Let it Shine

I keep finding myself using the phrase "its a win-win". I love this phrase and I love it when I find myself in a win-win situation.

Living my life for Christ means that I get to spend eternity in heaven. That is a major win. However, there is more.

Living my life for Christ also means that I have the opportunity to show others what Christ is like. That is another major win.

In Matthew 5:14 he writes "You are the light of the world.  A city on a hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.  Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good needs and praise your Father in heaven".

Sometimes I wonder, is my light shining? I know I love God, and I am living every day for Him...but can people see this through my words, my actions and my attitude?

Today, I completely lost my marbles because we were late to church. Is my light still shining?  Today, I lost my patience, more than once. Is my light still shining? Today, I was selfish. Is my light still shining?

I have a two and a half year old watching my every move.  That is a gigantic responsibility that I take very seriously.  Does that mean that I have to strive for perfection all day long? That would be really hard. I am not perfect, but the great news is that I don't need to be. God is perfect, and that is what my son needs to learn.

When I seek to be like Christ, even when I sin, my light still shines because nothing can separate me from my God.

I want my light to shine so brightly so that my son is blinded by the goodness and grace of God, so I keep making God my number one priority. 

My husband and I pray continuously that our son would grow up to be a God-centered man. On one hand we have no control over that, but on the other hand we do. The closer that my husband and I are to God, the more we will be like Him, and the more influence He will have on our son.

So how do we get our lights to glow, continuously, all day and all night long when there is this thing called sin that gets in the way?

We remain in God's living word, we pray continuously through out the day, we speak up for what is right, and we remain quiet when the time is right. We speak Biblical Truth to those around us, we refuse to listen to lies and we run in the opposite direction of sin. We confess when we sin and we ask for forgiveness. We put our hope, our trust, and our identity in Christ. When we do these things there is no way to turn off the light.

There is no reason to hide, Let your light shine.



 

5 Tips for the Exhausted Women Who Wants to Do it All

I have got to do something quick or else I seriously might fall asleep in the playroom. The coffee isn't working, the dance music is making it worse, the words in my Bible are starting to blur together and I still have 3 hours until nap-time.

I feel like a young 21 year old who just experienced her first hangover. The feeling of regret and 'why did I do that' looming over me. The difference is that I haven't had any alcohol in over a week and my hangover feelings is from exhaustion, not wine coolers and cheap beer.

"How did I let myself get to this point"?

The honest answer is that I have way to many first priorities and I don't want to let any of them go. I want to give my child the best of me 24/7, I want to give my husband the best of me when he is home, yet I also want to make healthy meals for my family, exercise, help provide for my family, start my day in prayer, serve others, connect with friends and family, read God's word daily, and minister to women. Sleep? Maybe I'll do that when I'm 50.

I can't be the energizer bunny for ever. At some point, like today, I am going to hit a wall. When I get to this point, I am not doing anything well.

Technically it all comes down to finding balance, good time management, sticking with your priorities and saying no. However, there is another answer to this problem that is less technical and way more accurate.

It's called obeying God's commands. If God tells me to rest, I rest. If God tells me to work my tail off, then I work. 

If I don't follow God's commands then I will fail and my house will fall (Matthew 7:27). 

You see, God does have all the answers. When we walk with God through out our entire day, our day starts to revolve around God's plans, not ours. We begin to see our daily activities through God's eyes.

I don't want to work on my plans...I want to work on Gods plans. I want God's plans to succeed. I know that sometimes that involves little sleep, but that's OK because God will give me what I need. Other times, I need to rest, spend time alone with God, and connect with Him. God will take care of everything else around me while I spend precious time with Him.

I find that when I stop and listen for God's direction through out my day, I am able to prioritize way easier and I am pleasantly surprised at the tricks God has up his sleeve.

Here are 5 Tips on how to Listen for God's Direction throughout your day:
1. Begin your day with prayer. I have said this before and I will say it again. Ask God to direct your steps and help you prioritize before your feet hit the floor.
2. Obey God in the big things. If there is a major sin in your life, it may be the reason you are unable to get your head above water. Nothing is more important than getting right with God and obeying Him. Seek counseling, confront your family, and get right with God.
3. Obey God in the small things. When we obey God in the small things it becomes a lot easier to obey Him in the big things.
4. Pray throughout your day. Ask God about anything and everything. Learning to walk with God throughout your day is the key to being able to identify the overwhelming "God wants me to do this" feeling.
5. Ask God for big time miracles. There are no closed doors with God. You may think you have to do it all because you have no other options. God does have other options. All you have to do is ask. You might not know another way, but God knows 100 other ways. Don't Give Up or Settle.

P.S. It's OK to nap. Jesus napped all the time!

"Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people.  And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you" Jeremiah 7:23.

What YOU Can Do this Memorial Day

Warning: this Memorial Day post is not going to help you host the best cookout, or make the sweetest cupcakes. It is not going to help you cook a great feast or entertain your kids at the pool. It will, however, give you some ideas and inspiration on what YOU can do to make this country better and honor our military men, women and families. 

Memorial Day is a special day set aside to encourage every American to stop what they are doing, pray for our military, and give respect and honor to those who have lost their lives while protecting our great country. 

While everyone knows the meaning of Memorial Day and why we celebrate it, many of us get caught up in the cookouts, parties, pools opening, and an extra day off work to sleep or get things done. Why is this? Is it because we don’t know what else we can do?   Is it because we don’t know how to honor those men and women who are serving, have served, or who have lost their lives while serving?

On this Memorial Day, let us not focus on what our military is or is not doing or whether or not we agree with the wars that have been fought or are still fighting. Instead, let us focus on what we can do, right now, to help our selfless brothers and sisters who gave us and who are still fighting for the land of the free. 

Here are two paths you can take:

1.       Pray for and help those who are mourning the loss of a veteran. Bring them a meal, pray over them, spend quality time with them, and thank them.  Many young people these days have lost the knowledge on how to be respectful and show honor. It’s not rocket science; it’s called following God’s commandment for our life.  We OWE respect and honor to those men, women, and families who lost a life while serving. In Romans 13:7 Paul writes “Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes. If revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect, if honor, then honor”.

2.       Pray for and help those soldiers who are wounded and who are suffering from mental illness as a result of their experiences while serving. Just as there are many who lost their lives, there are many, many soldiers who  feel as though they lost their life because they feel like a different person; either physically, mentally or both.  For every one of the soldiers that falls within this category, there are just as many families who are suffering right alongside their loved one.  Soldiers who were wounded either physically or mentally and who do not get the help they need run a high risk of facing divorce, abuse, job loss, drug and alcohol abuse and suicide.

If you are finding yourself in a situation where you want to help, you want to do something but you don’t know of anyone in your community or you don’t know where to start, then donating or volunteering at an organization that helps veterans is a good place to start. I promise you that every dollar or minute spent counts. 

The Wounded Warrior Project and the Veterans Crisis Line are two that my family has supported throughout our adult years.  You might be wondering “what is my $25 or $100 really going to do for one of these organizations”? Let me tell you: it could save a life. I know because I worked at a Suicide Hotline and saw, first hand, veterans deciding not to end their lives because of the hope and encouragement that the Veterans Crisis Line provided. 

Lastly, Memorial Day is also a day of celebration. We can celebrate our freedom, our love for our country, our gratitude for our military, and those service men and women who did not lose their lives. 

By the grace of God, my brave and humble grandfather survived the deadliest campaigns of WWII: Camp Gloucester, Guadalcanal, Peleliu and Okinawa. He died just a few months ago at the age of 93. He fought, he survived, and he lived a very long and happy life. That is something to celebrate. 

 I cannot celebrate his life or my my freedom, however, until I have done my part in giving respect and honor to those who fought and did not survive, or those who fought and are barely surviving now. 

This Memorial Day, Please join me in honoring those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

To learn more about the Wounded Warrior Project or how you can help visit:http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/

To learn more about the Veterans Crisis Line and how you can help visit http://www.veteranscrisisline.net/   and watch this sort video. https://youtu.be/68KUJvLrIfY