Fear Not

If I open my eyes to what God is doing in our life's I see Him at work all the time.
My girls went to VBS today and had a blast and they learned Fear not because God is always with us. They have been singing and shouting this throughout the day. To hear my girls sing and shouting praises gives me chills.
As the girls and I had a great day Shawn was at work having a not so good day. He had meetings that did not go so well and was dealing with a boss that can be inappropriate. So when it comes time to put the girls down Shawn asked them what they learned at VBS and they said Fear not God is always with us. We both looked at each other and smiled. What a great lesson from a 3 and 5 year old. They have fears of bugs, thunder, loud noises and yet to them these are valid fears. As there parents we have different fears but as the girls reminded us Fear not. God's word tells us:
Romans 8:14-16 NIV
14because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.[a] And by him we cry, "Abba,[b] Father." 16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.

I learn so much from my girls and today was no exception.

His Love

Day 1
Take a minute to pray before listening to the song and ask God to open you ears to really hear what He has for you today.
I love this song!!This song was very emotional the first time I heard it. I am a crier and that was my first response as I listened and thought about the day I will sit at His feet. Even writing that brings tears to my eyes. So just know that the most important part of this time with God is exactly that time with Him!
Lets jump into His living word. Heb 11:6
We are not called to casually seek Him how are we called to seek Him ____________
Think about when you really seek after Him. When you make it a priority. When you turn off the T.V., get up early or stay up late. What happens when you earnestly seek Him?
____________________
I find that when I put all the stuff down and dig into His Word, get on my knees or listen to a song and really take in what the words are saying He is there.
Lets look at Jer 29:13
You will _______ me and ______ me when you ______ me with all you _______.
Lets back up and read Jer 29: 11-13 When we seek Him he will make those plans know to us. I get very excited about this part. I love that when I put in the effort and really seek Him he is there. Even if I get lax for a few days he does not.
I hope you enjoyed this song today- Jaime

What a great night of Praise and Worship

Well it is 9:45 and I just got back from a Night of Praise and worship with my sisters in Christ. I love Praise and Coffee nights they give me a chance to catch up with friends, drink coffee and most importantly Praise our Heavenly Father. Tonight was all about worship and I was so excited. I love to sing and love to listen to praise and worship songs. Something is different when we get together with our sisters in Christ and let the walls down to praise our God. The first time I really experienced this was at a Beth Moore conference and I now will jump at the chance to have praise time with my sisters. No offense to our men but when women come together and sing it is powerful. We all come with junk and we all come a little tired from the day and yet no of that matters. It's all about him!! One of the songs tonight talked about God moving mountains and I can't get that out of my head. I get wrapped up in my own little world and I sometimes forget how big our God is. When he speaks things happen, things change, or something is created. We all have those mountains in our life and yet he is there when we fully trust him to move it or blow it up.
Please know I am speaking to myself! I have a tendency to walk around the same mountain, so this song was very powerful for me.
Lets take a minute to listen to this song and Praise our Lord.
Jer 29:13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Mighty to Save-Laura Story

As I mentioned before the part of this song that stuck out to me tonight was he is able to move mountains. What impacted me might be totally different than what was impacting to you.
What part of this song touched you?
When I think about the mountains that he has moved in my life I think the biggest one was our marriage going down hill. He has worked in so many areas of my life but this is the mountain that was truly higher than I ever imagined. Shawn and I have now been married for 9 years on Oct 14th and I love him more all the time. I think back to our wedding day and I know now I didn't have a clue. God did. He knew what would happen in the next few years, and he knew we would both come running to him. We came at different times and in different ways but he was there and he moved those mountains in our lives that were hindering our marriage.
So it is pretty silly when I think about the big mountain that he moved and then I am still waking around this little hill because of my own insecurities.
Our God is mighty to save -He is the author of Salvation- his love is everlasting - he is our only true Savior- he offers forgiveness- and best of all for me, he loves me the way I am!!
I hope you are as blessed from this song as I was, and I hope that if you have a chance to do Praise and Worship with you Sisters you will. It is so worth it.
Love Jaime

Knowing Him Better

We are full swing into summer. Camps,riding bikes, playing with friends, working in the yard and this week we are getting ready for a garage sale. As women and Mom's we are usually jugging a full plate,and with kids home for the summer that might be adding more to that plate. My girls have had princess camp this week for a few hours, so I have been using that time to work on the garage sale. Last night I was just needing to veg and could not find anything on TV, so I flipped to Joyce Meyer. To be honest I wanted to watch something that didn't involve thinking, but after a few minutes I was writing down verses. Since I have been busy with the girls and getting the garage sale ready I have not been taking my quiet time like normal. Why when I get busy do I push the most important thing in my life to the side. God deserves a front seat in my(our) life all the time and putting quiet time with him on the back burner should not be an option. When I set the busyness aside and spend time with my Father it is always a blessing. This is the verse that Joyce really focused on and it was a true blessing:
Ephesians 1:17-20 NIV
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[a] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms
Ephesians 1:17-20 (The Message)
15-19That's why, when I heard of the solid trust you have in the Master Jesus and your outpouring of love to all the followers of Jesus, I couldn't stop thanking God for you—every time I prayed, I'd think of you and give thanks. But I do more than thank. I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!
I have read these verses before but never focused on the part about knowing him better. In the busyness of the summer I am going to take this verse and memorize it. When I have a minute here and there I can pray that my Lord Jesus would give me wisdom and revelation to know him better.
I also loved the part about knowing the hope to which you are called to or in the message see exactly what is is he is calling you to do. We all have gifts that are a blessing to others and the great thing is they are all different. I had a friend call me today and she was making meals for people and 6 of them! Now that is her gift. I asked her if she has always loved cooking and cooking for others and she said YES!! Praise God for women like her. Now that is not my gift and if I make you a meal I hope it's edible.
If you know your calling great if you are not so sure that's ok too. We have a Father that is always at work and in his time he will reveal it. Something that helps me is when I look back over the last year to remember what has changed. How am I moving forward and how has God been at work. When I take the time to remember all he has done I see that he is working.
I have heard this line before and I think it is fitting to this verse: See where God is working and join him. He is at work and sometimes we just have to open our eyes.
I hope that in the busyness of life we all take to time to grow in our love for God this summer.
Praise God that we have eternal Hope!

Meeting with Girlfriends

Hebrews 10: 23-25
23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Do you think of a certain friend when you read this verse. One that always has great wisdom and has known the Lord for a while. We all need to be spurred on once in a while.I have been blessed to have a few friends that have been a great encouragement to me as a wife and Mom. As women we all do life differently and yet we can learn so much from each other.
From one friend I learn more about being a great and Godly Mom, and from another I might gain insight and encouragement about putting my husband before my children. God has made women for fellowship and community, that is why we feel a little recharge when we take the time to meet with our girlfriends.
As I met with a new friend today I was really enjoying our time and feeling encouraged. Having some time with her to talk through a few things gave me new perspective and a few things to pray about.
Lets take a minute and lift up that girlfriend that came to mind when you read Heb.

Indescribable

Our God is so worthy of our praise.
This song is a great reminder of how amazing our Creator is and all he has done for us. He is our Creator, he knows the number of hairs on our head, he is indescribable, he is amazing, and he loves his children. It's a bit ridiculous then for me to look at a situation or problem and get overwhelmed or get consumed with fear. I know God is at work and I have seen him work in so many peoples lives and yet sometimes I forget how powerful he is. When I am weak he is strong.
As I looked up weak and strong in the Bible I came across 2Corinthians 12:7-10
This is what is written in the Application part of my Bible:
We don't know what Paul's thorn in the flesh was, because he didn't tell us. Some suggest that it was malaria, epilepsy, or a disease of the eyes. Whatever the case it was a chronic debilitating problem, which at times kept him from working. This thorn was a hindrance to his ministry, and he prayed for its removal; but God refused.
2Cor 12:9 Says My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.
So as Paul and you and I see our weakness as something that is hindering us God uses it for his Glory. If we let him, I believe he works through that weakness. If we focus up and not around then all things are possible through Christ. I hope you find time today to listen to this song a few times and think about all he has done for all of us.