God Stop Friday Meme
This week, God has shown Himself to me in these ways:
- The kids and I had a nice Easter weekend, even though Dad is still working out of town. We kept the Christian radio station on all day on Good Friday and we heard so many neat songs and shows that talked about the Resurrection.
- My husband found and bought us a van. We got exactly what we wanted at the price we wanted. Thank you for Your provision, God. I wrote about this topic yesterday. (If you're interested.)
- I feel like God is encouraging me to become more bold and to stand up for the truth. So, I'll write the rest of the post about that.
This week, I added something new on my sidebar. It is a daily "pray for your husband" idea. It also links to the site that has come up with all of the prayer suggestions.
A few nights ago, I was using the 25th prompt to pray - That my husband will be courageous in his stand against evil and injustice, that he will stand for the truth. As I was praying, I realized very quickly that I needed to pray for myself in this same area.
Ephesians 6:14 tells us to stand firm against evil with the belt of truth.
1 Corinthians 13:6 tells us that true love does not delight in injustice but rejoices with the truth.
However, if the truth brings about a lot of controversy, then that's hard for me to handle. I try to avoid controversy. I'm a "keep the peace" kind of woman. I've had 3 negative comments on my blog and I sure didn't like that. I know. That's what comment moderation is for. And I don't have to take the negative comments personally. Well, I'll be honest and admit that I did tone it down a bit when writing my posts.
I don't feel right about doing that though. I need to become more bold in writing about the truth. So, I've decided that if I feel prompted to write about something controversial like Pro-life or Creationism, then I'm going to do it. It's more important for me to obey God.
Those of you who agree, I would appreciate a quick prayer. I need God's strength with this. It seems to be an area in my Christian faith where the Lord wants me to grow. I'd like to encourage you to think about this and to stand and speak out for the truth, also. We have a wonderful opportunity to influence people through our blogs.
A few days ago, I noticed that Ben Stein has a new movie coming out April 18th called Expelled. The movie is going to expose the fact that educators and scientists are being ridiculed, denied tenure and even fired for believing that there might be evidence for creationism. Now that is standing against injustice and standing up for the truth. If Ben Stein can do it, then I can do it. And he has so much more to lose than I do.
Miracle Monday Meme
The day that this miracle took place was April 20, 1999. It was the same day as the Columbine High School Shootings. (That is totally unrelated to this story, except it is how I remember the date of this miracle.)While I was watching the news, my 4 year old daughter started throwing up. She did it repeatedly over a few hours. Eventually, she was throwing up black stuff. That's when I really got worried. I had never seen anyone throw up like this before.
My husband had the car that day and I didn't have any neighbors near by to help me. I was getting close to calling an ambulance. But then I didn't know how I was going to get myself and 2 other children to the hospital. So, I prayed and prayed and prayed that God would heal her. I didn't even know what was wrong with her. She hadn't been sick. She just started throwing up and wouldn't stop.Eventually, it did stop and she rested with me for a little while. Soon, she was up and playing. Then, she was outside climbing on the jungle gym and yelling to me "I'm hungry. Can I have a snack?" She ate and kept all the food down.
She was back to normal. I don't know what my daughter had for those few hours, but I believe that it had been something bad and God healed her from it.
God Stop Friday Observing God's Presence
This week, I feel like God has been teaching me about valuing my time and needing to make the most of it. That means that I may need to scratch some of my plans off my daily "To Do" list to make room for what He may want me to do.
Robin Sampson at the Heart of Wisdom blog wrote a post that encouraged me in this area. She wrote about being close to death last week. It caused her to think more about God's will, to consider how much time she may have been wasting in her life.
Since Tuesday, I've been trying to practice this lesson. When my daughters asked me to go for a walk with them, I said "yes." I didn't come up with an excuse as to why I couldn't go. It seemed that this was important to them, so I did it. And I really enjoyed being with them, smelling the fresh air.When my 8 year old daughter saw that I was about to make cookies, she asked if she could help. I had planned to make them by myself so that I could do it quickly. But I realized that she wanted to spend time with me. So, I said, "yes" and it was an enjoyable time with her.The other night, when it was time for bed, I started playing some worship music. That got the girls singing and dancing around the living room. So, I let them stay up an extra half hour. They had so much fun worshiping the Lord.
A few days ago,my 10 year old daughter asked me to talk privately with her. I was tempted to rush through, make light of her problem, and get her up to bed. Her problem was important and serious to her. I decided to just stay with her and do my best to comfort her. She talked and cried for a half hour. We ended up feeling closer to each other.
I'm going to try saying "yes" a lot more often. There are so many special moments in a day, and I shouldn't let them pass by just because I hadn't planned on doing them. I am realizing that if I'm seeking to do His will daily, then I must be willing to alter my plans to make room for His plans. This week, God gave me opportunities to practice this lesson.
God Stop Friday MemeAbout 5 minutes ago, I was sitting in front of the monitor with my head propped in my hands. My 12-year-old daughter came by and said, "What's wrong Mom? Can't you figure out what to write about?" I explained to her that I needed to write about how God had been showing Himself to me lately. I told her that I knew He had been working in my life, but I just couldn't see it. Lately, I've been concentrating on my discomforts - sick with colds and missing my husband who is still away at work.She said to me: - Well, it's a good thing Dad is just working in a nearby town for a few weeks. Some wives have husbands who are off serving in Iraq and are gone for a long time.
- And it's a good thing you just had 2 colds. You could have had pneumonia.
As soon as she said those words, I knew that God was showing Himself to me through that 12- year-old girl. I stood up - hugged her, my eyes teared, and I started laughing. I decided to think of some other things in my life that I should be more grateful for: - I get to eat protein foods and meat every day. Many people eat only grains and vegetables.
- I have clean running water - in the house. I don't have to walk miles to get dirty water.
- I was raised in a Christian family. My parents taught me about the salvation of Jesus.
- I have heaters, blankets, and winter clothing if I need to warm up more. I won't freeze.
- I have an endless supply of free Christian teachings, encouragement, music, and Bibles through the - Internet, radio, churches, and even the library. I don't live in a place where these items are scarce, limited, or non-existent.
- If I come into really tough times financially, there are programs and resources available to help us out. We won't die of starvation like some families do.
- I have complete freedom to live publicly as a Christian. I will not be persecuted for my Christian faith.
Thank you, Jesus, for all these blessings. And thank you for reminding me - through my daughter.
God Stop Friday Observing God's Presence
How has God shown Himself to me this week?
My husband has gone out of town a lot this winter, due to his work. On this current trip he will be gone for 3 weeks, again. I'm only a week into it, but yesterday I got feeling really sorry for myself. I felt so down that I just knew I wouldn't be able to come up with a God Stop moment for Friday. I'm lonely, stuck at home for 3 weeks without a vehicle, and no one even seems to care.
This is how God showed Himself to me today (all of this in one day):
- The mail lady sent her husband over to plow our driveway. (when she drove by and noticed that I was trying to shovel all that snow)
- Then, her husband told me to call if I need a ride to the grocery store or if an emergency comes up.
- A nice man, from church, sent (by mail) my children animal T-shirts and a note saying that he missed all of us guys and gals.
- Grandma and Grandpa H. sent (by mail) a DVD and 2 card games to entertain us while Dad is gone.
- Grandma and Grandpa G. sent (by mail) Birthday gifts to my son.
- I got 2 personal emails from new blogging friends.
Thank you, Lord, for showing me that You care about my feelings. You showed me that I really am blessed with people who care about me. Please show us Christian women how we can care for those who really are lonely and stuck at home for long periods of time. Who should I call, email, send a present to, or go visit? Amen.
Come see what the Lord has done, how awesome his works in man's behalf! Psalm 66:5
The writing prompt for Sunday Scribblings this week is "Fellow Travelers". Through out my traveling, I have met some very interesting people, enough people to fill a book. However, one woman quickly comes to my mind - the woman at the travel plaza. (Travel plazas are service centers along the interstate turnpikes with restaurants, restrooms, and gasoline pumps.)
About 8 years ago, our family made a major move to the East Coast. We drove 3000 miles to a home and town that we had never seen. It was adventurous, but also scary. Moving is expensive and we didn't have much money. So, we planned to keep the travel expenses as low as possible. To save on food and lodging costs, we decided to drive straight through sleeping in the car and buying our food at grocery stores. However, we didn't understand the reality of the facilities available along the turnpikes. There aren't very many towns along the interstates. Instead, motorists stop at travel plazas for food and gas. The prices at travel plazas were higher then we had expected to pay. This added much stress to our trip.
I remember being in a travel plaza in Pennsylvania. My husband and I were anxiously discussing which fast food we should buy for our family. We walked between the different menu boards in the food court, comparing prices. Well, there was a woman who was watching us. She came up to me and handed me $20. She said that she was traveling with a group of women from her church. She noticed the size of our family and knew that traveling could be expensive. She felt like God wanted her to come offer this money to us. I quietly said a thank you. Then she smiled and rushed away. I stood there with my mouth hanging open. Nothing like that had ever happed to me before. Hoping to thank her again, I looked around the crowded room. But, she was already gone.
So, I'd like to express my appreciation to this woman. I'll probably never know your name or see you again. God prompted you to do something and you obeyed Him. You showed my family kindness, in a respectful way. You made a positive impact on me that will effect the rest of my life.
Some may call this a random act of kindness. Some will call this Christian charity. I call it a message from God. He was reminding me that I didn't need to worry about our current situation or the ones we may face in the future. God would always provide for my family.
God Stop Friday Meme
