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Sunday, October 31, 2010

How You Can Tell When I'm Not Doing Well

Dear Friends and Readers...


I must tell you that I long to be one of those bloggers who faithfully writes every day. 


Truly, I do.


It's rare that a day goes by that I'm not thinking of something that I want to share with you. I even have posts that are in draft form in Blogger, that I'm just waiting to finish so that I can publish them for you.


Some of you tell me that you check my blog every day for an update. 


Wow. What a humbling thought. Thank you.


This has been a roller-coaster week. 


Many highs. A few really low lows.


First the highs:


1. A dear friend donated almost 300,000 Hilton points for my friend and I for our New York trip. 


We will be close enough to the theatre district to walk to it! 


Ahem....James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave are staring in 
"Driving Miss Daisy"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


We're both still in awe!


2. An unexpected early Christmas present arrived this week. Let's just say it was...uh, there are no words. It was a gift of freedom, and we are deeply thankful for it!


3. God has done a great work of healing in a relationship that means so very much to me. Without question, it was His hand, to His glory, and His precious gift in my life.


Thank You, Jesus. 
You've known my heart for over a decade. 
Thank You, and praise You!


4. My family and I went to see 
"White Christmas" tonight. It's a traveling Broadway show, and it was superb! 


I took Brennan shopping this afternoon (a task that only a Titan should take on) and we found the cutest little outfit for her. She looked precious, and I could tell that she felt like a million bucks! 


However, for a girl (me) who really prefers to shop in totally  stealth mode, this trip just about took me to my end!


I'm not kidding you when I tell you that the dress came from one store, the shoes from another, the sweater from still another, and the "I just gotta have these 2 outfits, Momma" from another.


Praising God that our little mall is just that...little!


Mini rant here...why is it that once a girl is out of a size 6x, designers and buyers think that mothers actually want and will pay for our daughters to dress 6 years older than they really are?!


Almost every cute outfit that we found was black! 


I told her, "You will have the rest of your life to dress in black. There is absolutely no reason for you to start doing so now."


Thankful that she agrees with me, so there was no battle. :)


Now the lows:


1. I had a much needed conversation with someone whom I dearly love...a few someones actually, in which I needed to share parts of my testimony that are deeply painful. 


When the tears started, they didn't stop for 12+ hours, and they were the kind that felt like they started from my toenails and worked their way all the way up through my gut and out of my mouth, in choking gasps.


Regardless of the fact that forgiveness has been granted, even though it's never been requested, there are still some hurts that are as raw at 40 years old as they were the day they were perpetrated.


So, the aftermath of those tears felt like an emotional hangover. 


It was. Exactly. That.


I hate sin. I hate the fact that some sins keep taking and taking and taking...


2. On Monday of this week, I went out with my precious new friend Lisa, and had such a hard time walking. My foot was crippling like my hand does, so much so that I had to hold onto either her or a cart to be able to walk.


I hate the feeling that I'm going to fall over at any minute. 
It scares me, and I really, really hate it.


Hate is a strong word, isn't it?


Well guess what?


I hate it!


3. Momma Nan is going through some heartbreak right now, and I can't do anything about it. 


(It's not her own, but that of someone she loves. She's like Jesus, you know. She loves deeply, sacrificially, and without release.)


And when she mourns, I mourn.


Yes, I can pray...and I'm doing that every single time that I think about her...but I still long to sit curled up in one of her cushy chairs at the farm, over a cup of hot coffee and talk through everything together.


I long to hug her so long and so tight that she has to beg me to let go of her!


I long to bow low before our King with her, and cry out to Him for His hand of mercy over the situation.


That time will come...but until then, I will continue to pray alone. 


Would you please join me? 


Then I won't be praying alone anymore. Pretty please.


4. On Tuesday of this week, we had tornadoes touch down tear down just down the road from us. Shane took great care of us and made sure that we were all prepared and were safe in the basement.


He's good like that. :)


I kept thinking about the post I wrote here and so wanted to be like my Mom had been through all of those tornado warnings in West Texas, yet I feel I failed miserably. 


#1. I was scared outta my wits, and felt like I was 5 years old again.


And...


#2. I was too busy with the doing to think much about the sheltering of my children with my words.


I did finally think to ask them what verses we could say, and one of them piped up, 
"Momma, what about the one you were saying the other day?"


It was this one...
"What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee."


Perfect. Score one for the kiddos!


5. Today my man and I fought.
We don't do much of that, and it grieves my heart when we do.


I was madder than a bat outta you know where! I tried and tried and TRIED to keep a gentle and quiet spirit....but dadgummit if I didn't blow that one sky high!


And before you pull a feminista trip on me, let me say...


I blew my top. 


No nice way to say it. I just blew it right off!


He didn't. He was mad, but I was the one that lost it.


Emotional hangover #2 for the week? 
I don't know...I think I'm still mad, truthfully.


My guess is that he is too. 


Stinks.


But, he has the button, and I don't. 


Does your man have that? 


The button on the back of his head that allows him to go fast to sleep the minute that his head hits the pillow, regardless of anything going on at the moment?


He sleeps, and I just really want to throw something, or bang a tennis ball against a backboard. 


No luck with either of those, though. So I write.


Lucky you. Have you hung up on me yet? 

6. The spasticity in my hands, feet, and legs is getting worse. It's not always unbearable by any means, but it certainly is sometimes.


7. Today is Halloween. 
I hate Halloween with a passion!


Hate is a strong word, isn't it?


Well, I think I've already addressed that...


Uncategorized:


I've been asked to write my testimony for an event that is coming up at our church. It's to be 300-500 words.


I've spoken my testimony many times, but I've never had to write it out. I'm struggling with this so much, and I can't understand it.


My pastor's wife is lovely, and had encouraged me and walked me through some of it with her words of wisdom.


Yet, I still feel crippled.


How do I tell the truth when it's so hard to tell?


How do I tell it when it hurts so much?


How do I tell it in 300-500 words?


How do I tell it when I know that if I'm asked to share it out loud, I will cry until snot runs down my face? 


At a ladies Christmas brunch, none the less?


I'm pretty sure that I've asked you to pray for me about this already, but I do hope that you won't mind that I'm asking for your prayers once again.


So...how can you tell when I'm not doing too well?


I don't write faithfully.


And sometimes, I don't write at all.


I love you tonight.
If you've hung in this far into this post, I really extra love you!
Jes







































Thursday, October 28, 2010

We Have a Winner!

Thanks to everyone for registering a comment and names to pray for!


Have you seen the list now


It's so great! 


There are bunches of people to pray salvation for! 


I received the sweetest note from a lady who has Rheumatoid Arthritis, and wrote to say that her daily shots are very painful too, and that she's going to begin to pray for the lost as well!


Yippie!


I never thought about that happening. I do hope that she'll consider praying over the list you've given to me, once she has prayed over her own. :)


I'm not going to be deleting my lists anymore. I wish very much that I had kept the first one up, so that it would be a testimony to all of us of how God can bring good from pain...and a reminder of all who had been prayed over.


One request, and then I'll tell you who won....


If you find out that someone whose name you've sent me commits their life to Christ, would you please email me to let me know? 


What a joy it would be to share that praise with everyone!


OK...the winner is:  Jamiee - #36


Jamiee, congratulations my sweet friend!


I hope your whole family is blessed by this study, and would LOVE to hear from you as you're working through it. 


Much love to you all tonight,
Jes



Thursday, October 21, 2010

Giveaway Time! Register to Win by Leaving a Comment!

Sorry it's a bit late...today has been a BIG day!


Because of the hard work of my precious friend, and the good  hand of our Mighty God, we have been chosen to meet with a Dr. in New York who is a vascular surgeon and works with MS patients.


It's pretty fresh right now....


Wow!


I might have my brain (or at least the veins leading to it) operated on!


That's kinda surreal!


Would you please pray for us?


Here are the specific requests:


1. That we will glorify God in everything we say and do..that we'll remember at all times that He could have said, "no" to MS in our lives, but that He didn't. 
Thus...He will be glorified in our lives as He was in Peter's, Paul's, and Job's as they dealt with their struggles which the Lord allowed.


2. That we could afford the travel expenses. 
Hotels, cabs, food...all that is going to add up. 
Anybody out there have some hotel points just burning a hole in their pocket?  :)


3. For me, that childcare would be worked out.


4. That we'll be able to have some fun in NYC before meeting with the Doctor.
(That's a funny request, now isn't it?! Since I was a little girl watching Annie, I have longed to go to NYC...this is big stuff for me!)


OK, I bet you're thinking...
"AHEM. Could we get on to the giveaway already?!"


Sorry for the self-centered interruption there. :) 


Thanks for bearing with me.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


Precept Ministries International has an amazing Bible study program now available for Junior High and High School aged students...and they've graciously offered a full study guide on Joshua as a giveaway to one of YOU!








May I just say, you are in for a real TREAT!!! Or rather your kiddo is!!!!
(Your cover will look a little different than the one shown, but the goodie  inside will be the same!)


As always on my blog giveaways, if you leave a comment you'll be registered to win, BUT if in your comment you give me the first name of someone who needs Jesus, whom I can be praying for when I take my MS shot at night, you'll be entered twice.


In fact, for each name that you leave I'll give you an extra entry!


While you're waiting to see if you're the winner you can go to this link, which will take you to the Precept E-Store, where you can download a free sample lesson for preview!


When you land at the store, hit your backspace button once and you'll be able to see the other studies that Precept has for teens, as well as the Teacher's Guides and Helps CDs that they offer.


I'll draw a winner next Thursday...yes, that gives a WHOLE WEEK for you to share this link with your friends! To do so, just hit one of the little icons below this post. See them down there...the "m," "b," t," "f," etc? 


Just click on one of them and you can easily share this blog entry on your own site, or to Facebook, via email, or through a tweet. Google Buzz is even listed down there, but I'm not sure how that works. If you know, will you fill me in?


Let's help establish others in God's Word...share the giveaway information!


Much love to you in Christ Jesus today,
Jes



Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Teaching Her to Employ Her Spiritual Gift











As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
  
Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
1 Peter 4:10-11

If you are a parent of a child who belongs to Christ Jesus, you have a great responsibility to help them learn to employ their spiritual gift. 

You may be thinking,
 "WHAT?! I never thought about my child having a spiritual gift!"

Believe me dear reader, I understand! Please...read on.

My sweet little girl surrendered her life to the Lord on March 9, 2009.

She was 6 years old.

I'm embarrassed to say that it really wasn't until last night that the realization hit me ... I have a responsibility as her spiritual mentor to teach her how to employ her spiritual gift!

One look at the Scriptures makes it clear that this is exactly what a spiritual mentor does. Paul did so with Timothy - we need only to read his letters to him: 
1 & 2nd Timothy.

As I've been studying the book Understanding Spiritual Gifts these past many weeks (you can read the book study Momma Nan and I are doing here and here) , I've had the opportunity to talk with both my son and my husband about the gifts, but not yet with my daughter.

Maybe I mistakenly thought she was too young for the discussion?

At separate times I asked both Shane and Caedmon,  
"What do you believe Brennan's spiritual gift is?"

Without a second's hesitation, and independent of one another,  they each said, "Mercy."

I smiled because I'd been thinking the very same thing.

Mercy.

God knew that He needed to place her in this family, for she's already employing her gift to the edification of the body of Christ right here within our home!

Mercy.

She is the first to remind all of us to be compassionate toward others. 

She defers to grace, and when she doesn't it's pretty clear that she's not operating in the power of the Spirit, but in the power of the flesh.

Mercy.

She has a way about her with animals and people who are hurting that just astounds me! I do realize that her spiritual gift hasn't been given to her for animals, but the way that they are drawn to her sweet nature is just a glimpse into how people are drawn to her tenderness as well!





Brennan is only 8, yet a few weeks ago in church she put her sweet little hand in mine and let me know that she wanted to go to the altar and pray for her best friend's Pop-Pop who has been very ill in hospice, and truly on the verge of death.

It takes her quite a long time to warm up when she's in a room full of people, but compelled by the gift that has been given to her it didn't take a second for her to choose to walk in front of an entire church of 500 and kneel to pray!

So how do I as her mother teach her to employ this precious gift?

Truly, I'm still sorting through that.

I think it's time that I quit sorting and just follow her lead by falling on my face before the Lord in prayer, asking Him to show me how to train her up in this area.

I am confident of this though, in my prayers I need to ask Him to show us places where her gift is needed. 

Who in our body is in want of mercy? 

Who in our family is?

I also need to begin the discussion with her about how important her gifting is to those who belong to Jesus. I must show her in the Scriptures what He says about how and why He has given this great gift to her.

She has to be taught that the Word says she is to employ mercy.

She may only be 8 years old  but she has been sealed by the Holy Spirit until the day of redemption.

And even though she's only 8, it's because she belongs to Jesus Christ and has the Spirit of the living God indwelling her, that I know from the Word of God that she has been gifted for His body -  just as everyone has who has entered into God's covenant of grace through His Son, Jesus Christ and thus belongs to Him.

What a privilege  to help my daughter  learn how to employ His gift to her for His body - the church, and to His great glory!

Training her up in the way she should go in using her gift is just one more reason that I am thankful for the privilege of being home with her each day. 

God is so gracious to me!

Check back in tomorrow, as I'll be doing another giveaway. 

Here's a little hint...it's going be something from the student curriculum area of the new Precept Ministries E-Store and it will be a great resource in helping you to train up your own child in God's Word! :)


And...it's Homemaking Link-Up day at Raising Homemakers
Hop on over there...you'll be mightily blessed by the posts of many other women who are also passionate about raising their daughters in the will and ways of the Lord!


Raising Homemakers

Much love to you in Him today,
Jes







Blue Letter Bible. "Peter's First Epistle - 1 Peter 4 - (NASB - New American Standard Bible)." Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2010. 20 Oct 2010. < http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=1Pe&c=4&t=NASB >

Saturday, October 16, 2010

We Have a Winner!!!!

****UPDATE****


You can read Laura's  sweet comment below. She wants someone else to receive the 
Gladys Aylward book, so I've redone my random number thingie-magilie.


The winner is Free Indeed! 
(Don't you just LOVE that name?!)


Free, I've popped over to your oh so cute quilting blog, and left a note to you, but if you see this update please email me with your address information. You'll see the email address in the sidebar to the right.


Congratulations!


I'll have a new contest up soon...hopefully tomorrow! So please tell your friends, and come back tomorrow, everybody!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


Congratulations!


We have a winner for the Gladys Aylward book!


Drum roll please.......


After plugging all the numbers, 1-20, into a random number generator, #4 is the winner.


Since "South of the Fork" had 3 entries...that makes Laura our #4.


Congratulations Laura!


You're going to love reading about Gladys Aylward!


Thanks to everyone for playing!


I'll have another free giveaway next Friday...and I promise, you're going to love it!


Laura, will you send me your address please?


I love you!