In Other Words

"Under the banner of God, victory is always assured; but apart from it, defeat is a certainty. When the banner of God's rod was not held high, Amalek prevailed.
You can't do battle against the flesh under your own power."

~ Kay Arthur ~
Lord, I Want to Know

In the Ladies Bible study that I was blessed enough to attend on various Thursday evenings, we did a study on the names of God.
One of the names of God, is YHWH Nissi, which means Lord my Banner.

I found my old study guide sheet for that name of God and wanted to share some of it with you. Please note: I am paraphrasing my study guide, but these are not my words. The study sheet was written by Sharon, my Bible study leader. I also realized once I was finished, that this is very long. I apologize, but I think it's worth the read! ;o)

The Israelites had started on their journey, but they were thirsty and found that there was no water to drink.They became frustrated and irritated and began to quarrel with Moses and said, "Is God with us or not?"
God wasn't angered by this. He knew that they had a lot to learn. But God proved His presence and provision, by having Moses strike a rock allowing water to gush forth.

After that, the Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, "Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands."

So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered and Moses, Aaron & Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but when ever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. Then Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone & put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron & Hur held his hands up-one on one side, one on the other-so that Moses' hands remained steady till the sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven."

Moses built an altar and called it The LORD is my Banner. He said, "For hands were lifted up to the throne of the LORD." Ex:17:8-16

There are two words translated banner in the OT. This one –Nes- is the most significant of the two. It literally means that which shines or that which is lifted up. The nes was a banner raised on special occasion and always on some elevated place or object used as a rallying point to call the whole people together to hear some vital message or to assemble for some important action.

Moses named the altar of thanksgiving, after the defeat of Amalek, YHWH Nissi. The altar was a memorial that YHWH enabled HIS people against their foes. Therefore announcing that the LORD HIMSELF is the rallying point for HIS people and thereby kindle hope and effort in difficult/impossible situations.

The battle and the altar announced that GOD HIMSELF is the banner/ that point to look to for enablement and deliverance. Since the battle with Amelek directly follows YHWH's giving them water from a rock we see GOD bring the point home by repetition. When a need arises reach out to GOD for supply, enablement and protection.

But it wasn't long after the battle that was won, that the Israelites became discouraged again. They were hungry and thirsty. They spoke against GOD and against Moses and said, "Why have YOU brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is not bread and there is no water! And we detest this miserable food."

Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them and they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people. And the LORD told him to put a snake on a nes and lift the nes up in the sight of the people so when they were bit they could choose to look at it. If they had been bitten and then looked to it they would healed and not die of the bite.

Here we think of judgment but do you see that the LORD in great love/ yes, I said love - sent more on top of their present heavy struggles for the purpose that they come to the end of themselves and cry out (reach out Act 17:26,27) to GOD their NES! The rally point/ their source of supply

You may ask how I can say it was love, not damning judgment. What GOD told Moses to do proves GOD's motive of love. GOD told Moses to make a snake and put it up on a NES (lift up the NES in the sight of the people) Anyone who is bitten can look at it and live..

If one would only choose to believe looking would help & look at the snake they would be healed. But that would take faith for it sounds ridiculous! (But GOD loves to use foolish things to confound the wise and asks that we walk by faith)

GOD says that these things happened for our learning (I Cor 10:6,11) For GOD was painting another picture. JESUS explains that picture in Jn 3:14, 15 "Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert so I must be lifted up that everyone that believes in ME may have eternal life.

When we focus on the difficulties/ problems / our now situation we have taken our eyes off JESUS. HE is our Shepherd and without HIM we get lost real quick. HE calls but we don't often listen. HE must keep us close to protect us from all the dangers in the world therefore we must learn to focus on HIM. Lam 3 speaks loudly on the subject of what happens when we refuse to do this & I suggest that sometime you prayerfully read through.

Lamentations 3:39-41
39 Why should a living man complain,
A man for the punishment of his sins?
40 Let us search out and examine our ways,
And turn back to the LORD;
41 Let us lift our hearts and hands
To God in heaven.

LIFT UP YOUR HANDS! LIFT UP YOUR HEARTS TO THE LORD, OUR BANNER!


Side note: I really needed this study today. My hubby and I are dealing with some stuff right now...mainly worry wanting to sneak in and discourage us. We are job searching and it has been rough. This was JUST WHAT I NEEDED today. Thank you Loni for today's quote! God Bless you!

In Other Words

---

"What used to make us stumble, God can use to make us stand.
What once made us bow our heads in shame,
He can use for His glory."

~ Joanna Weaver~
Having a Mary Spirit

---

I admit it, I have done some terrible things in my lifetime. Okay, so we aren't talking murder, stealing..or real law breaking things, but I have done things that I am ashamed of...that I don't want to watch replayed during my time of judgement with God. I know they are forgiven, but ya know, sometimes I feel bad that they ever happened.
But you know what??? I have already been able to use those things for God's glory. Those moments are part of my testimony. They do show others where I was at one time and where I am today and how I grew from it. It allows for those doing the same things now, to be able to relate to me and to maybe learn a little from my stories.

Also, another event in my life that I know God will use someday, He is just still working on us and preparing it all...is my marriage. I almost ended my marriage with my hubby. I was ready to divorce him...but I didn't. And ya know what, in the two years since then, I have already seen how God has been working in us...how we have been growing and how God is preparing us to use it to glorify Him. And I do know, without a doubt, that someday, we will minister to young married couples, to those who are contemplating divorce, to those who are in the same boat we once were in. And I think it's incredible. I am blessed.

We aren't perfect..we are sinners....and sometimes we want to bow our heads in shame over some of the ways we've gone against God..for some of the selfish things we've done..for the hurt we've caused others....BUT...we can take the bad and turn it into something sooooo good.

"It is the crushed rose that gives off the sweetest fragrance"
- Tony Corzine

In Other Words

"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before... either into a creature that is in harmony with God, ...or into one that is in a state of war with God. Each of us at each moment is progressing to the one state or the other."
~ C.S. Lewis ~
Mere Christianity

Doesn't this quote just fit me right now!?!?! I guess it would fit all believers wouldn't it? But I have been struggling lately with this very topic. So, I needed this today.
As a female, I am run by my emotions. And I tell you what, Satan knows which buttons to push in me...which words to whisper to my mind...and which thoughts to fill me with to tear me down. And the annoying thing is, I know when it's happening and I give into it, I do. I know it isn't right, but I focus on Satan's whispers. And before I know it, I am gloomy, easily irritated, and heavy-laden.

I do have days where I don't give in to Satan's plan and I choose instead to ignore it and fill myself with the Spirit. And on those days, the fruit pours out of me. I am filled with love, peace, patience, gentleness....and so forth.

So, one would wonder, if all I have to do is ignore Satan to reap such wonderful rewards, and if giving into him brings about pain, then why do I do it? It's because he's sneaky. He knows me so well and he knows how to get my goat with his sly tactics. But when I see it coming and I still allow it to be, that's when I make a choice and choose poorly.

On March 22nd, there was a snippet in My Utmost For His Highest that really spoke to me and it touched on this topic. It said...."Much of the distress we experience as Christians comes not as the result of sin, but because we are ignorant of the laws of our own nature. For instance, the only test we should use to determine whether or not to allow a particular emotion to run its course in our lives is to examine what the final outcome of that emotion will be. Think it through to its logical conclusion, and if the outcome is something that God would condemn, put a stop to it immediately. But if it is an emotion that has been kindled by the Spirit of God and you don’t allow it to have its way in your life, it will cause a reaction on a lower level than God intended. That is the way unrealistic and overly emotional people are made. And the higher the emotion, the deeper the level of corruption, if it is not exercised on its intended level. If the Spirit of God has stirred you, make as many of your decisions as possible irrevocable, and let the consequences be what they will."

To me, the choices I make emotionally have a great GREAT impact on me. They impact my mood, my day and my Spirit. And when the emotions I choose to allow to rule me are not of God, all they do is destroy me. This has been such a hard lesson to learn, and even after learning it, I still mess up daily.

But I do know, without a doubt, that I'd rather stay in harmony with God, because Satan's melody is a somber one.

In Other Words

“To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing”
~ Martin Luther ~

On Thursday night, I attended Bible study at my church. I had brought the two little ones with me, and they hung out in the nursery. I love my Bible study nights. The women in the group are just amazing. And each time I am spoken to greatly through almost everyone in the group. Our leader is such a strong woman of God. She is amazing. Anyway, at the end of the study, we were in prayer and our leader began praying for someone in the room. She said she wasn't sure who it was, but that she said that she felt opposition in the room and was being told to pray for the individual who was holding onto something and not giving it to her father. I immediately felt such a conviction in my heart. Could that be me that she was speaking about? I knew there was something in my life that I wasn't giving to Him. I was holding onto it, and it wasn't pretty. I felt as if God was speaking to me right then and there.... "Yes child, she is praying for you. You know what you need to give over to me. I want to take it from you. I want to help you. But you have been stubborn, child."

As I drove home, with the two awake kiddos in the back seat, I began praying out loud to God. Tears streamed down my face as I let go of something I had been holding onto. When I was finished, my little three year old asked me what I was doing. I told her that I was talking to God. I let her know that God is all around us, even though we can't see Him. I told her that we can talk to God anytime about anything. We can tell Him when we are happy. We can talk to Him when we are sad or angry. And I told her that He loves it when we talk to Him. All she said to that was, "Oh."

A few minutes later, she began mumbling and I turned the radio down to hear her. I asked her to repeat what she had said, because I couldn't hear her. What she said in repsonse was soooooo sweet.

"Shhhh..I'm talking to God, Mommy."
********************************************
I just read a bunch of other contributing posts. How convicted I am this morning as I realize that I have been seriously suffocating lately. All of the posts touched me so much, but there was one that I urge you all to read. Whoever you are...... right now, whether you contribute in these posts or not...whether you are a believer or not...
READ THIS

In Other Words

I remember about six years ago, I was driving home from work. It had been a long, tough day and I was tired. I was at a stoplight, kind of in a zone while trying to recover form the sensory overload that was my day, when I looked up at the sky and saw it. It was a rainbow like I had never seen before. It was a full rainbow that seemed to cover the entire sky. It was breathtaking. It was gorgeous. And right then and there, I praised God for the beauty of His creation. And for the rest of the evening my mood was changed.

When I read today's quote, I immediately thought of a rainbow and of one of my favorite quotes, "it takes both rain and sunshine to make a rainbow".

The plans God has for us, the matters of our souls, the work God has for us to do, will be as magnificent as a full rainbow draping the sky after a storm. But there can't be a rainbow without the rain clouds. And in our life, those dark clouds will come. They will call for us to rely on our faith. They will shape us and change us for God's purpose.

But my oh my, while the rain is pouring down, it can be so hard to remember that a rainbow is on its way. Especially if it has been storming for a LONG time. And how tempting it is for us to no longer wait for God's timing. How easy it is for us to think we know what is best and to try to create our own sunshine.

But those present comforts are just that, present. They don't last long and they don't sustain us. With our own hands, minds, wants and desires, we can probably create a rainbow for ourselves, but it won't be the one that captivates us, that leaves us in complete awe as we praise God for His work.

And, I don't know about you, but I think I'll wait for THAT one. I want God's rainbow after my storm.

In Other Words

"Satan's ultimate lie is that you are capable of being the god of your own life, and his ultimate bondage is getting you to live as though his lie is truth."
~ Neil Anderson ~

I have been doing the Beth Moore devotion, David, 90 days with a heart like his. For the last several days, we have been looking at Saul's life. When I read this quote, I immediately thought about Saul. Many of his actions are great lessons for us. He shows us what happens when you act impulsively, don't follow God's will and try to set your own path for your future.
Sadly, I think we all may have some Saul tendencies at times. I know that I sometimes struggle with impulsiveness and surrendering complete control to God. Saul idolized himself. And it is oh, so easy, to become like him. When we are so self focused that we don't want to listen to God anymore, we are worshipping ourselves. We become our own idol.

And I can see how easy it is for Satan to make that, at first, seem so wonderful. How easy it becomes to justify actions that completely go against the word of God. It begins with sin. Then the justification comes to play, so that you won't feel convicted. Then your Bible finds a permanent place on the shelf where it begins to collect dust. Church outings don't happen anymore, because you KNOW God will just have that sermon speak to you and try to condemn you, so it's better to just sleep in and skip it. It's a vicious cycle and before you know it, you are caught up in the world and Satan has reined you in.

It happens often and it's scary. And really and truly, the end result is such unhappiness. The sinning becomes worse and worse. And so many people, including yourself, become horribly hurt in the process.

And, it is so easily preventable. Don't listen to satan's lies. YOU can't be the god of your own life. And why would you want to? There is a Father who wants to love you and wants your days to be blessed, joyful, peaceful. He wants to take your burdens. He wants to heal your marriage. He wants to listen to your prayers. He wants to answer them. He wants to give you eternal life.

So then why does the world and all of its anger, bitterness, loneliness, rejection, and sadness entice us at all?

Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love the world, you show that you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only the lust for physical pleasure, the lust for everything we see, and pride in our possessions. These are not from the Father. They are from this evil world. And this world is fading away, along with everything it craves. But if you do the will of God, you will live forever.
1 John 2:15-17 NLT

In Other Words

"Wherever you are spiritually, whatever you have been through emotionally, you are already wrapped in the Lord's embrace. Held close by nail-scarred hands."(quote from 'Embrace Grace')
~ Liz Curtis Higgs ~



Up above is the video from BarlowGirl for their song Never Alone. I have always looooooved this song. I especially love the lyrics. I am sure we can all think of times where we felt burdened, stuck, confused, lost and we gave it to God. And maybe we didn't receive the answers right away. Maybe we didn't even feel like He had listened. How did we respond when that happened? Did we give up on Him? Did we put time constraints on His help? Or did we hold onto that faith inside, and know that everything would be okay...that our God would take care of us?

His nail-scarred hands are proof that He will do everything for us....that He loves us. He is there, He is walking with us, He is embracing us.

Just give it to Him. GIVE IT TO HIM! Let Him hold you today. Let go of all you are struggling with. Take His peace and His comfort. Fall into His arms.


"So I'll hold tight to what I know
You're here and I'm never alone"

In Other Words

Once again, another great quote this week. I totally agree with it.

"I am the one holding the keys to the atmosphere in our home."
~ Terry Maxwell ~
Author of:
Homeschooling with a Meek
and Quiet Spirit


I am assuming most are going to mention the saying, "If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." And quite honestly, it is completely true. As the wife and mother, I really do hold the flow of the household in the palm of my hand. When I am calm, gentle, loving and peaceful, things seem to go well. The house is filled with smiles, laughter and tranquility. But, when I get stressed, frustrated, tired and even hungry, my emotions become contagious and pretty soon everyone is walking around the house with sighs of irritation.


Now, I know there are times I can start out peaceful and gentle and circumstances around me, or the behavior of my children may lead to a change of spirit, but that isn't an excuse. In fact, it is those times where I need to keep the calm the most.


Everyone loves it the most when their house is a happy place to be, I know I sure do. And I really do strive to keep it that way. And when I do boil over and explode, I usually catch myself pretty quickly, apologize and try to work on my approach to things for the rest of the day or evening.


Have any of you read the blog, Raising Five? It's a wonderful blog. There was one post I read on there recently, where she talked about how she has to constantly remind herself throughout the day to love and sacrifice around her house the way Christ loves and sacrificed for us. And it's really true. And it does take effort sometimes, especially when it's 9:30 P.M., you've barely had a moment to yourself, and both kids are still awake and screaming. But really, it is loving like Christ that keeps the peace and fills the home with warmth. So that is my goal each and everyday. Some days go more smoothly than others.


In one day, I can watch myself react to similar situations in two very, VERY different ways. For instance, my three-year old is at that age where she wants to be independent. She doesn't want to listen and she loves to say no. At one point in the day, she had been testing my patience for a good couple of hours and everything was a fight. She had just again achieved to make me question whether or not I was about to go insane. I was slowly losing my patience with her. She wasn't obeying me and she was whining and screaming. I sternly said her name, placed her face in my hands and gave her a kiss. And to be honest, it shocked her a bit, because I think she was expecting a warning, a spanking or a scolding. She immediately stopped fighting me, looked up at me and asked, "Mommy, you kissed me?" And I said yep. I sure did!


Later that night, however, I didn't respond to her as lovingly. We have been fighting her on using the potty. She completely understands having to go, she grasps the entire concept. She is just stubborn and refuses to sit on the potty. It was the afternoon and I wanted her to use the potty. She wouldn't even sit on it. She was screaming on the top of her lungs and began to work herself up quite a bit. I quietly and lovingly tried to get her to stop and listen to me. But she just grew louder and louder. Finally, I just let out a roar. Seriously, I went AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH on the top of my lungs.
Have you seen Monster's Inc.? Do you know the scene where boo accidentally walks in when Sully is showing the other monsters how to be scary and he screams. Do you remember the look on Boo's face? That's what my child did. She then said, "Mommy, you scared me. You were like a monster." Talk about putting me in my place.


I apologized and watched myself the rest of the day. Okay I think I totally went on a rant here. But basically, my job as a wife and mother is to take care of my household and the people in it. And emotions are contagious, attitudes are contagious and part of making a home welcoming, is the environment it keeps. I need to watch my thoughts and my actions continually to make sure that I make my home a loving and peaceful place to be. When they say, "there's no place like home", it's supposed to be a good thing. Not wow...Nowhere else is it as crazy and stressful and loud and unhappy as in my home.


Loving like Christ is the key.

There is a verse in the book of Psalms that I read the other day, that I really have tried to focus on lately, In regards to my actions, words and attitude. It is Psalm 4:4.. "Be angry and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still."


*UPDATE* I was just reading other contributions about today's quote and came across the post at A Measure Of Grace. It is a MUST READ!!!!!

In Other Words

What a GREAT quote today. When I was done reading it, I actually said, "Wow!"

"One response was given by the innkeeper when Mary and Joseph wanted to find a room where the Child could be born. The innkeeper was not hostile; he was not opposed to them, but his inn was crowded; his hands were full; his mind was preoccupied. This is the answer that millions are giving today. Like a Bethlehem innkeeper, they cannot find room for Christ. All the accommodations in their hearts are already taken up by other crowding interests. Their response is not atheism. It is not defiance. It is preoccupation and the feeling of being able to get on reasonably well without Christianity."
~ Billy Graham ~

I must admit, I was quite convicted after reading Billy Graham's quote. I know that I can't go on reasonably well without Christ, yet I feel many times I give Jesus the same response as the innkeeper. How many times is my inn crowded? How many times are my hands too full; my mind too preoccupied? Honestly, almost everyday, I turn Christ away. I mean I still make Him a part of each day. I do pray before meals and in the evening. And a few days a week, the day care kids have a Bible lesson that correlates with the week's theme. But when I look at other things throughout the day that I allow to take up some of my time, I realize that I really could have devoted much more time for God. I am not making it the priority that I need to. I am well aware of that and really want to work on fixing that. This quote really helped because it made me compare myself to the innkeeper. And, goodness, I don't want to be the person saying, "Sorry, God. I just can't even pencil you in today. There is no room in my day right now for you." How much that must hurt Him. And how much I know it hurts me.

"Lord, God. I know that I am a busy bee most days, but I also know that I need you to be the focal point of my days. Please forgive me for not taking the time for you that I need. Please help me desire in such a way to sit at your feet. Please help me discipline myself to take that time to be in your word. I so need you. I need to start my day with you; to end my day with you. Thank you for loving me despite my distraction. I love you. In Jesus' name, Amen."

In Other Words

"God has delivered us, He has parted waters for us, He has made water gush forth from rocks and sent us our own manna from heaven. He has brought us into our own Promised Land. Will I miss the opportunity to tell the story to our children?
~ Ann Voskamp ~

I must admit, I have been a chicken lately when it comes to doing these...In Other Words. I read the quote each week, become puzzled as to what on Earth I could possibly write and then decide to participate next week instead. Anyway, I think it has been over a month since I last took part in a Tuesday's In Other Words. I decided that I just need to do it. Read the quote and write. If I end up having nothing but rambling nonsense to share, then so be it.

I want to be sure to always share God with my children. I also want to be sure that they know the many ways in which He worked in my life.

Awhile back, I was introduced to faithbooking. It is using scrapbooking to commemorate God moments in your life. I want to make an incredible faithbook to pass on to my children someday. I have been toying with the idea of making it digital so that I will be able to order one for each child. In it, I will share my testimony, stories of times God worked in my life and in the lives of those around me. I will share favorite Bible verses. I will share about my relationship with my hubby. I will share some about special moments the family has shared.

The entire book though will be centered around God and how my life was shaped by Him.

Some resources on faithbooking for you to check out.

Bella Online
This page has various faithbook challenges, different themes. Also lots of great tips and ideas.


Faithbook Starters


Oh, and check out Digital Scrapbook Place
You have to register. But it's free and you get free papers and things to use in your digital scrapbook. I am saving up to buy the $40 digital scrapbook software that allows me to make awesome layouts using papers, embellishments and my own digital pictures. It will be fun. I will use it for my faithbook!

In Other Words

"Don't let schooling interfere with
your education."
- Mark Twain -

So, I admit it, this quote scared me and I wasn't going to take part this week. I wasn't sure what to write about at all. So, I then went and read what everyone else who had participated wrote. And sure enough, reading everyone else's got me thinking. It sure did.

I realized that I am already doing that thing parents do. Ya know the thing where parents kind of decide their children's futures. My kiddos are only 2 1/2 and 2 months old, but I have already made up my mind that they will be amazing students. I have decided that they will get A's and B's and go on to attend private Christian universities and earn degrees.

In fact my hubby and I talked about this a couple of months ago. He asked me, what if the miss doesn't want to go to college? And I answered rather matter-of-factly, "Oh, she'll want to and she will!"

In my home growing up, education and schoolwork were very important. And thankfully, for my dad, I loved school. I loved learning. I was an over-achiever and I got great grades. I was even enrolled in a special program in elementary school for gifted children where we could be a little more challenged. I didn't go on to college right away though. I am now working on getting my degree while also working, running a household and caring for two children. But I will eventually have my degree and the main reason being because I feel it is important.
I don't want to expect my children to attend college and earn degrees if I don't even have mine. I feel it is hypocritical of me.

Anyway, as I read over other posts by this week's participants, I realized that God or my children for that matter, may not have the same plan for their lives that I have for them. Or, perhaps my children won't end up being the type of students I envision them to be. I also realized that learning may not end up coming as easily for them as it did for me. In other words, "Mom, let go of your expectations, now."

There were many gals who because of the demands placed on teachers to instruct in certain ways, ended up having their children either behind or too far ahead. They wound up home schooling their children so that they could teach their children at the levels they were at and guide them each step of the way.

Reading over varying experiences with kids and schooling, I realized that I need to allow my children to show me what it is they need. I can't dictate what it is they need. I can't make that decision for them.

But, I still wouldn't mind one bit if they are A students and then get all excited about attending college. Oops, there I go again.

In Other Words #3

"Salt, when dissolved in water, may disappear,
but it does not cease to exist.
We can be sure of its presence by tasting the water. Likewise, the indwelling Christ, though unseen,
will be made evident to others from the
love which He imparts to us."
- Sadhu Sundar Singh -

I have had many friends and loved ones who know a lot about my childhood and circumstances involved with my parents, that have told me numerous times that they can't believe how I ended up growing up despite things I had gone through. And I tell them, that it is because I had God with me through hard times. I accepted Christ when I was 13 years old. I feel that my teenage years were very difficult. School and home life were tough on me, but I always had joy and as best of a positive lookout as I could. And I know that it's because Christ was in me. He filled me with His love. Apparently, I showed it to others even when I wasn't feeling very loved by people in the world. When we have His love in us, it shines through us and people do notice.


(Matthew 5:13 NKJV) You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

Let us be known in the world as the salt is to the water. When you sip salt water, you can taste the salt immediately. When those in the world see us, meet us, spend time with us, our Christianity should be as evident to them as the salt they taste in the water.

In Other Words #2

In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.
~ Albert Einstein~

On my site, I am currently playing the song, Held, by Natalie Grant. This song was written by Christa Wells. Christa had some close friends of hers go through some tragic times within months of each other. One close friend of hers, had a baby. He had been diagnosed with a heart defect at birth, but had been treated and was growing well. They awoke one morning to discover that he had passed on. Another friend of hers lost her husband and father of her children to cancer. Christa sat down and penned lyrics to a song that is such a testimony to how God will get us through hard times. He will hold us. That leads me to my thought about this week's quote.

I feel that in every difficult situation we face no matter how big or small, we have an incredible opportunity to create our testimony. What a blessing we have as believers to be able to minister to others who are hurting and going through tough times. And what an even more amazing blessing, to be able to use examples from our own lives and our own walks with God to show these people that yes, God does help. He does heal. He does turn every situation into one that can glorify Him.

The song that Christa Wells wrote has been a blessing to many who have been struggling.

I also think that along with creating a testimony out of hard times, difficult situations also give us the opportunity to practice faith. We must always have that faith in God. Always! Have that faith that He is there, that He will help us. He will never forsake us. How easy it is for us to just get stuck in our own pity party, to give up, to allow difficult times to knock us down and destroy our faith. That is why we need to stand strong and keep our eyes fixed on God.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, beacause you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. . . . Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." James 1:2-4, 12

Lyrics To Held
Two months is too little
They let him go
They had no sudden healing
To think that providence would
Take a child from his mother while she prays
Is appalling

Who told us we'd be rescued?
What has changed and why should we be saved from nightmares?
We're asking why this happens
To us who have died to live?
It's unfair

Chorus:
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we’d be held

This hand is bitterness
We want to taste it, let the hatred NUMB our sorrow
The wise hands opens slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow

(Chorus) ...
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we'd be held

Bridge:
If hope is born of suffering
If this is only the beginning
Can we not wait for one hour watching for our Savior?

(Chorus)
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we'd be held

In Other Words

Christian Women Online began a new Meme for Tuesdays called, In Other Words. They provide a quote and then we can write whatever we would like about it. I decided to start participating today.

The quote today is:
"There are two kinds of people:
those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,'
and those to whom God says,
'All right, then, have it your way."
~ C.S. Lewis ~

Alright, so here goes:

My two and a half year old has begun to dabble in independence. She wants to do everything on her own. She looks at me very matter-of-factly and says, "I do it!" She can be stubborn. Even when I see her struggling and I ask if I can just help, she still insists to do it. This time saying with a more angry tone, "I DO it." There are some times, when I know she won't be able to achieve the task at hand, it's either too hard or she just really isn't big enough yet to do it on her own. So I sit back and wait for her to finally say those three little words, "Mommy, help me." And then with a smile and gentleness, I do. But I have her help me as well. We accomplish it together.

I think with God, I am his toddler, really and truly. I think we all are. We are impatient with him, we have tantrums. We receive and receive, but don't give as much as we should. And we too struggle with independence. When my daughter struggles with a challenge so big for her, yet so tiny and easy for me, I think, Punkin..let me help. I know how. I know what I'm doing. Hmmm, can you hear God saying those same words to us? I know he must think them about me many times. He is so much bigger than even my biggest task. He sees more than I could ever imagine. But if I insist to do it on my own, He'll let me. And He will just sit back patiently waiting for those three words, "God, help me."