My Two Cents

Wow, the month of November has flown by!  I can't believe Thanksgiving will be here in just a couple days and Christmas just a few weeks later!!  2014 has been a huge growing year...I know we tend to say that about a lot of years in our life, but you know how certain ones are REALLY growing years and others are still growing years, but maybe not quite as life impacting??

I think the biggest thing that God has been showing me this year is to find my validation in Him alone.  To meet His expectations alone.  To live for His smile alone.  I will never be able to do what every one thinks I should be able to do or live in such a way that meets the expectations of everyone and that is ok...   I am here to live the life God wants me to live - no matter how countercultural it is :)

Ok, so onto the monthly "My Two Cents"...

Watch

 

I'm just going to come right out and admit that I have been addicted to the "When Calls the Heart" series that came out last spring on the Hallmark Channel...  I know, I know but sometimes I can become a hopeless romantic.  I have those moments of wanting to curl up on the couch and watch a movie that has nothing wrong with it, still has a good story line and has decent actors.  The series is not based off of Janette Oke's books (When Comes the Heart series) like the "Love Comes Softly" series was (which is probably why I can watch it without any pre-judgments).  I have to admit that I am not a big fan of the Love Comes Softly series past the first and second movie... I just loved the books too much and didn't really enjoy the actors and story lines... So I admit to being a bit apprehensive when "When Calls the Heart" came out, however I was captivated by the pilot and have been impatiently waiting for all the episodes to come out on DVD for the past few months!  Definitely check it out!

Fresh Modesty

Can I just say...If you haven't checked out the website "Fresh Modesty", then you are really missing out!

Olivia Howard is a lovely young lady, who started up a fashion blog for Christian young ladies who want to glorify the Lord with beautiful wardrobes.  She is honest about her life and the challenges she faces, but tries to daily glorify the Lord in all that she does.

She has been such an encouragement to me over the past couple years.  It can be really hard in this culture to dress modestly and still be feminine.  It can be hard in that, it's difficult to find clothing that's modest and fits each of our individual styles, but it can also be hard because it is not what our culture expects.  However, Olivia knows that God has given her a higher calling.  To dress modestly and live a life that reflects her Lord and Savior - no matter what the culture expects or how challenging it can be to find clothing!  She truly wants to encourage her sister's in Christ and has been such a blessing!  Please, go check out her blog...I think you will love it! :)

Releasing The Bottle

I started this post about a month ago... things got busy though and I forgot to post it...however, I wanted to leave that beautiful picture of what New England starts to look like at the beginning of October...just a week or two before peak foliage :)



It is that beautiful time here again in New England!!  The fall foliage is starting to burst out in crimson reds and golden hues of yellow and orange! "sigh"  I totally understand why we have "leaf peepers" (tourists that come for drives just to see the fall foliage) in our state!!

On another note though...

I joined my friend a few days ago on a trip to Boston to complete an event on her "24 List".  She turned 24 a week ago and has made a list of 24 things she wants to do while she is 24.  This dear friend has fought cancer over the last two years and finally won.  Over the past few months I have seen her return back to the girl I remembered and knew was still in their somewhere :)  She wants to live life to the fullest and cherish every moment!  Therefore, the list of 24 things she wants to experience this year is a list of sentimental, fun and adventurous things to do or opportunities to learn and stretch her creativity!  This trip to Boston included writing a message, putting it into a glass bottle and sending it out into the unknown.  Hoping, praying, wishing that someday, someone will find it and it will impact their lives....

"Love As I Loved"...

The words from Ron Hamilton's song, "Love As I Loved" have been ringing in my ears the past few days so I thought I would share the song with all of you :)

When the Lord was speaking to the crowd
A beggar came, who fell down
Before Christ and called out His Name
The disciples quickly came, and they turned the man away
Till they saw the Lord's compassion and they heard the Savior say-

Eric Ludy Video - Depraved Indifference

One of the ways God shows his love for the fatherless is through us... Are we living in such a way, that we are available and willing for Him to work through us at any time? 

What are your thoughts after watching that?

 



How Precious Is His Blood?

Our Pastor went on vacation a few weeks ago and one of the men in our church stepped up and took his place on Sunday while Pastor was away.  He gave an allegory that really made me think about how precious the blood of Christ is, and I wanted to share it with you all.

I think we all know how special a wedding dress is to a bride. Whether you have been a bride or have been around one while she is looking for "the" dress, you know how important the dress is.  Once the dress is bought, it is placed in a very safe area until the day of the wedding - unless fittings are needed on the dress, in which case every safety precaution is used to ensure the safety of the dress :)  I think you get my point, the dress is IMPORTANT....

Imagine two days before the wedding the bride goes to look at her dress and finds a huge stain on the front of the dress.  What would be her number one priority at that point?  Finding a type of solution that would remove the stain from the dress right??  Once the solution is found, how valuable would that solution be to the bride?  Extremely, right?

Well, how valuable and precious are our souls?  The souls of the whole world?  Our hearts and souls have been blackened by the presence of sin in our lives and the penalty for that sin is death.  We are destined to spend eternity in hell without Christ because nothing we can do can ever cleanse us from the filth of sin...
However, the Son of God came, a perfect human being without sin, paid our debt, our penalty.  He spilled his precious blood in order to cover our sins and wash us white as snow.  His blood cleanses us.  How precious, how powerful is that?
He laid down his life and spilled his blood in order that we might now have a choice.  A choice to accept his free gift of salvation.  Salvation from eternity in hell and eternal separation from our Creator and God.  OR  To reject the gift so freely given and continue down the path we have been destined to follow.

Don't you think the precious blood of Christ that wipes away our filthy, dirty sin from our lives is incredibly valuable?  Even more valuable than a solution that will remove a stain from a bride's wedding dress?

"...Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes..."  Those words are ringing in my ears as I glance at the blizzard blowing outside my windows.  As I watch the millions of snowflakes make there descent down to earth I am again blown away by the thought that each one is unique.  Each one a special creation of the Creator!

  He is truly the God of creativity!  Billions of snowflakes, tiny, frozen, water crystals each designed to look slightly different from another one! 

As I sit inside by our warm woodstove, reflecting on this incredible design, I've begun to think of the people in the blogger world who are also so unique and designed with such amazing creativity!   I follow several blogs that make my heart smile when I see they have a new post, because God has given so many girls the precious gift of being able to write what God shows them!  You know what I'm talking about, that author that writes exactly what you needed to read, written in such a way that you are immediately caught up in the post. 
Yes, that is very special gift...filled with creativity...after all we are made in the image of a creative Creator :)

So....I thought I would share some of my favorite blogs written by some of these amazing girls!  As you get ready for the special holiday tomorrow and enter the weekend, I hope that these blogs and articles encourage and bless your hearts as they have mine over the years!

A Bright Light In A Dark World  by Shannon

 

APJ (A Passion for Jesus)  by Laurie

 

Written Upon My Heart  by Rebekah

 

A Girl With Wings  by Abigail

 

Altogether Separate by A group of girls

 

Hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day remembering our creative and loving Creator!!

 

 

Hello Friends,

I know it has been a long time since my last post and I'm sorry for that.  However, sometimes life seems to fly by and this past year has been a roller coaster of spiritual, emotional, physical and mental rides :p  I can now say they have all been for a purpose (although I don't think I'm done with them :]).   I may not know why God has worked these different things in my life, but I can trust they are for His glory and that is why I am here.

The echo of my heart this morning is found in the following song.  I heard it for the first time this summer at The Wilds of New England and it is has stuck with me since then.  I know you can't here the music that goes with it, but the words are so beautiful in themselves that I think you will be blessed just by reading them :)

Settled At The Cross by Cliff Duren

 How I love to read the book You wrote for me
You loved the world so much You gave Your Son
Written there in crimson, You told me I'm forgiven
It is done, it is done

chorus
So if you never speak another word of blessing
And the silence leaves me with a sense of loss
I'll remember when my heart begins to question
Any doubt that You loved me
Was settled at the cross

I would be the first to admit I don't deserve
The kind of favor You have always shown
But You don't have to tell me
You proved how much You loved me
And I'll know, I'll still know

That If you never speak another word of blessing
And the silence leaves me with a sense of loss
I'll remember when my heart begins to question
Any doubt that you loved me
Was settled at the cross

Every drop of mercy
Every breath forgave
Every drop of blood
Testifies of grace!

If You never speak another word of blessing
And the silence leaves me with a sense of loss
I'll remember when my heart begins to question
Any doubt that you loved me
Was settled at the cross

Any doubt that you loved me
Was settled at the cross.



~ Of Waltzing and Marriage ~

I just read a post over at "Your Sacred Calling" and thought I would let you all know about it :]  It is just a short post titled "The Dance of Marriage."  It likens waltzing to marriage and I thought it was a great parallel to use. 


Love this waltzing picture from "The Young Victoria"
and thought it was appropriate for the post :]


Here is an excerpt:

"Just as an elegant waltz requires someone to skillfully lead the steps, so does the well-choreographed dance of marriage require a husband to lovingly lead his wife. He doesn’t stomp on her toes; instead, with strength and purpose, and an ear for the great Musician, he leads the dance."

Go check it out!  It will only take you a few moments as it is a really short post and I think you will like it :]

~ God of Heaven ~

This video plays one of my favorite songs, sung by the Steve Pettit Evangelistic Team: God of Heaven.

The person who put the video together also placed some absolutely gorgeous photos of this beautiful earth our amazing and creative God made!  I hope you enjoy listening and watching as much as I did!

His Purpose!



Found on flikr.  Picture taken by  Starfires



"Jesus did not die just to give us peace and a purpose in

life; He died to save us from, the wrath of God. 

 He died to reconcile us to a holy God who was alienated

from us because of our sin.  He died to ransom us from

the penalty of sin -  the punishment of everlasting

destruction,  shut out from the presence of the Lord. 

 He died that we, the just objects of God's wrath, should

 become, by His grace, heirs of God and co-heirs with Him."

~ Jerry Bridges

Let Me Burn Out For Thee

As soon as I heard about this song, I knew that I wanted find the lyrics and share them with all of you.

My Pastor has shared many times about this song being his mom's favorite, but recently it has become even more important as her time on earth is quickly coming to an end.  I've only met this woman twice, but she left a mark on my heart as a loving, caring, sweet and yet stubborn woman that has a heart for sharing the gospel to whoever is put in her path.  As she has been very ill for the last couple months, many people have come in contact with her.  Some came to her house, some were at the doctor's office and some at the hospital.  Yet, wherever she was, she made sure that the person she was talking to heard the gospel.  She is looking forward to spending eternity with the Lord, but understands that she is still here for a reason and her hearts desire is to burn out for Him.

Her family members could share story after story of her diligence in sharing the gospel.  One of the stories came from back when all her kids were young and with several in diapers she was not able to be out spreading the gospel to others and was frusrtated with that :}  She knew her place was with the kids at home and that the ministry of serving, sharing the gospel and training them was just as important as sharing it with strangers, but she had such an incredible desire to share the good news and was frustrated.  So she prayed to the Lord, to send someone or open up an opportunity so that she could minister in this way.....Well, the Lord sent a salesman to her door and she saw him as a gift from God :)  She figured that if she let him talk to her about what he was selling, then he would have to listen to her afterward.   And she did! 

There was a fervency in her heart to share, because she knew that her time on earth was short.  I pray that all of our hearts would be set on fire to share the Good News and that our utmost desire would be to "burn out" for the God we owe everything to.

Oh God, the world is lost in sin,

And so few that seem to care,

Many of whom profess Thy Name, No burden will help to bear,

We need a passion, Lord, for souls,

To bring the lost back to Thee,

Our hearts must be stirred till all have heard

At least once of Calvary.

Refrain
Let me burn out for Thee, dear Lord
Burn and wear out for Thee
Don’t let me rust, or my life be a failure, my God, to Thee
Use me and all I have, dear Lord,
And hold me so close to Thee
That I feel the throb of the great heart of God
Until I burn out for Thee.

How cold has been our giving, Lord!

How selfish our love has been,

Keeping from those who never heard

The gospel that saves from sin!

How often we have turned aside

Neglecting to do our part,

Forgetting Thy tears and agony,

Forgetting Thy bleeding heart

Refrain

Meet us and break us up, dear Lord

Until driven to our knees

Bare to our gaze, Thy cross and love,

Of blood-baptized Calvary,

Speak till we hear again Thy call,

And hold nothing back from Thee.

Oh, burn on our hears the hopeless wail

Of souls damned eternally.

Refrain

O God, with shame I humbly bow,

In tears and a contrite heart.

Forgive me for the broken vows,

And failure to do my part.

I heed Thy call and say “Farewell”

To all that would hinder me;

Thy grace and Thy love to lost ones tell,

And my life burn out for Thee

Refrain

Let me burn out for Thee, dear Lord
Burn and wear out for Thee
Don’t let me rust, or my life be a failure, my God, to Thee
Use me and all I have, dear Lord,
And hold me so close to Thee
That I feel the throb of the great heart of God
Until I burn out for Thee.

~ Bessie Hatcher

Five Books Every Christian Should Have On Their Bookshelf

In the school years of 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 I took classes through Apologia Academy.  They were some of the best classes I ever took!  Apologia Academy offers classes in Science, Bible, Worldview & Apologetics.  The classes I took were 1. Apologetics Introduction, 2. Advanced Apologetics, 3. Introduction to Worldviews, 4. Advanced Worldviews and 5. The Life of Christ.  They were amazing classes and I learned so much.  My teacher, Mr. Larry Blythe, was phenominal and his love for Christ and teaching came across into the class every time.

This video, is Mr. Blythe's opinion of what he thinks are "The Five Books Every Christian and Homeschool Family Should Own."  I've only read the first book he mentions, "I Don't Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist" and learned SO much from that book.  Mr. Blythe had us read at least three books each semester for the classes we were taking and there wasn't one that I didn't enjoy. All of them were by credible authors and were very well written for teenagers and adults.  If Mr. Blythe recommends it, his word is good enough for me. All of the books he talks about in the video look really good.

If there was one thing that I walked away with from the classes that I took, it was that God commands us in 1 Peter 3:15 to "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."  God wants us to prepare ourselves and He has given us some fantastic resources.  There are some pros and cons to living in this century, but the amount of information that we have and the ability we have to search out truth is amazing and definitely one of the pros!

When I saw this video, I thought it would be a great one to share with all of you, so I hope you all enjoy it!

Encouragement Found In A Post

I recently read a post on a fellow bloggers blog and she had a guest writer named Jasmine Bauchman, write a post that was fantastic.  The title of the post was "The World Is Watching You".

Here is an excerpt of the article to give you an idea of what it is about.

"If you choose to train to become a homemaker -if you choose to live at home with your parents and serve your family until you become a wife and mother -if you live under the jurisdiction of your parents until you are given in marriage to a godly young man to whom you choose to submit... And especially if you do all of this because of biblical precedent and precept...

Expect some stones to fly in your direction..........

.......don't lose heart. You are different -you are counter-cultural -you are purposeful -"

I really enjoyed the post as it hit home in so many different areas.  Sometimes it can be so easy to be a "Stay-At-Home-Daughter (SAHD)" and yet other times it can be incredibly difficult.  You love being available to help and serve in the many different areas and situations God has given you, that you wouldn't have been able to experience if you weren't at home during this time in your life. You love being with the people that you love the most in the world and being able to work/serve with them every day.  Then the next day you can be wondering if it is God's will that you stay home when the questions/remarks of other people make you feel guilty for leading a life that is counter cultural and unusual (special).  The wave upon wave of sometimes innocent and sometimes not so innocent comments that are said can make you wonder if it is worth it.

Jasmine's post was exactly what I needed when I read it and I hope that it brings as much encouragement to your heart as it did to mine.  For those of you who are not "SAHD" it is still a neat post if you look at it from a Christian's point of view and read the article as if it was written to Christian's set apart in the world. :] Here is the link to the blog "A Little Space" and here is the link to the post "The World Is Watching You."

Enjoy and be encouraged! 

Chosen Vessel

The Master was searching for a vessel to use; On the shelf there were many which one would He choose? "Take me, cried the gold one I'm shiny and bright, I'm of great value and I do things just right. My beauty and luster will outshine the rest And for someone like you, Master, gold would be the best!" The Master passed on with no word at all; He looked at a silver urn, narrow and tall; "I'll serve you, dear Master, I'll pour out your wine And I'll be at your table whenever you dine, My lines are so graceful, my carvings so true, And my silver will always compliment you." Unheeding the Master passed on to the brass, It was wide mouthed and shallow, and polished like glass. "Here! Here!" cried the vessel, I know I will do. Place me on your table for all men to view." "Look at me", called the goblet of crystal so clear. "My transparency shows my contents so dear, Though fragile am I,I will serve you with pride, And I'm sure I'll be happy in your home to abide." The Master came next to a vessel of wood, Polished and carved, it solidly stood. "You may use me, dear Master", the wooden bowl said. "But I'd rather you used me for fruit, not for bread!" Then the Master looked down and saw a vessel of clay, Empty and broken it helplessly lay. No hope had the vessel that the master might choose, To cleanse and make whole, to fill and to use. Ah! This is the vessel I've been hoping to find, I will mend and use it and make it all mine. I need not the vessel with pride of itself; Nor the one who is narrow to sit on the shelf; Nor the one who is big mouthed and shallow and loud; Nor one who displays his contents so proud; Nor the one who thinks he can do all things just right; But this plain earthy vessel filled with my power and might Then gently He lifted the vessel of clay. Mended and cleansed it and filled it that day. Spoke to it kindly "There's work you must do. Just pour out to others as I pour into you." Author Unknown

Some Inspiration....

God's Amazing Love

His love is unquestionable,

Its power unconquerable,

Its meaning undeniable,

Its mystery unexplainable,

Its sacrifice incomparable,

Its price unimaginable,

Its absence unthinkable![1]

 

 

Google Image



"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." ~ John 3:16 (emphasis added)

Jesus ~

 the Light of the World, came so we could find our way to God.

 Jesus ~  

the Lamb of God, died upon the cross so we could receive the Salvation of God.

Jesus ~ 

the Bright and Morning Star, rose from the dead so we could live forever with God.[2]

Google Image

I am.....

G - God's

R - Redeemed

A - Accepted

C - Chosen

E - Expression of love.

"God chose you from the beginning." 2 Thessalonians 2:13

 



Google Image



Footnotes: 1. dayspring free printable

                  2. ibid

The Sweetes Flowers Are Found In The Canyons

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!  I hope you all have a wonderful day.

I read in my devotions this morning, a story that I thought all of you might enjoy and hopefully encourage you this weekend. 

"For our profit" Hebrews 12:10

~

In one of Ralph Connor's books he tells a story of Gwen.  Gwen was a wild, willful lassie and one who had always been accustomed to having her own way.  Then one day she met with a terrible accident which crippled her for life.  She became very rebellious and in the murmuring state she was visited by the sky pilot, as the missionary among the moutaineers was termed.

     He told her the parable of the canyon. "At first there were no canyons, but only the broad, open prairie.  One day the Master of the prairie, walking over his great lawns, where were only grasses, asked the prairie, 'Where are your flowers?' and the prairie said, 'Master, I have no seeds.'



Clematis



     "Then he spoke to the birds, and they carried seeds of every kind of flower and strewed them far and wide, and soon the prairie bloomed with crocuses and roses and buffalo beans and the yellow crowfoot and the wild sunflowers and the red lilies all summer long.  Then the Master came and was well pleased; but he missed the flowers he loved best of all, and he said to the prairie: 'Where are the clematis and columbine, the sweet violets and wildflowers, and all the ferns and flowering shrubs?'

     "And again he spoke to the birds, and again they carried all the seeds and scattered them far and wide.  But, again, when the Master came he could not find the flowers he loved best of all, and he said: 

     'Where are those my sweetest flowers?' and the prairie cried sorrowfully:

     'Oh, Master, I cannot keep the flowers, for the winds sweep fiercely and the sun beats upon my breast, and they wither up and fly away.'

     "Then the Master spoke to the lightning, and with one swift blow the lightning cleft the prairie to the heart.  And the prairie rocked and groaned in agony, and for many a day moaned bitterly over the black, jagged, gaping wound.

     "But the river poured its waters throught the cleft, and carried down deep black mold, and once more the birds carried seeds and strewed them in the canyon.  And after a long time the rough rocks were decked out with soft mosses and trailing vine, and all the nooks were hung with clematis and columbine, and great elms lifted up their huge tops high up into the sunlight, and down about their feet clustered the low cedars and balsams, and everywhere the violets and windflower and maidenhair grew and bloomed, till the canyon became the Master's favorite place for rest and peace and joy."

     "Then the sky pilot read to her: 'The fruit - I'll read flowers' - of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness - and some of these grow only in the canyon."

     "Which are the canyon flowers?" asked Gwen softly, and the pilot answered: "Gentleness, meekness, longsuffering; but though the others, love, joy, peace, bloom in the open, yet never with so rich a bloom and so sweet a perfume as in the canyon."

     For a long time Gwen lay quite still, and then said wistfully, while her lips trembled: "There are no flowers in my canyon but only ragged rocks."

     "Some day they will bloom, Gwen dear; the Master will find them, and we, too, shall see them."

Beloved, when you come to your canyon, remember!

This is from the book "Streams In The Desert" by L.B. Cowman

Embassy Institute...Better than Netflix in so many ways.

Our family has recently found a treasure on our quest through life.  This treasure contains so many precious gems and we have just started to uncover them. Gems of truth, encouragement, discipleship, comfort, guidance, lessons on how to work on relationships, character qualities and our relationship with God.

You know how when you find something new and you can't wait to tell your bestfriend?  Well, that's the way I feel as I write this. There is a treasure chest waiting to be shared with others, the word just needs to get out! 

Our treasure chest is "Embassy Institute."

"Embassy Institute is the online media library of Embassy University with hundreds of powerful messages.
Embassy is committed to the high calling of training every student to experience success in five vital areas of life:

1. Being a successful Person with character and skills
2. Being a successful Provider in making and managing money
3. Being a successful Persuader in communicating truth
4. Being a successful Partner in marriage
5. Being a successful Parent in training up sons and daughters who are "mighty upon the earth."

The entire Embassy curriculum is built on forty-nine commands of Christ, which transcend all nationalities, cultures, religions, and political systems." (1)

I realize that we are talking about an institute here, but you do not have to be a student to access these incredibly powerful messages.

Our family is learning so much from the many different speakers. Each of the speakers/couples has several different videos of themselves speaking on different topics.  From spiritual warfare, to conquering lies we are believing that are controlling our lives, to working on character qualities.  Our favorite speakers right now are Paul and Jenny Speed,  Chris & Anne Hogan, Bill Gothard, Otto Koning & Jim Logan.  However there are so many more speakers that we haven't even listened to yet!

These videos are all online for you to watch and some of them even have free downloadable materials to go along with the session.

All of this is available to you as soon as you sign up for a subscription.  There are two different options available when signing up for a subscription:

1. A monthly subscription is $9/month
2. A yearly subscription is $99/year (save the equivalent of one month!)

You can listen to some of their sample videos here. 

I can not begin to tell you how much we are learning about God through these speakers that God is using in a powerful way.  Satan wants to destroy us individually and our familes.  However he does not have to kill us in order to do that, he just needs to chain us up in lies he will tempt us to believe.  Lies that will cause us to lose our ability to become what God has planned for us. 

God created us to live victorious and vibrant christian lives and yet how many people do you know that you could describe like that?  Christians that have such an incredible relationship with their Creator and Savior that everyone who comes into contact with them can see Christ and His love.

I know that that is what I want to be.  I want to be what God intended me to be and not your "average" christian.  I want people to see Him and not me.

This Institute is truly a beacon in the spiritual battle we are fighting. 

I want you to imagine in your mind D-Day and the Normandy Invasion of WW2.  Over 425,000 Allied and German troops were killed, wounded or went missing during the Battle of Normandy.  Imagine if you had special information that would have helped prevent all that bloodshed.  Would you have run to General Eisenhower and showed him that information or would you have kept quiet and hoped for the best?  

 Just think how many more lives are at stake.  Millions!   Satan is fighting to bring as many people with him to hell as he can and those he can't take with him he wants to make as ineffective as possible.

This Institute, I believe, has information that is imperitive for every christian to hear and share.  Please go and see what I am talking about.  This is a battle we are to be fighting not sitting on the sidelines and hoping for the best.

May God bless you today and may he help you to live a victorious and vibrant Christian life!

Footnotes: 1. http://www.embassyinstitute.org/about

What is Romance?

I've been reading Leslie's book "The Lost Art of True Beauty" for my devotions lately and it has been such a blessing.  This morning I read several things that I wanted to share with you.  They go right along with the post I did in January regarding the relationship we can have with our Heavenly Father through prayer.


"Contrary to popular opinion, romance is not a relationship - although it can add fullness and spice and excitement to a connection between two people.  Romance is not hearts and flowers and violins, although an evening of hearts and flowers and strings can be soaringly romantic. Romance is instead an attitude, a set of habits, a way of encountering the world.  You are romantic when savoring experience is a priority for you, when you are willing to invest time and energy into making your experiences more vivid and memorable." ~ Thomas Kinkade

      "(Eric's) romantic qualities go far beyond the realm of human romance.  Eric loves life.  He has a passion for living, an excitement to be alive each day, a hunger to experience the fullness of all God has for him on this earth.  He savors the romance and adventure of living a Christ-scripted life.  He deliberately adds a zest to life wherever he goes, whatever his circumstances.  He excels at enjoying the romance of life probably better than anyone else I've ever met.  And in the 17 years I've known him, I've become somewhat of a hopeless incurable romantic too - caught up in the epic adventure of a God-centered life.  It's a most exciting way to live.
      Eric and I believe God doesn't merely intend for life on this earth  to be endured; rather, He intends for life on this earth to be savored - every experience can be purposeful, meaningful, and significant.  Every day is an opportunity to discover more of Him."  ~ Leslie Ludy

That romantic relationship that I wrote about in my previous post on prayer and the relationship it brings with Christ, can be lived out when we see the gifts God has given us and choose to savor experiences, get excited with the little things and love the life He has given us!

As you ride through your weekend, may He bless you with lots of little blessings and may He bless you with the eyes and heart to see them!

For His Glory!

A Blessing......

Our family watched a movie the other night that had all of us (even my Dad) in tears as we were touched and blessed by a truly moving movie.

The movie was "Letters To God."

"Letters To God" revolves around a young boy (Tyler) who is fighting cancer, but writes letters to God as his way of talking to Him. The letters touch the hearts of so many people; the mailman who picks them up everyday, his mom who is trying to understand how this could happen to her son, his grandmother who finds such joy in knowing her grandson loves his Heavenly Father, his brother who is frustrated with what is happening with his brother and just wants life to be back to normal, and so many other people. Tyler wants everything he says and does to point people to God so everything he does is deliberate. He knows his time here on earth is short and precious and he wants to use it to help those he loves for his departure and bring as much joy into their lives as he can.

Oh boy, did we cry! It was such a blessing! It remined us of how precious life is and to spend each moment deliberately bringing glory and honor to Christ.

How many times do I take my family for granted?  My friends for granted?  My God for granted? 

Here is a trailer of the movie.  Please check it out, it may change your life.

If you have watched it, I would love to know what you thought of the movie and if you haven't, why are you still reading this =]

Blessings,