God's Word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don't obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it." James 1:22-25

When we take the time to "study" God's Word, we are also taking the time to "apply" His Word.

Look at the key words in this passage.

Listen-if we just read through rather than study, we are not really listening. Studying requires you to listen to the instruction given. Which then requires our next key word.

Do-This is a required action. While reading and listening are good, doing is even greater.

Look Carefully-when reading we simply focus on the next word ahead, rather than looking carefully at each word spoken. When we study, we pay attention to detail, we dig deeper and we seek to see the details that make up the bigger picture.

       -I love the example the Lord gives us in this passage. He uses our physical feature to drive His point home. A quick glance does not suffice. Imagine if you had to get ready in the dark. You would have no idea what you looked like, until you stepped into the light and stood in front of the mirror. This is exactly what Christ is telling us. Taking a quick glance into My Word is not going to really benefit you. You will still be standing in the dark. You need to look carefully into My Word, focus on all its features, take it all in, and then make use of it by applying it.

Let's be students of the Word!

3 Rules to Godly Advice

"The godly give good advice, but fools are destroyed by their lack of common sense." Proverbs 10:21

3 Rules to Good Godly Advice

1. Always speak the truth (Even if it hurts)
2. Speak only when the Spirit directs
3. Speak of what God's Word says, NOT what your feelings say.

Jesus guide and direct our speech in every way. May the advice we give always be useful, helpful, God led, Spirit directed, and based on the truths of Your Word. Amen 

Several Things to Try

There are three things to try today.

1. Study God's Word rather than read God's Word! (There is a HUGE difference.)
2. Be FULL of thanks rather than FULL of complaints.
3. Speak only words that build up, encourage and breathe life into others.


"So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:10-11

Knowing When

"Dont talk to much, for it fosters sin. Be sensible and turn off the flow." Proverbs 10:19

Knowing when to listen and when to speak is such a treasure we should all be in search for. 

Let's be listeners and discerners of the Spirit's leading. He will always let us know when it's time to turn off the flow. 

Jesus direct my speech today that it will be life giving. Prompt me at all times when to speak and when to remain silent. Amen

A Thankful Melody

May our lives be a thankful melody heard by all, for the goodness of Christ that lives within us.

Altar Sunday

"We are now going to Bethel, where I will build an altar to the God who answered my prayers when I was in distress. He has been with me wherever I have gone.” Genesis 35:3

We can all relate to God's goodness, protection and presence. Let's offer the sweetest sound of worship, praise and thankfulness that will fill every inch of heaven.