BUT GOD...

Disappointments surely come
Sadness and sickness thrive
Death looms 'round each corner
Trying to take our lives

But God is MY source of comfort
My Rock and my King of Peace
He shieldeth me in the storms I'm in
He promised me He'd never leave

Though the world around me shakes and shifts
Though pain still comes my way
In HIM will I stand and rest and pray
In HIM will I always stay


Isaiah 12:2 says,"Behold, God is my salvation,I will trust and not be afraid; For the LORD GOD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation." AMEN!

Answered Prayer

Since my last post, God has answered my disappointment resoundingly. I had been disappointed mostly because Ricky and I were praying about a pastorate position and God had not seen fit to answer us in the affirmative. The church where we had sent our resume had voted in someone else from out of state. We had really felt good about the church and were very sad. Ironically, we still held out hope and were still praying for the church. Little did we know what God was planning and when. At the end of October, we heard that the guy they had voted in had declined the position. Ricky and I knew at that point that we needed to pray more fervently and specifically. After reconnecting with one of the deacons, we were asked to come in for a meeting. The first week of November, Ricky and I met with the deacons and the youth leader of Living Free Fellowship in Portland, TN. After a great meeting of like minds and hearts, we waited. We received a call the next week to preach and be voted on. On November 17th, we tried out and were voted in, unanimously. We took the week to pray and talk about it. We already knew in our spirits that it was right, but we wanted to talk to the girls and the rest of the family about the changes to come. We called and accepted the position, thereafter, and had our first service as pastors on December 7, 2008. Since then, God has grown our love for the church people and has grown our passion for his service. We had felt complacent for many years-- sort of stuck in a rut. We feel revived and renewed in our vision and passion for God. We are thankful that God chose to say YES, and we are humbled by his trust in us and seek his guidance and anointing to minister to the people in our care. God was with me in my disappointment, and I am grateful that he listened to my grumblings and still loved me. But... that's our great God! There is none other like HIM! Thank you, Lord; I love you!

Disappointment

What do you do when you are disappointed? Me? I tend to turn inward. I tend to get really quiet and question life and my place in the world. I tend to wallow in my sadness for a while, and then I wake up to God's faithfulness and perfect sovereignity. Right now, I am disappointed. I am at the point of quiet questioning. What is God trying to teach me? Have I missed his direction? Have I not done something that I should of done, or did I do something that I should not have done? Am I who He wants me to be? Will I ever be? I KNOW that my questioning and waiting will lead me to God and His still small voice. I KNOW that His timing is perfect; His ways are perfect; and He will complete the perfect work that He began in me. But... until I totally wake up to all of those truths... I sulk and wallow.

Thanks, friend!

This summer I was feeling a little low and one of the HSYM youth gave me a word of encouragement. All she did was tell me that she appreciated me. Those words have been repeated by so many, so often, in so many situations without even a thought of their meaning; however, when she spoke those words, they were exactly what I needed to hear when I needed to hear them. So... I wrote a poem...

One Kind Word

One kind word was spoken to me today.
It was enough to send my sorrow and sadness away.
The power of that word the sender could not have known.
Yet, healing balm abounds when kindness and love are shown.

Simple, but true! Thank you, friend, for that kind word. I was feeling blue and you showed me that you cared. Let us be encouragers, even when we feel like we are the ones who need encouragement. Kind words are like boomerangs-- they are sent out from our hearts, fly by others to spread good will, and then return back to us. Again, thank you, friend!

This Poem Is (S)Not About You

This is a little 'ditty' I wrote this summer-- just for the heck of it! There is NO hidden meaning behind it, and it was NOT written with anyone special in mind. So... enjoy! And, please, feel free to use it, if need be!

This Poem Is (S)Not About You

Noses are red and
skintones are blue.
It's allergy season;
I'm NOT crying over you.

The pollen and the spores
are what make my eyes water.
Nah, knowing you're gone
doesn't make me fret or bothered.

I don't love you
and I don't think I like you either.
Have a nice life,
but please hand me my breather.

I Believe (Another Journal Entry)

I had written a blog a while back about one of my pet peeves-- when people put "I believe..." before a statement of truth. I wrote in my journal in January 2007 about a few things that I believe. So as not to sound hypocritical, these are just a few of the truths that I hold dear which is different than the context of my pet peeve (using "I believe" to transition into a statement of fact and not belief, conviction or opinion). There is a difference, if even a small one! Here goes...

From January 4, 2007... I BELIEVE

I believe emphatically in Your never failing Word and Will.
I believe eternally in Your Name, which is above all names,
Your reign, which is forevermore, and Your love, which is constant and true.
Jesus, I believe in YOU!

Wit's End

My husband and I took our girls to see Narnia's Prince Caspian today. Great movie with a great message! As I was reading in my devotional book tonight, I was struck by the similarities of my devotional for today and the moral of the movie. The scripture for my devotional was Psalm 107:27-28, "At their wit's end, then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out." (I will not discuss the similarities in detail as to not give away much of the movie; I will discuss this scripture passage and its meaning a bit more, though.) God allows us to get to our wit's end so many times. Why do you think that is? God amazingly chooses to reveal himself and his strength and will at just the right moment-- that moment after the will and strength of man runs out or proves insufficient and that moment before man becomes eternally despondent. It is at that exact moment (at our wit's end) that man can choose to rely fully on God and can be fully at peace and fully cared for by the Father, having heartfelt needs met and hearts mended. God knows that we are incapable of taking care of ourselves without him; he also knows that we need to know that. GOD is able and ONLY through him are we victorious in any and all situations!