How is that for a catchy title!! Who doesn't want to live a better life right?! I lead a Mom's support group/fellowship group at my church. I felt called to start it in the Spring of 2005. With my knees knocking and my toes shakin' in my boots...I started it. God has blessed me with the group ever since. There are many woman that come each week. They are from different backgrounds in every sense of the word. The church is a Catholic church but the group is made up of so many different denominations. It is wonderful!! Wonderful! Each week we get together and have some coffee, some treats of some kind, and I "do" a lesson of some sort. Often I feel lead to speak about a book I just read. Recently we have been going through a book that moved me in such wonderful ways... Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyers. For anyone reading this, if you have not read this book, I urge you to give it a try. It's good stuff! Anywho, we are on Chapter 15 which is basically about having the mind of Christ. What is that about?! Well, in order to live out the wonders that God has promised us, a Christian needs to be aware of HOW she is living. What does she think about? What comes out of her mouth? What is in her heart? (for out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks Matt 12:34) It is easy to get caught up in daily life. The world is a powerful place. Does it have power over you? Well, if you are a Christian, it should not. The reality is.....whether a girl is a believer or not, the world sometimes grabs a hold of us and doesn't let go. For me, I need to be reminded of what the Word says, what God promises me... in order to shake free of the "world" and live the life of abundance that is promised me. (see John 10:10) In Chapter 15 of this book, here are two things that really helped me to THINK about what I was doing.....also it gave me something that I could have major control over....and DO....with the result of actually living happier....be happier. I dare you to read on and then try it!!
1. Practice exhortation!! (oooo...that is a big word...give me a dictionary = 0 I )
This basically means (yes, I had to look it up too!) be an encouraging person. Some people are very gifted in this area. Some people, not so much. Do you encourage people in your life? We all have our own circle of people. Each person needs encouragement in some form or another. As a mom, encouraging my kids is serious business. I can't say I was very encouraged as a child but I know for sure that I MUST encourage my children. This is something that not only feels good to the receiver, it also feels good to the giver. Not only that....we are called to do this as a Believer. Yep...we are. Ephesians 4:29 talks about building others up according to what THEY need. Key word...THEY. This does not say, according to what we think they need. Doing this requires paying attention to what another person really needs at any given moment. For example...you see a mom who is really struggling in the store with her two year old. Now, I know that being on the edge of freaking out on our kids is something WE have never done, but I have heard stories of OTHER mom's doin' this....(wink, wink) What can we do at this moment? We can give her a quick touch and maybe say...."don't worry mom, it gets better" or maybe say something crazy like..."hand in there mom". She probably will feel some comfort cause at that moment, she will not feel like she is the worst mom on the planet, or that she is not alone. Maybe don't even address the child issue...keep an eye on the situation and when a quiet moment comes, maybe comment on how she looks. (please keep in mind, if she looks like she has not showered yet, her clothes have spit-up on them and her hair is somewhere under a ball cap...maybe not the way to go) Does she have cute shoes on? Are her nails pretty? Something!! You get my drift right? Try to think back to a similar moment in your life...how would you have felt if someone noticed you in some positive way. There is so much more to the "EXHORTATION" thing that God tells us about but that is a bit of it.
2. Develop a thankful mind
Back to Matt 12:34. If our hearts are truly thankful....then so will our mouths. The question is, are we thankful? R u?? If we are complaining often, nagging about something, getting feisty about something...chances are we are not thankful. Now, you might be saying....yes, yes I am thankful but....when my husband does this .......or yes, but when my kids........ Hold on!!! I used to be a person who said just that. What I realized was happening (praise God!) was deep down I was thankful but I was letting the yuck of the complaining steal my joy. LETTING my joy be taken right away from me. Good grief! It takes practice but when I actually thought about all the things in my life that I needed to be thankful for, it was so hard to be grumbling and complaining. Here is a small list of what I am thankful for.....I have three healthy children, I have a husband that comes home after work, I have a husband that has a job!, I have a dog, I have a car that turns on when I turn the key, I have money to pay for my car, I have a closet full of clothes, I have a frig full of food,....the list goes on and on. I have been at a place in my life (after a horrible car accident)when I could not walk, I could not lift a spoon to feed myself, I could not wipe myself..... Now, I ask you, don't wait till something that drastic happens to cause you to be thankful for the small and probably the big things in your life. Scripture often talks about how God wants us to be thankful. He asks us to practice being thankful. I love Hebrews 13:15 which talks about "offering up a sacrifice of praise to God". God knows us sooooo well!! A sacrifice of praise? What is that all about? Well, as Joyce Meyers talks about in the above mentioned book, God knows that often in our lives, being thankful is hard. Sometimes very hard. When things are going peachy, it is easy to be thankful. When things are going horrible....not so easy. Right? God challenges us to offer up praise, sacrificially praise, during the not so great times. How does this do any good? This is what I think....by giving praise to God, even when things are not great, His power is unleashed. God is able to do a work in our hearts. He is able to lighten our load spiritually. When He hears the praise from us, scripture tells us WE bless God!!! We bless HIM!! How cool is that. Our Lord is delighted with us and our devotion to Him. Delighted with our understanding that He is in charge. Once we die to this, He can then do a work in our hearts that is like no other. Here is another thing to think about when it comes to being thankful. Do we actually thank others in our lives when they do something nice for us? When was the last time you thanked your husband for something? Anything? Well???? You will be amazed at how wonderful a quick little thank you makes your husband feel. It may take a while for it to sink in cause I am going to guess not many of us say thank you very often. Also, thanking our kids is something that we really need to do!!!!! How are our children suppose to learn HOW to show appreciation if they never see it acted out in! Think about that for a minute. Being thankful is not something that just happens in a child. If we show them some appreciation, they will learn how it is done. They just might show some appreciation back to us when we least expect it. I guess the bottom line question I need you to ask yourself is two fold. 1. Are you a wife/mom who feels unappreciated? (i will guess yes...or atleast sometimes yes) 2. How much appreciation do YOU show others in your life? This goes back to the principle of reaping and sowing. If we sow seeds of appreciation, God promises us we will reap those rewards. Now, the harvest is never reaped in the same season it is sewn...ask any farmer. BUT if the seeds are sewn, the reaping will follow. Think about it!
I am challenging you to try doing these two things and see if your heart is any different. See if your joy comes back....in the midst of some yuck that might be huge or really small, see if you can get some joy back.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Time for a....MAKEOVER!!!
Okay....I am back in the land of the living after taking care of really sick kids. Here goes...
I was listening to the radio this morning and was really moved by a topic that Chip Ingram was speaking on. Mr. Ingram has a talk radio show on a station in my area called Moody Radio. This is syndicated and I would highly recommend trying to find this station in your area. Moody Radio is full of wonderful speakers, with several different speaking styles. You are sure to find one that you connect with. God has used this station to really speak to my heart on several occasions.
Chip was talking about the show Extreme Home Makeover and how it relates to us as Christians. This got my attention. I love to decorate and redecorate. I love to paint, wallpaper, rearrange furniture, re-do something old...you name it. I love it. Now, this might be just a part of my slight OCD nature but if you give me an empty room or a blank wall, I get very excited. Crazy...I know. Just humor me. What does any of this have to do with God? With Christianity? Glad you asked. Let's start with understanding why a "makeover" is such a cool thing. Now, don't kid yourself. Everyone loves a makeover. Whether it is a redo of a room in your house, a redo of the entire house, a hair cut, new make-up, a new outfit....getting a do-over is such fun. Am I right? Even guys can relate to this concept....take my husband. He has a "man cave" that is all MAN! It has an obnoxious sound system, a poker table, war "collectibles", you name it...it is all testosterone. Every once in awhile, I will clean it up for him. Keep in mind, this is not often but set aside for those times when I feel like being extra nice to him. When I unveil all my hard work ( or even unveil the hard work that I have paid someone to do), he is always thrilled. It all seems fresh and new. Everything is in it's place and you can see the floor again! Mind you, he could live happily in the filth and grime but when it is clean and neat, he seems to think of it as brand new again. Makeovers are a wonderful thing. Whether they are minor or extreme, they are a great thing. We feel like we get a fresh start and this feeling often bleeds over into all aspects of our life. I have come to understand that Christ wants to do a makeover on US! Some scripture that speaks about this concept can be found in Ephesians 2:1-10. I love these verses. Why don't you go to it and let's discuss it. If you don't have a bible....consider getting one. I would recommend an NIV version. The verses are a bit easier to understand than the old stand by, New King James Bibles, but it does not digress too much from the original text. (also, it comes in lots of pretty hard and soft covers. Being 110% girl, this speaks to me! ) These verses can be found on your computer too. Just google the verses and go from there.....con't reading once you have read the verses........................................................................................................
Now, if after reading the scripture, all you heard was the Peanuts cartoon teacher...wha wha...wha wha wha.... don't worry. For all people, understanding scripture is a tough thing. So often, I will read a verse and think, "what the heck did that just say!!" Other times, I will say, "oh...I get it!" My dear friend, that is precisely why I listen to Christian radio, read Christian books, go to bible studies, etc. All in an attempt to allow God to speak to me in a way that I understand. It's a good thing!
Okay, what these verses say to me is God is sooo wanting to do a makeover for us, in us. He wants to show us, that regardless of what we have done, where we are in our walk, he wants to get at every part of our souls and do a complete makeover. Some people are at a place where they abuse alcohol or drugs. Some people struggle with depression, some people deal with verbally abusing their children, their spouses....the list goes on and on. Some people just want to simply have more good days than bad days. All this, is what our Lord wants to get His hands on and do a complete makeover on. Why? Why little ol' me? Well, besides because He loves you and me madly....let's look at Eph 2:7. It says.... in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. In order to explain this, I think there are a few comparisons that might hit home. In every makeover show, whether the change was to a home or a person, the end result is a look of shock. It is a look of awe. Right? On the best ones, we find ourselves in awe too!! We don't even know this person or we have never seen the home in real life but the transformation is remarkable. REMARKABLE. We long to see the "before" again so we can enjoy the change that has occurred. Know what I mean? I love the ones where it is a mom that has had a makeover and her kids see her for the first time and they start to cry. Love those. They can feel the happiness that their mom feels. I too start to cry. I also used to cry when people would win a frig on The Price Is Right so I might not be a good measuring stick for this kind of thing. = 0 ) God aches to do this for us. If we allow him to transform our lives, we will be a living testimony to his power. People in our circle of life will be effected by what we have become through the power of Christ. When a Christian is truly being a Christian, when she is living her life in a way that is following God and all that he calls her to do and be, it can not help but draw attention. For example, someone might say of a person that they have known for years..."wow, what is up with Sally. She has changed. She seems so happy." or "Have you seen Joann lately? She is glowing. I am not sure what is going on with her but whatever it is, it is working." I am not talking about the "holier than thow" people that most of you might be thinking of. So often this is what is conjured up when God and Jesus are talked about. Christians don't have fun. They don't drink, they don't swear, they are boring!!! WRONG! Now, I am not saying I have a trucker mouth and I drink like a fish but my preconceived notions of what being a Christian was like is nothing close to what I have come to learn and KNOW what the real meaning is. I have certain convictions about what God is calling me to do/be. Other Christians have other convictions. It is not my place to even think about what others are doing or not doing, and judge them on it. I have enough trouble figuring out my own self! Plus, I have laundry to do!! I need to let God work on me. When I do this, he fixes me in ways that make me happier than i have ever been and the "fixing" allows me to actually love on others too. It is like a side-effect that is actually a good one! Yeah. I am not kidding.
I think that it is important to really understand what our Lord is longing to do. He wants to renew YOU. He wants to show you how you can be a great mom, a great wife, how to get past hurts and abuses, how to move on from a loss, how to overcome adversity....all this. If we allow him, if we chose to let him in to our soul, he will do an extreme makeover like we have never seen before. I have allowed Him. I continue to allow Him cause this girl needs all the help she can get! Can I get an Amen?!
I was listening to the radio this morning and was really moved by a topic that Chip Ingram was speaking on. Mr. Ingram has a talk radio show on a station in my area called Moody Radio. This is syndicated and I would highly recommend trying to find this station in your area. Moody Radio is full of wonderful speakers, with several different speaking styles. You are sure to find one that you connect with. God has used this station to really speak to my heart on several occasions.
Chip was talking about the show Extreme Home Makeover and how it relates to us as Christians. This got my attention. I love to decorate and redecorate. I love to paint, wallpaper, rearrange furniture, re-do something old...you name it. I love it. Now, this might be just a part of my slight OCD nature but if you give me an empty room or a blank wall, I get very excited. Crazy...I know. Just humor me. What does any of this have to do with God? With Christianity? Glad you asked. Let's start with understanding why a "makeover" is such a cool thing. Now, don't kid yourself. Everyone loves a makeover. Whether it is a redo of a room in your house, a redo of the entire house, a hair cut, new make-up, a new outfit....getting a do-over is such fun. Am I right? Even guys can relate to this concept....take my husband. He has a "man cave" that is all MAN! It has an obnoxious sound system, a poker table, war "collectibles", you name it...it is all testosterone. Every once in awhile, I will clean it up for him. Keep in mind, this is not often but set aside for those times when I feel like being extra nice to him. When I unveil all my hard work ( or even unveil the hard work that I have paid someone to do), he is always thrilled. It all seems fresh and new. Everything is in it's place and you can see the floor again! Mind you, he could live happily in the filth and grime but when it is clean and neat, he seems to think of it as brand new again. Makeovers are a wonderful thing. Whether they are minor or extreme, they are a great thing. We feel like we get a fresh start and this feeling often bleeds over into all aspects of our life. I have come to understand that Christ wants to do a makeover on US! Some scripture that speaks about this concept can be found in Ephesians 2:1-10. I love these verses. Why don't you go to it and let's discuss it. If you don't have a bible....consider getting one. I would recommend an NIV version. The verses are a bit easier to understand than the old stand by, New King James Bibles, but it does not digress too much from the original text. (also, it comes in lots of pretty hard and soft covers. Being 110% girl, this speaks to me! ) These verses can be found on your computer too. Just google the verses and go from there.....con't reading once you have read the verses........................................................................................................
Now, if after reading the scripture, all you heard was the Peanuts cartoon teacher...wha wha...wha wha wha.... don't worry. For all people, understanding scripture is a tough thing. So often, I will read a verse and think, "what the heck did that just say!!" Other times, I will say, "oh...I get it!" My dear friend, that is precisely why I listen to Christian radio, read Christian books, go to bible studies, etc. All in an attempt to allow God to speak to me in a way that I understand. It's a good thing!
Okay, what these verses say to me is God is sooo wanting to do a makeover for us, in us. He wants to show us, that regardless of what we have done, where we are in our walk, he wants to get at every part of our souls and do a complete makeover. Some people are at a place where they abuse alcohol or drugs. Some people struggle with depression, some people deal with verbally abusing their children, their spouses....the list goes on and on. Some people just want to simply have more good days than bad days. All this, is what our Lord wants to get His hands on and do a complete makeover on. Why? Why little ol' me? Well, besides because He loves you and me madly....let's look at Eph 2:7. It says.... in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. In order to explain this, I think there are a few comparisons that might hit home. In every makeover show, whether the change was to a home or a person, the end result is a look of shock. It is a look of awe. Right? On the best ones, we find ourselves in awe too!! We don't even know this person or we have never seen the home in real life but the transformation is remarkable. REMARKABLE. We long to see the "before" again so we can enjoy the change that has occurred. Know what I mean? I love the ones where it is a mom that has had a makeover and her kids see her for the first time and they start to cry. Love those. They can feel the happiness that their mom feels. I too start to cry. I also used to cry when people would win a frig on The Price Is Right so I might not be a good measuring stick for this kind of thing. = 0 ) God aches to do this for us. If we allow him to transform our lives, we will be a living testimony to his power. People in our circle of life will be effected by what we have become through the power of Christ. When a Christian is truly being a Christian, when she is living her life in a way that is following God and all that he calls her to do and be, it can not help but draw attention. For example, someone might say of a person that they have known for years..."wow, what is up with Sally. She has changed. She seems so happy." or "Have you seen Joann lately? She is glowing. I am not sure what is going on with her but whatever it is, it is working." I am not talking about the "holier than thow" people that most of you might be thinking of. So often this is what is conjured up when God and Jesus are talked about. Christians don't have fun. They don't drink, they don't swear, they are boring!!! WRONG! Now, I am not saying I have a trucker mouth and I drink like a fish but my preconceived notions of what being a Christian was like is nothing close to what I have come to learn and KNOW what the real meaning is. I have certain convictions about what God is calling me to do/be. Other Christians have other convictions. It is not my place to even think about what others are doing or not doing, and judge them on it. I have enough trouble figuring out my own self! Plus, I have laundry to do!! I need to let God work on me. When I do this, he fixes me in ways that make me happier than i have ever been and the "fixing" allows me to actually love on others too. It is like a side-effect that is actually a good one! Yeah. I am not kidding.
I think that it is important to really understand what our Lord is longing to do. He wants to renew YOU. He wants to show you how you can be a great mom, a great wife, how to get past hurts and abuses, how to move on from a loss, how to overcome adversity....all this. If we allow him, if we chose to let him in to our soul, he will do an extreme makeover like we have never seen before. I have allowed Him. I continue to allow Him cause this girl needs all the help she can get! Can I get an Amen?!
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