Stones of Remembrance

A year ago today, I was driving down M-18 on Mother's day, May 13th.  My mom and sister had called me before church and decided to call 911.  My dad was in trouble.  After church was over, they called again to tell me that he had a stroke.  I decided I needed to go be with them.  

Homemade cards!

That drive seemed really long and lonely.  I prayed and I prayed some more.  I could not begin to imagine how this day was about to unfold.  My plans had no room for a stroke, a scared mother, a worried sister, a weak me.  I prayed a usual prayer...God you got this, I can handle this.  

Me and my beautiful mom!

But over the days to come, my parent's world began to crumble.  My world began to be shaken to pieces on the ground.  Everything I knew to be reality, no longer existed.  Within days, my dad could not move his right side, talking was a huge problem, and so many other issues.  My mother was broken.  My husband and I had to make tough choices about our own journey in life which meant leaving our job.  Everything that spoke security was gone by the following Sunday. One week changed everything.  How could I even begin to understand what was about to happen on that long drive to the hospital?!

But God knew all along what was about to happen.  Mother's day 2012 was the day that He began to break the chains that bound my family.  
It was the beginning of really showing me that...

She is too adorable and loves every spinny ride!

He chases after us relentlessly.
His ways are far better than anything we can even imagine.    
His joy will be my strength.  
Who I am is not what I was going through.  
He is in EVERY detail of my life.  
He is truly forgiving, merciful, full of grace, tender hearted, patient with me, and a healer of my brokenness. 
He bends down to me, hears me, and knows my name.
He is not ever going to break me. 
His light cast out all darkness.
His love washes over me.
He caries me, holds me, and covers me with His feathers.
When He calls me to follow Him, I must lay everything down....EVERYTHING!

This past year, has changed me for the better.  The struggle, the wrestling with God has helped me become more like Him. There have been angry walks with God.  There have been countless tears shed until I could cry no more.  There have been quiet moments of just listening for Jesus to speak.  In the struggle, tears, words, and listening something inside of me has been redeemed.  All that I was holding back now lies at the foot of the cross where it needed to be all along.  

My son's first carnival ride ever!

Where does that all leave me a year later?  It leaves me with a thankful heart and determination that what lies pass does not define my future.  God alone defines that!  

Jeremiah 29:11

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

So this Mother's day we rejoiced in our God who rescued us from the pit.  We thanked Him for His faithfulness. We remembered His power working in us, changing us.  We celebrated His goodness.  And we marked Mother's day 2013 with stones of remembrance just like Joshua had the tribes of Israel gather stones to mark God leading them from the desert, through the Jordan, and to the promise land.  (Joshua 4:1-9)

Some of the best people in my life now and we are playing BINGO!

We determined that this would be no ordinary Mother's day...nope we CELEBRATED!  My parents and sister came to our home, we went out to eat, and of course there were cards and gifts.  In the late afternoon, we went to our church's huge celebration for God's faithfulness and we had no problem joining right along with that declaration.  We went on rides, ate tons of food, played bingo, laughed, and surrounded ourselves with God's beautiful people.  We then went and sat in hot tub and pool at the hotel...a perfect end to a perfect day.

My sister about to spin her guts out!

I laid my head down at the end of the day and marveled at His goodness.  My heart is so full of thankfulness.  Thank You Lord, for healing my dad inside and out.  Thank You, for being my mother's strong comforter.  Thank You, for my courageous husband.  Thank You, for my loving children.  Thank You, for a strong sister.  Thank You, for extended family who runs to our aid.   Thank You; for the dearest friends who call, encourage,pray and love at always the right time.  Thank You, for the most priceless new friends that have entered my life. Thank You, for such a beautiful healthy church to call home.  Thank You, for my brothers and sisters in Christ who are so merciful and kind.  Thank You, for Your love that has amazed me time and time again.  

As my parents drove away from my home today Monday, May 13th, this verse comes to mind....

Psalm 118:24
This is the day the Lord has made.
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

and My heart was full and overflowing!  

GET JOY!

This picture cracks me up...so much here. 

Psalm 139

¹ O Lord, you have examined my heart
    and know everything about me.
² You know when I sit down or stand up.
    You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
³ You see me when I travel
    and when I rest at home.
    You know everything I do.
⁴ You know what I am going to say
    even before I say it, Lord.
⁵ You go before me and follow me.

My adorable kids!

    You place your hand of blessing on my head.
⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
    too great for me to understand!

⁷ I can never escape from your Spirit!
    I can never get away from your presence!
⁸ If I go up to heaven, you are there;
    if I go down to the grave, you are there.
⁹ If I ride the wings of the morning,
    if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me,
    and your strength will support me.
¹¹ I could ask the darkness to hide me
    and the light around me to become night—
¹²     but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
    Darkness and light are the same to you.

My beautiful sis and her vegan ways!

¹³ You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
    and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
    Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
¹⁵ You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
    as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
¹⁶ You saw me before I was born.
    Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
    before a single day had passed.

Grandma's gift stones with hand prints from the kids.

¹⁷ How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
    They cannot be numbered!
¹⁸ I can’t even count them;
    they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
    you are still with me!

Hope in Grace

Hope in Grace

By Christina Johnson

Lost, blind, confused, trapped,

I am bound.

My chains weigh me down.

Helpless, weak, afraid, twisted,

I long to escape

From this prison I shape.

All the wrong I have done.

All my scars for the world to see,

My shame so far gone,

Sins too many for me to ever be free.

But then a tiny light

Begins to peel back the darkness.

Hope begins to fight

Love strengthens my weakness.

Deep within a Presence I face.

He came humbled, despised, and rejected.

God as man, died in my place

Such love unexpected.

How could I refuse such Hope in Grace?

As sin stained as I stand,

Grace undeservingly embrace.

Freely given as He planned.

Forever my chains broken free

Forever my soul made new

Forever my sin in the sea

Forever "Hope in Grace" for me and you.


GET JOY!

Hebrews 2:9-11

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁹ What we do see is Jesus, who was given a position “a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now “crowned with glory and honor.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone. ¹⁰ God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.

¹¹ So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters.

He Fails Us Not!

^{Romans 8: 38-39}

³⁸ And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. ³⁹ No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

On face book, I posted this song.  I wanted to post here to remind me and maybe to encourage you that no matter what we are going through...God does not fail us.  I think the words of the song remind us that there is nothing that we could ever do to separate us from the love of God...not our failure, not our worry, not our lost-ness, not our sin, not our shame, not our mistakes, not our suffering, not our secrets, not the hate we feel, not the terror we face, not our darkness, nor our doubt, not our even our despair, not even death.  Nothing can keep God from chasing after us and loving us.  He will not fail you.  Say out loud what you are going through.  Once you say it, then shout, "He fails me not!" 

Failure doesn't phase you.
Worry doesn't win.
Lost doesn't leave you afraid to start again.
Our sin doesn't shock you.
Our shame doesn't shame you at all.
Mistakes do not move you.
Terror doesn't tame.
Death doesn't doom you to life in the grave.
Our suffering doesn't scare you.
Our secrets won't surprise you at all.
At all.

There is nothing above you.
There is nothing beyond you.
There is nothing that you can't do.
There is no one beside you.
There is no one that's like you.
There is nothing that you can't do.
Whatever will come, we'll rise above.
You fail us not, You fail us not.
No matter the war, our hope is secure.
You fail us not, You fail us not.
You fail us not.

Hatred doesn't hide you.
Evil doesn't ail.
Despair can't disguise you and tell you that you fail.
Our doubt doesn't daunt you.
Our darkness won't defeat you at all.
At all.

There is nothing above you.
There is nothing beyond you.
There is nothing that you can't do.
Whatever will come, we'll rise above.
You fail us not, You fail us not.
No matter the war, our hope is secure.
You fail us not, You fail us not.
Whatever will come, we'll rise above.
You fail us not, You fail us not.
No, You fail us not.You fail us not. not.

You are bigger than the battle
You are bigger than the battle
You are bigger than the battle
has ever been! ever been!
-1000 generations

Romans 5, part 1- Great Hope, Great Love, Great Gifts

Here I go again, I love, love, love this portion of scripture. (I warned you before Romans is one of my favorite books of the Bible.) In fact, I think I could write and write about this all day. Don't worry I will not do that. I am going to break this portion up into three parts...

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. ³ Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

1. Great Hope
Jenilee wrote a great blog on hope yesterday. Paul really used a great example in Abraham that when all hope seemed lost....God is faithful. I love this idea of gaining access. At a concert you have to have special backstage passes to actually meet the star you are there to see perform; in a way this is kind of like that. When I have faith (backstage pass) I now have access to God by his grace that was given to me. I have peace and hope. I can be in His presence.

Hope is not just there for us when all is good; but in rough times hope still remains. The Holy Spirit has been given to us so that when we face hard stuff in life he will be there to help. Verses 3-5 are so encouraging because they really show that God is working all things to the good of those who are called according to His purpose! Thank you for our helper the Holy Spirit!

⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

2. Great Love
We have learned a lot over the last 5 chapters that there is nothing we can do in our own strength to make ourselves right with God. Paul reminds us of the kind of power it took to make it possible for us to be in a right relationship with Him. It took His son's (God) death to free us from the curse of sin.

I love how Paul drives it home in verse 7, very rarely would anyone who is good die for another that is good. Nobody would die for an enemy! But while when we were enemies of God (because of our sin) Christ still died for you and me. Why? Because of His GREAT LOVE for all of us, He gave His life.

⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! ¹⁰ For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! ¹¹ Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

3. Great Gifts

We receive justification. When I explain this word to kids I use this definition, "Just-If-I" had never sinned. A more scholarly definition would be the act of God whereby humankind is made or accounted just, or free from guilt or penalty of sin. We are justified because of Christ blood that was shed for us. I hope that when we remember what He did for us that it was our justification. We are no longer guilty.

We receive reconciliation. I love this word reconciliation! Reconcile has many meaning like to make (oneself or another) no longer opposed; to become friendly with (someone) after estrangement or to re-establish friendly relations between; to settle a quarrel or difference. Because of Christ death we are no longer enemies of God.

Because of God's Great Hope, Great Love & Great Gifts...I have Great JOY!

GET JOY!

^{Check out Jenilee's blog today!}

Romans 3, part 2 - Are We Without Hope?!

Romans
²¹ But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²² This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
I love this quote from Matthew Henry's commentary,
"For all have sinned (Ro 3:23); all are sinners by nature, by practice, and have come short of the glory of God--have failed of that which is the chief end of man. Come short, as the archer comes short of the mark, as the runner comes short of the prize; so come short, as not only not to win, but to be great losers. Come short of the glory of God."
So where does this leave us? Paul has clearly argued that we are deserving of God's wrath, God will judge us, He knows the secret state of our hearts and we are all sinners. Are we without hope?

²⁴ and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵ God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— ²⁶ he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
Matthew Henry alludes to a wound in his commentary to illustrate what is going on. I think it is very helpful and I want to take it a little further than he does.
Our sin has created this wound between God and us, which has been made very clear in the first three chapters. To remedy this, by His grace, He sent His son "The Great Physician" to come and heal this wound. It is our choice whether or not we want to choose the treatment. But in order to heal this wound there is only one way and that is the offering of perfect, sinless, holy blood to cover the wound. It is the only way; because there is nothing Jew or Gentile can do to make things right. We created the wound, we are guilty and we are sinful. The law shows us what is right and wrong but when we try on our own efforts we only make it worse it displays our sin all the more. The penalty for sin is death, the shedding of blood. Our blood is no good it is vile and sinful; the blood shed of rams, lambs and bulls is temporary fix....
We need something greater than ourselves...we need God the creator to intervene. We need Christ, the fulfillment of the law, our redeemer to rescue us. When we accept the free treatment through faith Christ, His perfect and holy blood covers the wound. Then and only then are we justified.
He toke on the sins of the world by dying on the cross. His work on the cross provides the healing ointment through his perfect sinless blood. His blood heals the separation between us and God. He becomes our mediator. He becomes our propitiation; he has appeased the wrath of God. Jesus Christ has healed us. He has conquered death and the grave. He is the perfect sacrifice for our sin.
All of this is ...because He knew us in our mother's womb. He created us. We are His children.....All of this, because He loves us.

We choose to stray...Yet, He choose to make away.
Death is what we have earned...Yet, Life is what He has offered.
We rejected God....Yet, He shed His blood.
Our efforts are unavailing....Yet, His death was restoring.
We needed a Savior...And He became or Redeemer!

GET JOY!

Don't forget to check out Jenilee's blog post on Romans 3!
The painting is one of Ron Dicianni's work that was commissioned by the Assemblies of God depicting one of our major tenants of the faith.

31 Virtues for Our Kids ~ Hope

HOPE

Over the next few months we will be praying for 31 Virtues for our Kids maybe even for ourselves too!

Romans 15:13 (New Living Translation)
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

(I love this translation!)

"Confident Hope" is what I want for me and my kids! Hope is not something unattainable or far off in a world with such little hope. I want to pray that God will give us hope. Romans 15:13 is an "if - then" verse and it is a verse with a promise. I love these kinds of verses; they are clear, give us direction and full of promise.

"IF" - If I trust in Him!

God always requires some action on our part in order to receive His promises. His promises are always available to us but we have to actively choose to experience them. Trust means to fully rely on God. We must give Him all of us and hold nothing back which can be very hard to do.

"Then" - God (source of hope) will fill me completely!

Always remember that God keeps all His promises. When we trust in Him then He will fill us completely. I love that we can tap into the very source of hope. This part reminds me of a spring. We use to live in Petoskey, MI and a nearby town, Harbor Springs, is known for it spring water. There are various places where you can go and fill jugs with pure, wonderful, fresh spring water. You don't have to go to the store and purchase it...you can go right to the source and it is free. Wow, that will preach right there LOL. We can go to the source of ALL Hope....and it's free! We just have to trust and then He will fill us.

What will he fill me up with?

1. Joy (a deep feeling or condition of happiness or contentment)

Well, you can probably tell this word really excited me when I saw it here in this verse! I love it that God fills us with joy. Oh, how we all need joy in our lives everyday. But, I love that joy is more than just happiness it is also contentment.

2. Peace (reconciled with God)

It is more than peace with others; it is being reconciled with God almighty. We are made right with Him. He has paid our debt and we can have a personal relationship with our creator. There are no other religions that permit you to have a relationship with their god. In Christ he has made a way for us to have a relationship with God. He has reconciled us to Him. We can find perfect peace in Him!

"The Promise"

I will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit! Not only does He fill us with joy and peace, as a result he fills us to overflowing. It doesn't surprise me that God gives us more than what we need. He wants to give us good things...

Luke 11

9"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
11"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

What is more amazing here is that we find that it is not confident hope that is the gift...it is the power of the Holy Spirit! It is Holy Spirit that then gives us confident hope. I have learned over my life not to miss what the true gift is ...it is God, Himself! Yes, confident hope is wonderful but it is useless with out God! Thank you Lord that you give us the power of your Holy Spirit in our lives!

*"May the God of hope grant that my children may overflow with hope and hopefulness by the power of the Holy Spirit"

*by Bob Hostetler, it is excerpted from Pray! magazine issue #4, 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Kids