Category Archives: Who I am in Christ

Simple Days

Grace, mom, motherhood, Spiritual Encouragement, Uncategorized, , , ,

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A Terrible, Horrible, no Good, very Bad Day!

A simple day can bring may things.  Joy, laughter, pain, sorrow.  It can be simple, complex, confusing, long or short.  It can end quickly, or go on forever. We have all had those days.  But Moms go on.  They endure.

I left early to avoid the rain.  Well you guessed it.  As soon as I pulled in the lot the downpour began.  And shall I mention the lightning and thunder?  I had to get out and open the gate.  Umbrella up, strong shove.  No movement.  Lightning strike, umbrella up…stronger shove…success.  And the umbrella really didn’t work.

The morning settled down a bit.  I worked my shift, made a phone call about a trip I “won”, which of course was too good to be true.  My shift got over and I headed home for Monday chores.  Need I say more?

The sink got clogged, the washer overflowed, the dog threw up, the kids did not pick up their clothes, the stove burner quit working, and all this in one hour.  Yes, it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.  But Moms go on.  They endure.

I got to supper with a few more issues, but everything seem to slow down a bit.  I had bought meat to grill, and it was very thick.  I decided to pre broil it before grilling.  I made a huge mess, it would be tough but I tried to grill it anyway.  Once the meat was on the grill I put the potatoes on the stove top burner that worked and headed back outside to check on the meat.  I could tell you that the grill lid had come loose and the top metal rack was laying on top of the meat.  I could tell you that the grill lid was sliding off the back, too hot to fix and the meat had caught on fire.  Would you believe me? Nah…

The meat was now “done” and the potatoes were finishing.  I picked up a bowl to place in the dishwasher and of course it was full of milk that proceeded to jump from the bowl onto the floor, cabinets and my jeans.  I made some very loud noises.  They must have been of another planet because the boys came running and their dishwashing skills became quite evident.  

Did I mention that the smoke alarm sounded, I tripped over the dog and fell on my knee?  I didn’t think so.  “Lord, I need your help right now.” I murmured under my breath.  Dinner was completed, and somehow we found a way to eat the charred mess.  The potatoes survived.

Moms endure. But this momma needed a bike ride.  Why would this be any different than the rest of the day?  Soon the neighborhood dog was chasing me down the street, I was trying to get away from him and a car was headed straight into my path.  I swerved, got away from the dog and headed for home.

I got home and went to the bedroom and just sat.  I did not move.  But the bed did.  Two baskets full of clothes to be folded still on the bed…and as if to add insult to injury, it still fell off of one of its legs.  I gave up.  I yelled that I was going to bed and even though my husband offered to fix the bed, I declined.  He knew that this Mom had endured her limit for the day!

I woke up in the night (in a slanted position I might add)…and just thanked God for getting me through the day.  Yes it was terrible, horrible, not good and very bad…I still had a roof over my head, a healthy, sleeping family and the silence of the night. I had my life and the Lord had protected me through all the trials throughout the day.  I had endured…with His help. 

Matthew 6:34 “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

After all, tomorrow was a new day. Possibly a wonderful, delightful, good not bad day!!

~Teachable moment~ ALEXANDER’S TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY by Judith Viorist is a great book to talk about our circumstances and how it feels sometimes…yet God does not leave!

Be Blessed~

IN CHRIST ALONE
Isaiah 55:8-9

*google image, NIV*

Spring Stings!

Christ's rest, Christian encouragement, Discouraged Christian, Encouragement for Women, Freedom in Christ, Grace, Hope, Jesus Christ, Love of God, Spiritual Encouragement, To Rest in Christ, , , , , , , , , , ,

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Ah…the spring…and stings!

With warm weather comes the beautiful season of blooming flowers, budding trees, grass becoming green…and…duh, duh…duh (notice drama building), stings!!

Being outside has issues, but we still love being outside as much as possible. But the stings of anything can cause havoc in our lives. We were walking down the street just the other day and a little bee of some kind decided to fly near my husband’s eye and sting the corner! He did swell up, and thankfully it wasn’t in the eye (although with all the wailing I thought it was, just kidding!)

Over the years we all have suffered stings. Once I received the wrath of a wasp and swelled to such a large size that the emergency room proved the only refuge. Which later caused the need for an emergency epi pin to relieve any further sting damage in the future world of stinging. The pin should not have been prescribed for me I later learned from an allergy specialist, but it had been. So when I was stung by a very large, unhappy wasp which had gotten in my way, I used the pin. Bad choice. My heart raced uncontrollably and it did nothing for the swelling of the sting. It just caused heart issues. Not good.

My husband’s hand tripled in size one summer and he continued to deliver packages on his job. He had to have help just picking the packages up, and we won’t even talk about how hard it was to drive! Needless to say, stings are not pleasant experiences, as many of you well know.

The word “sting” translates to a word that means: “a sting, as that of bees, scorpions, locusts. Since animals wound by their sting and even cause death, Paul attributes death, personified as a sting, i.e. a deadly weapon”

I Corinthians 15:56-57 says this: “The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

“Sin” translates to “Hamartia” which means “missing the true end and scope of out lives, which is God.” STAY WITH ME.

Therefore, the thing of venom or poison is our eternal missing the true end and scope of our lives, God. When we miss God, when we miss that intimate relationship with Jesus, we we don’t know him as Lord and Savior, we know the sting of death. That pain, that spreading of poison! Eternity not spent with God.

The power and strength of that “missing the true scope of our lives….God” is the law! In other words, the sting of that wasp only had power over us if throughout that we had to do a certain amount of actions in a certain way…and only that way to bring us relief. Medicine, cool compresses gave us relief or victory over the sting by removing the poison. Just as Jesus gives us the victory over death and its sting! The shot I gave myself was the “law” that I was told I had to do..and it was wrong. It brought me more problems with the racing heart. The “law” did not relieve my sting.

Only Jesus Christ can give us that victory. There is no “law” that can bring us that peace. There are not a set of rules and regulations that will give us peace over that sin if we approach it in the manner of the law. A wise friend once told me: “The law commands your flesh to work and then it condemns everything it does.” We cannot do enough to rid us of that sting of death…but Jesus death on the cross bore that sing of death so that we might have victory over it.

Romans 10:4 says “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.“

Those wasps have no power over my husband and I! We had the victory through the meds and treatment to avoid the death of the sting. We are sometimes at the wrong place at the wrong time…bad things do happen in our lives, but death has no sting for the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ!!

So as this spring shows its beautiful face, stay away from those stings…or at least know how to rid yourself of the poison!! Rely on what you know to be true. Remember through and in HIM we have victory!

Be blessed~

IN CHRIST ALONE

Isaiah 55:8-9

 *google image, NIV, Strong’s Concordance*

Simple Feet (Part 1)

Christianity, Grace, Love one another, mom, motherhood, Parenting, Spiritual Encouragement, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Simple Feet- Part 1

I have an aversion to feet.  There I said it.  Baby feet I can tolerate.  Sorry.  What kind of mom was I?????

But simple feet have a story to tell.

 John 13:2-8  “The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judias Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.  Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his out clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.  He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, ‘Lord are you going to wash my feet?’ and Jesus replied ‘You do not realize what I am doing, but later you will understand.’ ‘No’, said Peter, ‘you shall never wash my feet’ Jesus answered, ‘unless I was you, you will have no part of me.'”

Friends, these were not baby feet!!  These were grimy, dirty, walk many miles in the mud and no telling what else, men feet.  And our Jesus actually washed them!! The King of Kings and Lord of Lords washed his disciples’ feet!!

Imagine sitting around the table, laughing, eating and having a good time.  The serious stuff had not happened yet.  I believe with all my heart that Jesus knew how to have a good time.  He was happy, charismatic and a man whose love drew people to him.  At any rate, he knew his time had come and he knew the lesson he had to teach. And Jesus, the greatest teacher ever, taught them in a way they would understand and remember. Can you imagine the horror on the disciples’ faces? I bet the silence was deafening as they all sat there with shock on their face!

Then Peter (love this guy) said what most all of them wanted to say….and then Jesus responded.  Jesus was showing them the love he had for them!  He showed the true humility of God’s servant by washing their feet.  He was setting the example…Luke 22:15-15 “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.  I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater that the one who sent him.”

I have a story to further illustrate this lesson next time.  Simple feet…a lesson indeed!

Be blessed,

IN CHRIST ALONE

Isaiah 55:8-9

*google image, NIV*