Swallowing A Moose

A Year With Jesus By R.P. Nettelhorst Review

2011-11-17T19:21:00.002-05:00

A Year With Jesus

Daily Reading & Reflections on Jesus' Own Words

By R.P. Nettlehorst

First off I would like to say how much I am enjoying reading this particular writing. I feel the content has been very needed for my own spiritual life as I just reflect on the sacred words and teaching of the One who gave His life for me. Seems we many times get so focused on the writings of others in the Scriptures we seldom go back to just let His words perculate in our hearts. Very needed content. Very needed now!

Mr. Nettelhorst has broken the book down into several main themes: Love & Hate; Truths & Lies; Arrogance & Humility; Friends & Enemies; Belief & Disbelief; Patience & Impatience; Deserved and Undeserved; Good & Evil; Fidelity & Treachery; and lastly Life & Death. Within each section are the days which take up one page a piece. Half of the one page are the words of our Jesus and the other half is Mr. Nettelhorsts commentary. In the commentary on the words of Jesus you will many times find lots to learn from history, original text, etc.

I feel that this would be a great gift book for anyone, daily reading for oneself, but most definetly a book for the older audience as in aged 30+. You won't waste a penny on its purchase because it's a substantial sized book.

* The above is my honest review of the book provided to me by Thomas Nelson for review purposes.

Presently Under Construction: Please Excuse the Dust

2011-07-28T19:15:00.001-04:00

Please excuse the mess here presently. Swallowing A Moose is under construction!

Kingdom Talk

2011-05-31T14:36:00.001-04:00

For the last year now the Lord has been bringing an education on His kingdom to me. It started with a lunch date almost this time last year and is still going on within' me as He teaches me through His Spirit. Amazing I tell you... amazing! I promise you I could never grasp the meaning of these things aside from the Lord at work within this heart to make it possible. I'm simply not that smart. I gave way to the Lord wanting me to understand this for His purposes and what fun, excitement it has brought me.

Below I'd love to share with you some excellent truth on the kingdom talk in a book called, "Lucky" which is on shelves now at your local bookstore. I didn't know when I got this for review that it would be the second book in a row the Lord used to open my eyes to scripture that I was reading and help put it in layman's terms. Now I'm actually in a 4th book that is really making this talk come alive in me and the best is yet to come.

The rule of God has come in Christ.
When Jesus returns again, it will come in ultimate fullness.
The rule of God is seen as a present day reality (matt 12:28), and yet a future hope (1 corn 15:24, 50).
God's rule is an inward righteousness, peace, and joy that we experience in the Holy Spirit (Rom 14:17), but will one day be an outward political triumph in which every earthly rule gives way to God's rule (Rev. 11:15).
The rule of God is something we enter now (Matt 21:31-32; Heb 12:28), and yet a place we will enter later (Matt 8:11; 1 Corin. 6:9-10; Gal 5:19-21; 2 Thes 1:5).
It is something we can, indeed must, receive now (Mark 10:15), and also something we will receive in the future (2 Peter 1:10-11).

The Kingdom is 'now but not yet.' It's here but not in its fullness. What are we to do? What should we do? How can we live in this tension of now but not yet?? Jesus told His disciples to announce the arrival of the kingdom. We are to live in surrender to Jesus as if we truly believe He is the King of the world. We are to announce the kingdom's arrival and to anticipate it's culmination.

The kingdom of God has come to us so that it might come through us to others. The kingdom of God, the rule of God, is still being expressed on earth through the covenant people of God. It's bringing restoration, rescue, order to all things.

We have such a beautiful part in being image bearers of His kingdom. I am filled with the joy of the Lord when I see what all He is doing in and through others. It's my hearts desire to seek Him with all of myself, surrender all that I have or am to His calling, and with the whole of this life I live to live it joyfully for Him until my last breath. True living for me is immersion into reading the Word and asking the Lord to show me and empower me to walk out those revelations for the sake of bearing His image now while I wait with great anticipation for Him to return to us in fullness. I announce by sharing the truly good news that in Him there is fullness of joy and forgiveness and zest for living. I surrender through an intentional foregoing of my own desires for His. I anticipate His kingdom's culmination while I walk in obedience to His word in my daily living. Anticipation looks like a lot of things in my opinion.

What I think that boils down to for me is... WHO is my brother? Who is my sister?... and for those people I would do most anything (with the exception of enable them live against God's Word). So I have some brother's and sister's who live in poverty's extremes across the globe. I have others who live stricken with HIV/ AIDS in Africa. I have little one's under orphan care in China's Orphanages. I have a brother who sits on a bench downtown in worn out shoes and with a broken heart. I have a sister in a nursing home bed. They have needs. I have been called to meet them. The Lord has the resources. I have options.... make a bunch of excuses... OR... get on my knees in prayer and then on my feed to go deal with them one by one.

In another book I just got done being blessed by it posed this question.... "What if love ruled the world?" Yeah, what if? Imagine how our days would look. Yeah, probably pretty different than they currently do for the majority of us. The problem is we are full of excuses and reasons why we can't or don't. Foolish!

Thinking on kingdom things again today and how much they matter. Those of you who are reading this all the way down to this point must be seeking more to. You probably have a heart for the Lord's work. I pray that you will pause right now... get on your knees before the Lord Almighty and ask Him to open your eyes to the many things He's made you so special for and how you can bear his image in your sphere of influence and the globe. He's looking to and fro for people whose hearts are bent toward His. be encouraged that your so loved and so meant for His work He chose to not create this world without you!

Victory In Jesus!

2011-05-06T19:34:00.003-04:00

May 6, 2011

Today the Lord brought about great, great news. Here is your chance to share in the victory! Be blessed! Thank you for the prayer!

The Results are in... Surgery

2011-05-05T15:10:00.004-04:00

Here is the word...

Unsinkable by Abby Sunderland and Lynn Vincent

2011-04-29T18:08:00.004-04:00

Unsinkable

By Abby Sunderland & Lynn Vincent

Talk about a book you simply won't be able to put down Unsinkable is it! Color pictures and all you'll get a crash course in sailing and a fresh reminder of how the Lord hears and answers the prayers lifted to Him.

Abby Sunderland a sixteen year old third generation sailor with a dream as big as the ocean. Literally! She sets off an an thrilling adventure to sail unassisted around the globe. Now I don't know about you but how many young dreamers are gutsy enough to even contemplate such an achievement?!

Abby's heroic biography of her preparation to set sail and later her journey to sea which ended up a rescue mission is hard not to wind up with you feeling sixteen all over again. Full of adventure and excitement she is!

Unsinkable is a great book for anyone who loves to read and/ or has a dream from a teen to us adults. Abby will encourage you to seek the Lord through prayer with the dreams on your heart and to reconsider what failure is- stepping out to try or never doing it at all.

*This book was for provided to me for review by Thomas Nelson Publishing. The above review of the material(s) is my honest opinion.

April 25- Post Liver Biopsy

2011-04-25T18:54:00.003-04:00

Today was liver biopsy day! Everything went well. The 'twilight' sedation's didn't work well because I talked/ joked with them the whole time. I did feel them as they snipped the three to four pieces needed to get some answers. While it all seems to have gone ok my neck feels like I got punched in it from their tools. Ick! Sleeping ought to be fun tonight!

Regardless, the people thought I was funny because I joked with them about my health. They don't know that some patients aren't uptight about everything and appreciate good humor in unfunny times. I certainly do! Turns out one the anesthesia gal worked with my now retired trauma surgeon. A God-wink I'm sure.

I was at peace with everything today. The Lord knows what we will soon hear already and knowing that He loves me I will be fine. Whatever those results reveal to my family the Lord's work isn't done till He says so. I'm finding Him in the midst of everything around me and reveling in it!

Enjoy the update. As soon as we get more news I'll share it. Likely going to be in a week or two. The biopsy takes about a week and then the Hepatologist goes to conference with my battery of testing and results to seek out how we will resolve this pressure issue that caused the bleed in February.

April 18th Video Update (Liver Biopsy)

2011-04-20T14:07:00.002-04:00

Thank you all for your continued prayer and support for my family!

Life Without Limits by Nick Vujicic

2011-04-10T18:30:00.003-04:00

Life Without Limits

by Nick Vujicic

First thing that comes to my mind after reading Nick's testimony is HOPE! The beauty of a life lived with the Lord at the helm is hope followed by divine purpose.

Never before have I read a testimony just brimming over with so many words for living a life of great purpose! You will find yourself wanting to jot down about every other sentence and post them up around your home or work to reflect on daily. Nick is definitely in the midst of his God-given purpose. He is very gifted with words, humor, and compassion! It's easy to see why others are so attracted to his contagious passion for life.

Do yourself a favor and pick up his book. Guarantee you you won't be sorry you did! While your at it you should check out his website too. Click HERE to be redirected to it.

2011-03-30T14:47:00.001-04:00

First of all, I want to say a huge thank you to the prayer warriors I have out here in this county and around the globe. It is a blessing to have each of you in God's court as we weild our spiritual armour in the face of the opposition! I believe that the Lord's army of the redeemed is a force to be reckoned with when united in our love, surrender, spoken word, and prayer. :) Praises to Share: 1- On time 2- In the right place 3- In one piece 4- Prayed up 5- Surrendered up to His will 6- Dr. Mendoza being my favorite kind of doctor- one who know's how to utilize a sense of humor at the not so humorous 7- For some relaxation that i'm with the right team of super brain doctors who while still wince at my medical history are confident enough to attempt getting to the bottom of things What went down: As expected it was a lot of talk. Some re-education on liver and digestive functions to better explain things, etc. Dr. Mendoza says he think's I have a 'plumbing issue' in the vascular system compounded with some other issue(s). He shared with us that I not only have esphogeal varices that were banded... But also gastric varices. Which are not so easy to deal with or catch bleeding. I may have to undergo multiple banding surgeries in my life to curb those causing any more bleeds. As to the gastric varices I cannot remember what he said other than that I may need to stay on Protonix long term to keep them 'comfy' and not bleeding. Proper testing needs conducted in order to get a proper diagnosis'. In order to get those results the following testing will take place next week:

Liver Biopsy

Angiogram

Doppler on Liver

Bloodwork Panel on Liver & Hepatitis

One other test that I can't remember

Each of the tests will help to answer the questions of: Do I have cihrosis? Do I have liver scaring and to what degree? Do I have hepatitis? Is my portal vein occluded? What direction is blood flowing? Is my vena cava occluded or just completely shut down? Etc, Etc. Of course, no testing with me seems to go the normal route. The liver biopsy is going to happen via the jugular vein so when I bleed I will bleed into the vein and not form hematoma's or bleed excessively through a normal incision in the abdomen. (Remember I have a platelet problem from the HUGE spleen hogging them all in it. Which make my blood clotting factor low.) The angiogram and doppler will look and listen to veins for flow, a map of my vascular system, and will show which veins may be blocked- specifically the portal vein. The bloodwork is expected to be good. He doesn't think I have Hepatitis at all but we are ruling it out as well. The present arrows seem to be pointing toward our friend Mr. Spleen. Dr. Mendoza said to us that he wants it to be anything else but that guy as he realizes the complications in that surgery. He kindly told us that the blood loss from a removal of the spleen could result in the loss of life. It's a reality. I already knew that. It's my greatest fear. My spleen is already the culprit of my platelet troubles. He agree's that it's removal would likely resolve all of the problems i'm having but it's risks are very high and unless a trauma surgeon agree's to it no surgeon will. The ugly truth. After all the talk came the show part of the show & tell. I looked him in the eyes. He said, "Wow! You have had a lot of surgery haven't you!" Then he tried to feel for organs. I continued looking at his eyes. He was looking left and right very perplexed. Then asked what I felt. I told him just pressure because I have almost no feeling externally. He smiled and said to me again, "Anything but the spleen!" A reminder that I only live today because of the Lord. Had He not breathed His healing into me I wouldn't be alive. The Lord is good! Even when to our Earth eye's things seem precarious. He trumps it all! :) A lot of things that would be available to you all i'm no longer a candidate for because of the potential complications or the other complicating health factors I have already. So you are about to witness another display of the Lord's healing and favor! As for me now... I just bow low to our Holy God as I seek His way for my life in this present battle. In the mean time it appears testing will be on the horizon and I will be getting them all done next week in Tampa at the hospital. In my life the Lord seems to have seasons for me of learning things. I believe I may have found what this season is... Trust. Above me now hangs a note to myself that says, " Unveil to me the truths I need to know so that I will be set free." Susan A., a friend, has probably been unknowingly being used by the Lord to confirm things for me in the past few days. Also, another friend in Jesus- Judi C- mailed me something I wanted to get myself for praying for our city which has helped me to focus on prayer as my sword. I asked you all to please pray for the Lord to reveal to me what He needs of me now in this time and your prayers have opened my eyes to the answer of TRUST. I need to focus on trusting Him. I admit... I don't have a clue why i'm struggling with this other than it's probably because i'm a control freak. LOL! Please lets share a laugh at my expense! :) Well, I believe that's it for the news. Lots of discussion went down today and we will be working toward answering the questions on the 'plumbing'. Which he's referring to my vascular plumbing having a back up of sorts and that back up causing the veins to bulge and blow. After the tests the team will look over me and if surgery is needed it will be scheduled promptly. The goal is to get to the bottom of this before it happens again which could be at any moment. Prayer Requests for now: Me to remain in a focused state for the sake of the Kingdom work the Lord desires to do through my life. Oportunities to share of Jesus' love. Peace to remain. Sleep. For no more bleeds. Wisdom for the doctors/ surgeons. Favor in my dealings. The patients of Life Link awaiting transplants. There are lots of them who wait with anticipation. I met several today and they may not have friends like I do who pray them up for healing! I love each of you dearly. I appreciate your love for me and my family. We'll keep you updated on things as they happen. Hopefully in a couple of weeks we'll have some real answers!

Q & A on Heather's Fiasco

2011-03-28T15:33:00.003-04:00

In response to many questions me and my family are being asked, I thought i'd do my best to sum it up easily for those of you asking/ inquiring. Here goes:

What Happened:
February 28 I was at the pool with the baby and two of our neighbor friends. With no warning I suddenly starting getting a sensation from my feet creeping up my legs to my head that I was about to pass out for some reason. It was an extreme weakness taking me over and I was passing out. I had enough time to give the baby to the neighbors and to give them my mothers # to call her across the street to come immediately. In a matter of seconds I collapsed and in the process started vomitting a massive amount of fresh blood. I was taken by ambulance to the ER. They admitted me to the ICU. My hemaglobin was found to be at 7- down from 10-14. As you can see the blood loss was pretty extreme.

It was found that varices (Varicose veins) in my esphogus burst and caused the massive bleed. On the following Tuesday I was taken into surgery to perform something called 'banding' where they crimp off the bleeding vessels with bands which causes them to die and hence not bleed any more. In the battery of testing they performed we were told that I have liver disease, portal hypertension, the prelude to gastric cancer, ulcers, and a few other things we already knew about. They got me to a stable point where the bleeding was stopped, my hemaglobin was brought back up through blood transfusions and my WBC was back to it's normal range. At this point Blake Hospital could do no more for me because my anatomy and health history is out of their league.

Many of you are well aware of the accident 11 years ago and the fact that I have an 85% regenerated liver along with a completely remodeled inside. The trauma I survived has long term effects and the varices are one of them. I have WAY MORE than just the five that burst. My entire abdomen is FULL of them.

WHAT NOW?
Well, I have many things happening.

First, is that they need to do further testing on the gastric cancer issue to find out more about that and if I really do have the bacteria associated with it. The biopsy showed two things but stool testing is the only real way to get the right answers according to the local GI. I see him on the 23rd of March.

Second, the former trauma surgeon who performed the roughly 12-14 prior surgeries starting from the night I was airlifted into Tampa General is being called to get his opinion on what has happened. I am being referred to a top notch Hepatologist (Liver Disease Specialist) at Life Link Transplant adjacent to Tampa General for answers and possibly surgery. It's not as easy as call and get an appointment either. I have to get back doored into this man... IF he will take me. I think he will because let's face it... my body is a hot commodity to doctors because i'm a rare case. People don't typically survive the liver injury the Lord saved me from. Most die. So with this health drama many doc's are looky-loo's as we call them and want to see me with their own eyes. It's annoying but works to my benefit sometimes. In this case I pray it moves me to the front of the line. This guy is the best and in my situation I need the best because anything less than that won't work on me for liability reasons because my mortality rate is HIGH and they don't want a potential lawsuit. Sad but true. SMH's leading surgeon wrote me off in 05' for this very reason. TGH is the only hospital equipped for weirdo's like me. :) I have LOTS of paperwork that has to be completed and gathered prior to getting an appointment also. This Hepatologist want's to read my medical drama before he gives the schedulers the nod to let me in the gate. In the mean time I have to wait... it could be days, weeks, months. I'm at their mercy.

Until then the local GI will see me for this gastric cancer stuff to get some more answers but they want to help me get into this guy in Tampa ASAP because they seem scared and concerned about the results of all this testing on me. Plus time may be my greatest enemy if what the tests show are true... liver disease alone is transplant material and people die daily waiting for their needed transplant not to mention there's no guarantee that they will agree to that for me because of the nature of my anatomy.

Presently, I'm just sitting here waiting for my local GI appointment and waiting to see if he can help pull some strings to get me up there quicker to the right doctors. And i'm on a beta blocker to keep my vascular system calmed down to help try to prevent any more bleeds till more answers are found.

Could the reports be wrong?
Well, yes there is a chance. They could be wrong in my body because my body is functioning differently than anybody I know presently. What they see could be signs of how my body is responding because of the trauma it lived through. The reality is something is happening because I could have died from the extreme bloodloss when the varices burst and bled. Which in reality I had been slow bleeding for weeks but didn't realize the symptoms. Something is happening but it could be less critical than the CT scans and ultrasounds see or just the way they put humty dumpty back together. :) Why did the vessel's suddenly burst? In a normal person varices like this and a liver like mine equal cirrhosis. We'll have to see what they mean for weird me.

Am I hurting? Am I laid up in the bed? Do I look like i'm dying?
Yes, I am in discomfort from the banding. I have no desire to eat which we all ought to know is ABNORMAL for me because I live for food. LOL!

No, i'm not in the bed laid up presently. Unless baby cakes is sleeping then I am. I'm very tired from the beta blocker i'm on to keep my vascular system calmed down until we get more answers this way I don't bleed again. I'm definetly more tired than normal.

No, I don't look like i'm dying although i've dropped about 10 lbs and have junkie like marks on my arms from the IV Team stabbing me with IV's for a week. I look like me and act like me. Maybe a more emotional version of me because it's tough hearing all this.

Could I die?
Yes, I could be. Or no I couldn't be. Only the Lord knows the answer. We are all mortal. My time may be quicker than others or I may live a long time from now. Regardless... none of us are being promised a tomorrow and so today ought to be lived intentionally. My recommendation is live it for the Lord. Only those things remain.

Hopefully, this answers most of the questions you all have had for me. I know these things are complicated to understand. I appreciate your interest/ concern. I wish it were easier for you to understand and for me to live out. But it's not. With that in mind the best thing for me to do is trust the Lord with a wreckless abandon. To trust Him in the face of uncertainty because He is God alone. Many of these days recently i've felt the kind of defeated I used to before I knew the truth in His word. Thanks to the Spirits work in me I am pulling this emotional wreck out of the ditch and getting back to the place of trusting the Lord with radical faith for whatever the future holds for me and for my family. The same faith that brought me the son we hold in a completely God-sized way. The same faith that raised me from the sick bed once before. Whatever the Lord requires of me I will do. I may not understand it but His ways are not ours. They are with infinite wisdom. Mercy and Grace are there for me daily. To them I will have to cling.

Since the time of writing the above (beginning of March 2011) I recieved the call from my former trauma surgeon as to what his thoughts were and here's the scoop...

He said he'll be a phone call away if needed by the Hepatologist to explain how I was reconstructed.! :) He also gave his thoughts on what the reports said. So here's the POSSIBILITIES in his opinion:

1- Left sided Portal Hypertension= Splenectomy to correct. Which this may help my platelets return to normal as well! :)

2- Right sided Portal Hypertension= Cirrhosis= Liver Transplant and they would likely do it for me because of my age and other health being good.

3- Hepatitis C contracted via the 100+ blood transfusions I have had. This could be known as collateral damage because while I would have died without them they could cause me many troubles. Some of which I already have like the worlds's longest list of drug allergies. I have been tested for this numerous times and all come back negative. So there is a more likely chance that my spleen is gonna be the guy to go. I'm laughing as I try to imagine how they are going to do that. My abdomen looks like Ground Zero- devastated. I think after that I may just have my entire abdomen tatto'd something awesome to distract from the scarring. Look out LA Ink here I come! :)

Obviously, none of these I want! But they are leaving the diagnosis up to the experts to get to the bottom of. I still have to wait for the big doc to read my drama's first before I get entrance through the 'gate'. So I will celebrate the 3-0 before I get in to them i'm sure. I'll let you all know WHEN i FINALLY get my appointment set to see the Hepatologist. Or you all could ask the Lord for me and just let me know if He tells you! :) Thank you for the notes, emails, calls, ect. I appreciate all of them very much. Helps keep my mind renewed with the Truth!

Hebrews 4:16 Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may recieve mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

The Ultimate DVD Read and Share Bible: Volume 2

2011-01-30T19:22:00.003-05:00

The Ultimate DVD Read and Share Bible

Volume 2

Our family is in love with the Read and Share DVD set with Bible! We have a six month old that we're reading to nonstop. I had been looking for a bible story book that would suit a young child's attention span. When Thomas Nelson put this up for review I had to get my hands on it! So glad I did too!

To name a few of the things we really like about the Read and Share bible- colorful illustrations, length of story, questions or suggestions at the end of each story, and of course the DVDs to go along with the story. For younger aged children this will be well enjoyed. Although I do think that children around age six to eight will be ready to move onto to a little more exciting and lengthy version of the stories. Another great aspect of this book is its durability. Need I say kids can be rough with books and many wouldn't last the slobber test or wet finger touching pages.

The only thing we need now is to run to the store and get the other volumes of the Read and Share DVD Bible.

Happy Reading!

** This book was provided to me at no cost for review purposes by the publisher. The above is my honest review of the materials.

Nelson's Biblical Cyclopedic Index

2010-12-28T13:29:00.002-05:00

Nelson's Biblical Cyclopedic Index

Upon my review of this fantastic little book touted "Best Bible Subject Index Ever" I have found it to be just that! In size it's some much less cumbersome than my Strong's which hogs up a huge space on my bookcase. It combines all the greatest features of the concordance, topical index, study aids, and other related material pertinent to each specific topic. One of my favorite bible study resources are word studies and rather than drag out my big books I'll be taking this one along with me as I travel about.

For example I looked up my favorite word- grace. Here is what you will find there:

Grace- unmerited favor

A. Descriptive of:

God's favor.... Gen. 6:8

God's forgiving mercy..... Rom. 11:6

Gospel...... John 1:7

Gifts (miracles, ect.)...... 1 Pet. 4:10

Eternal life....... 1 Pet. 1:13

B. Is the source of:

Salvation......

Call of God......

Faith....

Justification....

Forgiveness.....

Consolation......

Eternal Life....

...and so on and so on. Prior to this breakdown there is a word study area on grace, favor (charis).

One of the other things aspects I really enjoyed about this index is what one would see when looking up a name. In example:

Hannah- graciousness

Favored wife of Wlkanah....... Scripture references are here

Childless.....

Provoked by Peninnah.....

Prayerful.....

Wrongly accused by Eli.....

Bears child, Samuel....

Attentive to her child.....

Fulfills her vows.....

Magnifies god.....

Recognizes the Messiah....

Has other children......

Model of Mary's song......

For anyone who loves bible study for their own benefit or for teaching others this is a lovely, small but very efficient biblical cyclopedic index.

**The above is my honest review of the product provided to me by the publisher Thomas Nelson for the purpose of reviewing.

Graceson's First Christmas

2010-12-16T15:07:00.003-05:00

Graceson's First Christmas

Merry Christmas dearest Readers! I've been meaning to get you all a photo of our little man. As you can imagine life in our home has radically changed since his arrival only months ago. We have just celebrated his 5 month anniversary and he's growing in leaps & bounds. It still seems like a mirage many days. I don't know when it will finally sink in the scope of what the Lord has done for us. He was certainly a 'baby by faith!' Why the Lord chose us to be his parents is no doubt to work in us.

We hope you'll enjoy staring at those fluffy cheeks of his on your computer screens. He's such a beautiful boy! Everywhere he goes he's like an attraction. Gives us lots of opportunities to share what the Lord did for us & him!

Sweetest Blessings to you all from us! One of these days I'll be back in operation like old times. I need your grace! ..... Merry Christmas!

Little Star by Anthony DeStefano

2010-12-16T14:25:00.004-05:00

Little Star

Anthony DeStefano

Illustrated by Mark Elliot

Little Star is really no story about any ole' little star! It's a sweetly written and captivating tale on the whereabouts of the star many of us may know as the "Christmas star." As one reading will soon find out... Little Star is anything but it's namesake!

Like the many others who own and have reviewed this book it's agreed that the illustrations will certainly have your young readers mesmerized. Our son looked them over many times as if to check out every minute detail. Mark Elliott has done a fantastic job!

**This book was provided to me for review by the publisher, Waterbrook Press. My honest review of the product is written here.

Everything Christmas Celebrating the Joy of the Advent Season

2010-11-30T18:18:00.004-05:00

Everything Christmas

There's one thing I love this time of year... a great Christmas book to bury my nose in! In Everything Christmas I have found a treasure of which will be gracing our family library for many years to come!

The design of this book is excellent! You will find it broken down into 25 days and each day being filled with a story, poetry, carol, tradition, craft or recipe. No doubt you'll be looking forward to the time which you curl up in the reading nook of your home or snuggle into the couch with your children to share in a time of Christmas reading and fun each day. Those are the sacred moments where tradition is passed from one life to another.

Everything Christmas is anything but a snooze. I started learning the second I began reading Day One and learned how all these American traditions of Christmas really got started. Wasn't us after all! I'm already making mental notes for how to orchestrate an old fashioned Christmas in our home next year- tasty treats to eat, carols to sing, games to play, and memories to be made together. Don't miss out on picking this book up for your family this holiday!

Alas... He's has arrived! (Adoption Prayers Answered)

2010-10-08T19:09:00.003-04:00

Hello Lovely Readership!

I know you think I just stepped off the edge of the blogosphere a few weeks ago. Actually, a surprise came unbeknownst to us. It happened so quick that I didn't have time to prepare in my entirety... which I'm sure the Lord planned that way because He knows how obsessively OCD I am with planning things. "smile" For those who don't already know... I'm the Queen of The List. I make lists, I check them off, and I make a list of lists. I've already fessed up that I fell directly out of two trees of perfection and landed smack dab in the middle of them both! Now onto the real news instead of my babbling.

One year to the day- August 29- we met our son. YES! Our son. A son who came by God's grace (unmerited favor) to us- a couple longing to answer the call of the orphan and have a few egglings as a result. Of course, I said many times in the last year that when you give something over to the Lord through surrender prepare for the course to change at any time. Remember God is God. He doesn't need my help coming up with ways to do His work. He knows how is best to bring His Son the highest glory and to advance His kingdom work as we slant towards His triumphant return. An change the course did!

I can't go into too many specifics because of the closeness of the birth mom in proximity to us and out of respect for her whole family. But I will say the avenue we thought the Lord had been bringing our child to us wasn't the case in the end because He had plans for a much more exciting surprise.

Daily Barry & I would say, "I wonder where our Baby G is?" Wondering we did a lot of! How much longer? From who? Where? When? In the end our child actually strolled down the street right in front of my office daily. Back and forth his young mother strolled him. Who knew that when we found out the location of the birth mom that I would recognize her from the daily walks 30 feet from the desk I sat at????? Funny how the Lord works huh?! The whole time we were wondering He was sending the mom down the street with my son and I didn't even know.

When we brought Graceson home he was six weeks old. As of my writing he is now twelve weeks. We named him Graceson in honor of how he came to us... a son by God's grace. For it was our great Lord who birthed this idea in our hearts and led us all the way up to the moment we held him as our own. It was a journey of journeys! I led us away from self effort and striving to serving the kids of our community and then to bringing home His preplanned boy for us to take part in raising him this side of eternity- with the Lord's guidance.

For all you who prayed us along this path we consider this a shared victory. Praying stirs the heavens and the heart of our Father to bring to pass His sovereign will for His kingdom in our lives and through our living. Your prayers brought on the labor pains that resulted in this small life being rescued from danger, death, and a life apart from knowing Jesus. Praise the Lord for His Victory!

To answer some of the questions I've been asked:

How old at placement? Graceson was six weeks when we got him.
What race? Caucasian & Hispanic.
Did we get him through an agency of some kind? NO! God literally brought his family to us and there was no adoption agency involved.
Is this a legal adoption and can mom change her mind? Yes, it's legal and birth mom doesn't have any ability to change her mind... ever.
What about father? Birth father is unknown. If he did ever come out of the woodwork at some time it's unlikely a judge would disrupt the baby/ child's life to take him from us and place him with said unknown father.
Did we pay an arm and a leg? NO! There is an adoption tax credit out there as of now and certain fee's are reimbursable. Also, we didn't go through an agency to get him so we avoided everything but the attorney fee's.
How much are attorney fee's? Those vary based on several factors. In our situation we are looking at roughly $4500 that will be approved for the adoption tax credit.
What kind of adoption did we do? Closed with photographs for several years or until birth mother changes address and doesn't update it.
Did we meet birth mom? No.
Does she know who we are? Yes. But by first name only. And by my voice.
Has the transition been easy for the baby? No. He had a tough time the first few weeks because of what was happening in his life prior to our rescuing him through adoption. But here we are the exact same amount of time that birth mom had him and he is very bonded to us (especially mommy) and has made huge strides in adjusting to his new life.
Overall how was the adoption experience? Great! We gave it to the Lord and feel that because of that the upsets were greatly lessened than for those who really go out and try to make it all happen in the flesh. Not that we didn't want time to speed up or we didn't get bummed out waiting. But we did have a lot less heartache than many we know.
Would we do this again? Yes! Graceson has a sister who is one year older and we'd love to have her too and there's possibly another baby on the way now. As sad as I am to say there could be a new baby coming and that there is still another little one living in the same conditions as my boy I/ we want every one of them. Perhaps the Lord will bring me all ten of those kids I wanted! Yipee Jesus!

Again... thank you for the moral support and the prayers... they were answered! The photo above is actually the first time I held him in my arms not knowing he was gonna be mine in only a matter of days. Praise be to the Lord!!!!

Saint Francis by Robert West

2010-08-11T15:34:00.003-04:00

Saint Francis

by Robert West

The biography of Saint Francis as written by Robert West as part of a series of Christian Encounters with people from history is absolutely dynamic. It might be small in size, but is big in heart and purpose!

Of all the books I've reviewed in the past for Thomas Nelson Publishing, this Christian Encounters Biography of Saint Francis is riveting! I love it! Can't wait to get my hands on another one of these biographies for review.

Saint Francis' story is one of love lived out in deeds. He is an inspiration to those of us who believe to lay it all down for the glory of our King. Francis gave up a live of wealth and recognition for his families name for the greater work of the Kingdom of our Lord. Selling off all that he had in this world and taking of a life or service and poverty he is an example that Christ is all sufficient and can provide for us out of His abundance. In this age, we seldom live for miracles because when we hunger we grocery shop at our local store. When in need of a ride, we head to our garages and take off in one of our multiple cars. When we are sick, we seek the healing of modern medicine. When we are empty, we try to buy all we can to be fulfilled. It's by choice we have filled the moments that could have opened way for God-sized miracles with our ability to make things happen for ourselves. In this biography, I see an opportunity for us to seek the greater good in giving up our ability, our effort, and our achievements for the workings of our Father. It is there that we will find the holy fool in ourselves and the fulfillment that we so desire.

* This book was provided for review purposes by Thomas Nelson Publishing at no cost. Above is my honest review.

Hands-On Bible NLT

2010-07-28T14:50:00.003-04:00

Hands-On Bible

New Living Translation

The new Hands-On Bible in the New Living Translation is the hands down best adolescent Bible I've ever seen! I am beyond excited for the children who will be owners of this incredibly bound, fun-filled Word. Not only are the pages visually exciting, but they are filled with fun projects to do with your hands (crafts, science projects, snacks, activities). I think this idea will help put to memory the things in God's Word and also help the kids to see scriptures relevancy.

Another really great thing I've found are the 'Bible Bio's' from hero's like Abraham. There is even a section that explains the Old & New Testament books- The Pentateuch, History, Poetry, Prophecy, Gospels, Epistles, Revelation. There are even time lines that are easy for kids to understand in the introductions of books. 'Cool facts' teach you things like how high Noah's ark was compared to a house. Then there are area's to learn it, do it, share it, and live it spilled out through the pages of the Hands-On Bible. I even found myself learning new things out of the Bible through my reading in it for review!

The best part of all are the areas known as 'The Jesus Connection' which helps you to discover how the focus of the Bible is Jesus. I love how Hands-On Bible encourages your children to have their own relationship with the Lord and His Word. If you have a child(ren) who are bored with their present Bible or you just want to bless them with a new & exciting one to help grow their faith & relationship with the Lord through His Word run out and get them Hands-On! You won't be sorry you did!

* This book was provided for review purposes by Tyndale.

Same Kind of Different As Me By Ron Hall & Denver Moore

2010-07-28T14:02:00.005-04:00

Same Kind of Different As Me

by Ron Hall & Denver Moore

Two lives that seemed so different. Yet in reality were so much the same. As I read this precious book I didn't know whether to laugh, cry or just flat out have a breakdown with the turn of every page. One minute my heart felt like it would break in two. The very next I'm in an uncontrollable fit of laughter. The way the story is articulated is truly stellar!

Once you pick it up prepare to not put it down till the end. In other words, don't start reading this at your bedtime or you're going to be late for work tomorrow. When you do read it though, I caution you to brace yourself because the Lord will rip off your blinders as you page flip.

One thing I love about Same Kind of Different as me is a seemingly small but very effective tool used to really draw the reader in... pictures. I was so excited to put faces to the people whose story has impacted my heart. Looking at the faces of people who the Lord has used for His kingdom purpose reminds me that each of us are meant for the same greatness. Although our outside package and circumstances may look different than the person to our left... His plan for all of us is the same... bring My kingdom to pass through your prayer, your witness, and your obedience.

Now run along and pick yourself up this vision altering, heart snatching, odds defeating, glory giving blessing of a true story of Ron, Deborah, and Denver.

Multitude Monday- 7/12/10

2010-07-12T08:42:00.008-04:00

Continuing on in my personal quest to One Thousand Gifts of Gratitude to my Heavenly Father. Taking notice of the moments He winks at me in the here below. Sometimes the smallest of blessings, other times with something so huge I'm awe struck at His love for me. What a joy it's been to capture Him in the midst of life's busyness. Join us if you like in a journey all your own, but certainly to the heart of the Lord who sent His precious Son to redeem you. Click on the link above to be directed to Holy Experience's blog where other journaler's are journeying in thanks.

Lord, Thanks for loving on me through the following this week:

... A chance to step out of the usual and do the called thing- be your hands and feet- through a service opportunity You opened up for me...

... The unquenchable joy I found in all the moments of that day because You were there in the midst...

... For an opportunity to share of how You saved me and opened my eyes & heart to the truth in Your word with another...

... The gift of a mother to do come along side of and serve with...

... That she loves You above all else...

... A day to just love on my husband you've blessed me with...

... For the time when we both, along with cat, were all piled up in bed reading Your Word and studying it together...

... Lastly, for the hope, promise, and way-making for the day up ahead when the tiniest bundle of your grace will be in that bed with us studying Your Word too...

Lord, thank You for Your goodness to me. Thank you for your relentless love. The hot pursuit of which You chased me, but let me come on my own without ever forcing Yourself upon me. Your abounding love has captured me and I desire to live in Your house for all of my days!

Until next week gals... be blessed and carry on in your search of Him through this journey of thanks!

Wild Olive Tee's

2010-07-05T21:53:00.002-04:00

You should REALLY go check out the Wild Olive tees! Of all the 'Christ-wear' out there to purchase their shirts far exceed all others. The designs are incredibly adorable. The colors are bright and bold. Your going to have to buy one... or maybe three.

To top if off these gals bless others. They give back to others around the globe. Be sure to see where a portion of your spent dollars are going now. You will undoubtedly be blessed. Also, if your adopting you should consider using them to help raise funds through the sale of some beautiful shirts.

Now hurry on over and get yourself some!!!!

Jesus Calling 'Enjoing Peace In His Presence' by Sarah Young

2010-06-30T13:25:00.002-04:00

Jesus Calling

Enjoying Peace In His Presence

365 Day Devotional

By Sarah Young

Jesus Calling is another one of Sarah Young's beautifully worded books. In it's introduction you'll hear of her learning to sit in the presence of the Most High and soaking in His love & truth. It's not the first time I've read the story of her journey but every time I do it's an inspiring blessing.

This beautiful leather bound devotional is great for carrying in your purse or taking up little space in your favorite prayer spot. Just to wet your taste buds for what's in store in the pages...

June 30

I am the Truth: the one who came to set you free. As the Holy Spirit controls your mind and actions more fully, you become free in Me. You are increasingly released to become the one I created you to be. This is a work that I do in you as you yield to My Spirit. I can do My best handiwork when you sit in the stillness of My Presence, focusing your entire being on Me.

Let My thoughts burst freely upon your consciousness, stimulating abundant Life. As you follow Me, I lead you along paths of newness: ways you have never imagined. Don't worry about what is on the road up ahead. I want you to find your security in knowing Me, the One who died to set you free.

John 8:32; Philippians 2:13; John 14:6

I already owned a copy of this book and LOVE it! I read it along side of Sarah's Jesus Calling. Both are exceptional truths! Hurry out to get this leather bound copy for yourself!

*This book was provided to me at no cost by the publisher, Thomas Nelson, for review purposes. Above is my honest review of the material.

Jesus Culture - We Cry Out - Kim Walker

2010-06-30T11:20:00.000-04:00

'Chained for Christ' Evangelism (Philippians 1)

2010-06-29T09:21:00.005-04:00

Paul.

My second favorite person.

He was so crazy and so on fire for Jesus.

Inspiring.

It has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. (Philippians 1:13)

In Philippians Paul writes to the believers of his apparent awareness that 'he's in chains because of Christ.' At the time of Paul's writing to the Philippians he is on house arrest in Rome as a prisoner of Emperor Nero. Both day & night dangerous Paul was chained to a new soldier- one of which was even Nero's personal body guard. Every six hours a new soldier would come and be shackled ankle-to-ankle with Paul. Are you laughing with me yet?!

As Paul is there chained to these guards he doesn't know what the future holds- death at the hands of Nero or life so he can continue to share his revelation of Jesus. Yet Paul's message to Philipi is so full of joy & confidence in the Lord. Nero's plan is one thing. God's plan is so much greater! He's bringing these young men straight to Paul to hear and be instructed in the things of Christ. Where do you think that led? To a personal relationship with Christ! WHooo WHOoo!

All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Ceasar's household.

(Philippians 4:22)

The theme of this love letter from Paul to the believers is to to point us to Jesus' ability to work in and through the problems in our lives. An instruction manual of sorts on how to live in victory & joy right smack dab in the middle of life's curve balls. One of Paul's favorite words in his writing of this epistle is 'rejoice.' Here he is chained up with his future one big gigantic question mark. Are you feeling like that right now? Frustrated with your present situation? Rejoicing in these times seems so impossible doesn't it? Oh but it's not! I beckon you to ask the Lord to:

Change your view
Help you see His working & opportunity in this trial.

Paul said 'he was chained for Christ' because even with the questions ahead he was focusing on what the Lord was doing right in that moment. Which was putting people who desperately needed to hear of what He finished chained up to Paul. No longer was this just a time to write write write away letters or twiddle his thumbs in self pity or spout of his anger... It was time for a God-sized evangelistic opportunity! God was going to reach the Roman Empire all from a man on house arrest joyfully sharing the love of Jesus finished work with the guards. How rockin' awesome is that!?!?!

If you think for one minute God can't or isn't able to work in the mess your in or have even made... your sorely mistaken! He is just chomping at the bit to work through it so long as you surrender it over to His hands. If your not in a personal relationship with Him or don't know how to enter into that please email me and I'll show you how to make that possible and concrete. If you are a believer but just in one of those times of funk as I like to call it focus your eyes back on the Lord through prayer. Just dump your heart off on Him. Then step forward rejoicing that He will bring His promises to pass in your life and ask Him to help you rejoice now for what is to come. An then walk it out! Speak words of life. Cast aside those thoughts or feeling that don't line up with His promises for the believers at Jesus feet. It's not about feelings folks... it's about TRUTH!

Multitude Monday- 6/28/10

2010-06-28T01:00:00.003-04:00

Lord, Thanks for loving on me through the following this week:

... For giving me this special son of yours to do life together with... Happy 6th Anniversary Love!...

... Hearing of how he was blessed as he found a way to serve three others. You knew all along that he would be!

... Thank You for working in Him to produce the fruits of the Spirit and mold him closer into Your very likeness...

... Opportunity to go a serve on our day off together. For another moment or three or four to exalt Your Son and laugh at those kids silliness...

... Two awesome studies to learn more about You and grow more in a knowledge of Your great love...

... For showing me how to share the finished work of your Son with others so that I can do my part in being obedient in sharing Him with them...

... The consideration of using me in the first place. You didn't have to but you wanted to and i'm humbled. Really humbled. Because you know the creep I was!...

... Multiplying my time as I read through Your Word in Galations & Philippians. You just knew how much those words would get me pumped and that i'm probably never gonna get to sleep now. I love love love confirming my need to just rest in Jesus' finished work and recieve through His sacrifice as opposed to working really hard to get those fruits to manifest on my own while going gray, getting wrinkled too young, feeling weary, and spiritually dead and still never getting it totally perfect. Instead, I lay my whole self- mouth, mind, will, emotions, hands & time- before your throne of grace with a confident reliance in Your ability to work in and through me to mold me in Your image. Praise You Lord!...

Another week has come & gone being measured by thanks to our Heavenly Father. May you find Him in your seeking too. I pray He shows Himself big in your life as well. See you all next Monday! Be blessed sweet friends! Please join us on Facebook too if you like! See our page through the link on the sidebar to your right at the top.

A Friday Note

2010-06-25T07:01:00.003-04:00

Dearest Readership!

Today Barry & I are off to serve in a local gang outreach ministry! Please lift the children up in prayer for the work of the Holy Spirit. On top of that we are raising capital, prayer warriors, and makers of PB & J to further support this ministries work in the month of July. I humbly ask for your prayer that the Lord will send laborers to the harvest!

I have a post i'd like to share with you... it has touched my heart this week. The topic of it is the forgiveness of our parents. It's something I personally struggle with greatly. The words of the writer, our beloved Ann of Holy Experience, has again written words that will change your heart! Don't miss them!

Go HERE!

Have a blessed weekend with your families and i'll see you for One Thousand Gifts of Gratitude on Monday!

Word Filled Wednesday- Mark 1:3,7-8

2010-06-23T01:00:00.002-04:00

(Above: Mark 1:3; Below: Mark 1:7-8)

“After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Can you visualize John standing there in his ragged attire? Mission Oriented.

Can you hear the passion of which he tried to share of the coming Messiah? Inspirational.

Can you feel the shakiness in his humble voice as he spoke of his unworthiness? Humbling.

Do you marvel in the awesomeness of this Holy Spirit to make straight the path of the sinner when He is made righteous through faith in Jesus' one act for all time? Man oh man I do. Because I was so lost, for so long... and then the Holy Spirit opened up my eyes to His truth and i've never been quite the same.

Praise be to the Lord Most High!

Multitude Monday- 6/21

2010-06-21T08:11:00.004-04:00

Lord, Thanks for loving me in the following...

... Practically free crib & changing table to paint in preparation...

... A passionate message from a person who is passionate about you and touch first ministry...

... For the chance to meet a friends need...

... Money back when we didn't even know we were getting it...

... For sunshine between showers...

... Sounds of little voices playing in the beach sand and surf...

... The chance to be popped with a pop gun by my neice this morning...

... A sister to love...

... Lastly, two dad's to be thankful for!...

Another week has come and gone. Being measured by thanks to our Heavenly Father. May you find Him in your seeking too. I pray He shows Himself big in your life as well. See you all next Monday! Be blessed sweet friends! Please join us on Facebook too if you like! See our page through the link on the right.

Word Filled Wednesday- Proverbs 3:5-6

2010-06-16T08:51:00.005-04:00

So much easier to lean on Him and know that He will straighten out our broken paths. I've been there many times before.

Weak. Confused. Angered. Hurt.

I laid all them at His feet and He lead me forward into my new creation, in Him.

Walk in your already earned victory!

2010-06-14T07:11:00.003-04:00

Join with us gals today who are sharing in Prayer on the 10th over at the lovely Extravagant Grace! Elisa is a precious and gifted woman full of creative ways to get our minds intentionally focused on the Lord and all the splendor He is.

Today i'm praying for:

Breakthrough in my sister.
Continued healing for my niece.
Missionaries near & far who are being the hands and feet of Jesus.
Protection over our baby growing in another woman's womb.
Guidance on how we will minister to the birth mother.
Discernment for our connector.
Gang violence in our country to end because believers have come out of their four walls to meet the needs of the needy and hence prevent their young from entering into a gang as a means to survive.
God to reveal to me more of His redemptive power through revelation.
For my bible studies this week to cause my eyes to open wide and my heart to walk out the truth He teaches me.
Lastly, for my prayer life to line up with all the Jesus did for me on Calvary through His blood!!

What are you praying for? Is there something I could agree on in prayer with you?

Adoption Update #3

2010-06-13T21:24:00.004-04:00

First, I want to say that this is as much a victory for us as it is for all of you who pray us along this journey. Thank you for the support. Adoption is such a beautiful blessing and a road that leads straight to the Lords heart up until the last step.

Nearly two weeks ago both my husband & I were in a chiropractic office I worked for for several years. While waiting our turn to get adjusted we ran into a patient that I fell in love with during my employment there. His heart was so big and so beautiful and so full of the love of Jesus who couldn't love this man. I introduced him to my husband and we chatted. He asked us if we had started a family yet of which we replied, "We're trying to increase our family through adoption right now!" He politely opened his phone and gave us two phone numbers for contacts that may be the Lords open door for us. Barry & I graciously took the numbers and thanked him for them. Then he opened up his phone to show us his newest grandbaby... adopted from birth.

As many of you know we originally started out trying to adopt through our state. We have tried to follow the Lord with every step in this because it was His idea in the first place and we are joining Him in pursuit of His will for us. He's called us to tend to the orphan and widow and our aim is to do just that! So in that journey through the state we just felt like we were making no headway in figuring out which direction the Lord wanted us to take next. The week we ran into this friend was the roughest week yet. Both of us were just being plagued by fear and sinking faith that we were even doing the right thing. But the Lord knew all along that we would have that divine appointment just up ahead.

After three days of staring at the numbers I just up and called the one I felt led to over the other. It was to a local man who has nothing to do with adoption but rather a ministry very vital to the community (for sake of privacy we are keeping his specific ministry private) in which we live. This man who we'll call 'PJ' answered my call where I probably sounded like a babbling idiot. I told him who I was and who sent me to him. At that moment PJ says, "This is the Lord! We have to meet next week for lunch!" I for once in my entire life was silent out of sheer contemplation. We briefly chatted and hung up. Several calls later we set an appointment... which took place last Wednesday.

Over lunch we talked about the Lord and about PJ's ministry. Both of us were amazed at the fantastic testimony and the hand of the Lord upon this man's life and ministry. We told him that we still had no real reason why our friend put us in connection. PJ shared with us that he helped to connect the parents of our friends daughter with their baby & birth mother. PJ made it clear to us that he was convinced the Lord put us in connection and that we too were going to be parents of a newborn baby. His specific words were, "It's not if.... It's who!" Our hearts were leaping! I mean pole jumping over the empire state building! :)

At the end of our meeting PJ said, "Let's just start thanking the Lord for the baby He has in mind for you. Also, for Him to give me discernment as to which child we are to be the parents of." His went on to pray for other things like protection of our baby, opportunity for us to mentor his/her child parents, and such. The prayer was so beautiful and spot on with our beliefs it was surely divine appointment. Barry & I felt it through & through. God has opened a door and we were walking through it.

How awesome is that??!?!?! Isn't God so big and so perfect?! He just floors me again and again. I have never seen my husbands face so big with smile! He knew he's going to be a daddy and the Lord is bringing this little one right to us through no effort of our own... simply belief.

Are you praying for something that's a desire of your heart too and feel like nothings happening? Here you can see that one can cast aside those lies and point your eyes to the cross and know that through Jesus' sacrifice made there you can receive the blessings of God freely- no effort needed. That is no effort other than accepting what His Precious Son did for your sin as the only one time payment needed. Our Lord can be trusted with our hearts. He knows their deepest desires- mine just happened to be motherhood. This was impossible for us without Him because my ability to bear children was lost through a near death experience at age 18. (For more on that go to the tab "The Writer" or click HERE). What was taken to me the Lord is giving back in abundance.

Presently, PJ's ministry has ten girls who happen to be pregnant (3 ages 10 & 7 ages 12). One of them could be the mother of our child or it could be one up ahead a little further. In time the Lord will reveal to PJ who He has for us and we will meet this precious child and the baby she carries with a way more mature desire than I to give her child as a gift to a family who waits to know it's wonders.

Praise be to the Lord! He loves us so! We are moving forward through His opened door anticipating our next excitement!

Until next update... be blessed and walk in your already earned victory!

Multitude Monday- 6/14/10

2010-06-13T20:55:00.009-04:00

**For those who read & prayed last week your shared victory is found in this update on our adoption! Simply click on the link over those words and you'll be redirected.**

... Three Girls, Three Purses, and Yard Sales.... Laughs, More Laughs, and Memories...

... Pool time talks with my sister and mommy...

... Cookout's in the sand with my Aunt, Uncle & Cousin...

... For those who prayed for us in a time in our adoption when we were wondering, "Where is He??" He heard your prayers and answered. Need I tell you it was God Sized and amazing!?!...

... Believers who go out into the community and serve until their last breath...

... The Holy Spirit who puts in us the will and desire to do the same...

... A childs healing...

... Friends (Cyndi & Family) thoughtful gift of a baby toy moose to celebrate with us on our latest God-sized and timed open door...

... The love I continue to find in my Jesus...

Multitude Monday- 6/7/10

2010-06-07T00:00:00.001-04:00

Continuing on in my personal quest to One Thousand Gifts of Gratitude to my Heavenly Father. Taking notice of the moments He winks at me in the here below. Sometimes the smallest of blessings, other times with something so huge I'm awe struck at His love for me. What a joy it's been to capture Him in the midst of life's busyness. Join us if you like in a journey all your own but certainly to the heart of the Lord who sent His precious Son to redeem you. Click on the link above to be directed to Holy Experience's blog where other journaler's are journeying in thanks.

... Beautiful Florida days to drive down Kasey Key and look at the awesome beach shacks and dine at little quaint restuarants on the water... Our Lord leads me to such beauty to revel in...

... "Save me Ya-Ya, Save me!" squeals the tiny but animated little voice of my angel-like neice as her Un-ul Baw-wy (Uncle Barry) acts like a shark in the pool...

... A preschool graduation bring my entire family to hysterics at the sight of the animated children who fill it's rooms. Could such small lives make adults awe in wonder? YES!... (Below a picture of angel baby and her mommy- my sister.)

... We ran into a friend from the past, which led to a handful of phone numbers, which led to a call or three and may possibly lead to the adoption of a baby in the end after all! After sweet prayers and days of tears... movement has come. Not known yet if this is the path our Father will have us take, but we aim to find that out at a lunch meeting with a special man and his prayers. Thank all of you who prayed for us last week. Our Lord hears those prayers and tends to our hearts as we seek to glorify Him in parenting a special one or two...

Another week has come and gone. Being measured by thanks to our Heavenly Father. May you find Him in your seeking too. I pray He shows Himself big in your life as well. See you all next Monday! Be blessed sweet friends!

Holy Matrimony Practices: Revelation, Belief, Prayer

2010-06-02T00:00:00.002-04:00

Revelation. Belief. Prayer.

This weeks sharing is inspired by the beautifully gifted writer Connie Witter, leader of Because of Jesus Ministries. I owe the Lord & her a huge thanks for my ability and opportunity to share this word with you. For it was her words pointing to His truths and the Holy Spirit working on my inner wo-man to open my eyes to Revelation, Belief, and Prayer. Otherwise... I'd never grasp these fabulous truths. Let alone live them out in my marriage.

As wives we have a wonderful lifelong journey ahead of us in marriage. There is such a wealth of opportunity to let our wifely ways speak to the belief in our hearts of Jesus. I am realizing now more than ever how much of an influence a wife has on her husband for eternity. On that note, today I'd like to share my heart with you.

First: Revelation

We need a redemptive revelation of Jesus- who He is, who we are in Him, and knowledge of what has been promised to us through Jesus. [Matthew 16:18] Jesus has redeemed us with His very blood- set us free from the curse. He became sin so that we could receive the blessings promised to Abraham through our faith in Him and His obedience on the cross. [Galatians 3:5-6, 8-9]

When I as a wife rely upon Jesus to empower me to have both the will and desire to bear the fruit of His promises of being a virtuous & godly wife I am exalting what Jesus did through His death and resurrection. Save yourself a lot of hassles ladies... Give your marriage to the Lord. This applies to each of us- those with believing and unbelieving husbands. Give yourself over to the hands of the Lord and ask Him to open your eyes & heart to a deeper revelation of who He is, who we are in Him, and the promises He has for us. I have complete faith that if you pray for a redemptive revelation He will surely give it. I say this with certainty because this was the prayer of my 26 year old heart (3 yrs ago) when I demanded to know the truth about His word and my seeming lack of victory. It came by revelation. It was powerful, anointed, and God sent. God honors the desire to seek after righteousness and He says those who seek will find Me with all of their hearts.

Second: Belief

We need to believe for what the Lord's vision is for our husbands- respect, skill, authority, leadership, wisdom. As many of us have learned. Part of belief is speaking (putting it to action). I read somewhere in my ventures that words take on new power when they fly out of our lips. Remember Genesis and creation? God could have made all that happen with a thought but He chose words.

Whenever I speak to the Lord or rebuke the devil I use my spoken words so there's no misunderstanding who I'm talking to. Speak to the belief you have, through Christ, in the Lord's vision for your spouse. "Thank You Lord for making my husband be respected amongst his dealings, for giving him skill to use for Your glory Lord and our provision. Thank you Lord that you will impart wisdom to him for the decisions with my family." Speak it girls!

Some of you may have husbands who are presently unbelieving, but you can speak to the salvation the Lord has for them and through that who they will become as that new creation man. Don't just think this pertains to the woman whose husband has salvation. The Lord will honor your decision to respect and uphold him even in his unbelieving state because whether or not you realize it your showing him Christ through your respect, encouragement, and belief. [2 Corinthians 5:21; 2 Corinthians 5:16-17; Romans 5:5; Ephesians 5:25, 28, 29; Proverbs 31: 11, 23 also 16:3]

Third: Prayer

For this I have to quote Connie. "When I began to ask God to create in me the desire and power to love my husband with His unconditional love, something supernatural began to happen in my marriage. First Peter 3:7 tells us that a husband and wife are joint heirs to the grace of God. That means when you begin to ask God to change you, His grace begins to work on your husbands heart as well."

We need to pray for our husbands so the Lord can bring to fruition His complete will for our family. Imagine what would happen in your home if you started to pray for revelation and for your words to speak to the promises you have in the Lord. I visualize entire families transformed! I see children in happy homes with parents who have a profound love for one another. So much so that love is poured over into those precious ones whose visions of marriage now are upheld to a higher standard. I see a powerful vessel (because two become one) just ready and surrendered to the Lord's will. I visualize the change we truly need to see across this land because God's marriage plan extends into community to be a full representation of His love, kindness, self control, long suffering, ect.

Revelation. Belief. Prayer. It's what every home needs. And it begins in you, the wife.

Now for any women interested I'd like to pray for you personally. Whatever the need in your marriage is, you just send me a note to swallowingamoose@yahoo.com and I'm going to pray for you. It would be my honor to lift those needs to the throne room of heaven. I know our Lord is one of incredible love. He shows me more of that through my marriage. Which has come to be all that it is because of Jesus and His ability to show me how to be the best wife I could be to this man I love. Also, on how not to drag him kicking & screaming to salvation, but rather let the Lord alone woo my love right to His heart and change our whole world for the better.

Making Much of Him

2010-06-01T00:00:00.004-04:00

On Tuesday's many of us bloggin' gals take part sharing on the week's quote found at Writing Canvas. Join us if you like by visiting WC and finding out all the particulars. Don't miss hearing from all the others sharing through the IOW icon. [It will direct you to this weeks quote host]

“God delights in using ordinary Christians who come to the end of themselves and choose to trust in His extraordinary provision. He stands ready to allocate His power to all who are radically dependent on Him and radically devoted to making much of Him.”

By David Platt in

Radical: Taking back your faith from the American Dream

Much of our life is spent trying to fulfill the American Dream. In our minds each of us visualize what that means for us. Maybe to you it's college followed by a good job that has 401K, health benefits, corner office, and a snazzy business car. To the next person it's a yellow house on a corner lot with a white fence, two kids in the yard, a dog, and a service business. Whatever that vision is you run out and work your fingers to the bone trying to get to it. You miss kids birthdays, church on Sundays, anniversaries, and soccer banquets all to get to that coveted dream. Somewhere along the way your so lost and disillusioned you don't even recognize who you are. Neither does your family.

....Is this God's plan for you?....

.... For your family?....

....For your marriage?....

....For your future?....

I'm sure you don't need me to tell you the answer to is a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y not! When we try to go after things (be it jobs, material stuff, relationships, marriages, positions, ministry, ect) in our own strength then we will only ever get what our effort's return is- partial. Would you take your money to the bank and put it in a CD if the banker told you, "Well, Sammy we'll happily take your money and give you a partial return of 1% on the 4% interest you should be earning. How's that?" Heck no! Well, this is exactly what happens when we try to go off in our own strength and accomplish something.

The alternative is to receive what Christ is capable of by (1) receiving what His Son did for you and (2) by coming to the realization that you in your own efforts can accomplish nothing apart from Christ. I bet you don't need me to remind you He is the owner of cattle on a thousand hills. Rely on His efforts and you'll be richly blessed- not just in the tangible either.

Success is not defined by what you have... but rather by Who you have. [Genesis 39:1-2]

I know what it's like to have dreams apart from the Lords desires for me. I found a nearly broken marriage there. The end of a much loved career. A financial crisis. And a profoundly spiritual deficit. Today I've learned my wealth in having Him. Since then I've never lacked and I never will. I'm opting for the full return because I'm leaning completely on Christ and what He receives from His Father. Not what I can run out and try to make work for myself & family. Doing this I have found life to have an ease like never before.

How about you.... 1% or 4%?

Multitude Monday- 5/31/10

2010-05-31T00:00:00.003-04:00

... Nights to celebrate a father-in-laws birthdays...

... Laughter from little boys who just want their uncle to flip them upside down...

... Doctors who know how to laugh with you about life's well... unlaughable moments...

... What candles and new fancy sheets do for a marriage...

... A husband who loves me for me and I can know for certain we'll be together forever...

... Friends to share dinner, babies, and laughs with...

... New books to read and grow in my knowledge of the Lord...

... Lastly, for being loved by Him. It's a sweet love that's everything I need when life's curveballs seem to be flying in all directions...

PS~ If you could, my husband & I would appreciate your prayer that the Lord would speed up time for us and connect us to whoever our adoptive child(ren) are. Our classes are finished for our state. We desire a domestic adoption. And we'd prefer a baby, but really just want whoever the Lord has for us. At the moment both of us are feeling discouraged because we feel like we are just at a stand still not knowing which direction to go. Thank you ever so much!

"I just want to be in the center of His will? Is that asking too much?"

2010-05-26T01:00:00.002-04:00

Topic for next three weeks: A Spiritual Practice of Holy Matrimony

Taking forks in the marriage road with NASCAR-like reflexes

In life & marriage there will be more than one occasion spouses don't agree with each others decisions. So how then do we respond when this dilemma arises? This is the topic of which I'll be sharing today in Walk With Him Wednesday.

Recently, this very opportunity has come up in my marriage. My husband and I were given the amazing chance to relocate to a new state for a higher position in the company he works for. It was all great and good...until there came a fork in the road. He was ready to walk down one lane and me another. I was ready to jump feet first into this new journey because I just knew this was where the Lord wanted us. Him... not so much.

It was then and only then that I had a decision to make... How would Christ like me to respond?... after I have a momentary meltdown of course. Just kidding! How would Christ like me to respond right here, right now? I could get really angry and make my husband suffer for not coming to the same answer as me. I could try to drag him to the same point I am in my relationship with the Lord. Or perhaps I could show him Jesus through responding with grace and letting him know that even if this is the wrong decision the Lord still loved him immensely. Yeah this was it I'd show him unconditional love and mercy. Mercy because you ought to know a girl was ready to have herself a new house to decorate! "Smile"

How do we as wives respond when different decisions are reached? Answer: (1) We take our heart to the Lord because He knows we may be in different places spiritually than our husbands and (2) we glorify Him by honoring them as the head of the house. Forgo the need to win the argument or have it our way and be blessed for trusting the Lord to work all things out in the end.

I've spent much time talking with the Lord about my feelings, reminding Him my greatest desire is to just be in the center of His will... wherever that is. And you know what... for that moment I was. When I chose to honor my hubby I was right in the center of God's will! What a wonderful place to be! An I wouldn't have realized that if the Lord didn't open my wifely spiritual eyes. Praise Him for it!

In like manner, you married women, be submissive to your own husbands... so that even if any do not obey the Word of God, they may be won over not by discussion, but by the godly lives of their wives, when they observe the pure and modest way in which you conduct yourselves, together with your reverence [for your husband; you are to feel for him all that reverence includes: to respect, defer to, revere him- to honor, esteem, appreciate, prize, and, in human sense, to adore him, that is, to admire, praise be devoted to, deeply love, and enjoy your husband].

1 Peter 3:1-2

Wanna See Change in the Church?

2010-05-25T01:00:00.004-04:00

"Our view of the Holy Spirit is too small. The Holy Spirit is the One who changes the church, but we have to remember the Holy Spirit lives in us. It is individual people living spirit-filled lives that will change the church."

~Quoted by Francis Chan in Crazy Love: A relentless God

Can I get an 'AMEN' in the house?! Whoo-Hoo!! Preach it Francis!

If only we could all get a simultaneous revelation of how powerful Jesus' one act on the cross was for all eternity and could begin to live out this revelation in our walks. I'm certain the ground would tremble at God's people walking in the power of His Holy Spirit in unison. Satan and the darkness he operates would cower and hide. I don't know about you but I love that thought!

The power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in us who believe He took our place. His very Spirit has moved in. Many of us act as though WE are the holy spirit with the power of our words changing the direction of the lives of others. Our futile attempts gain nothing. Absolutely nothing. Well, except for exhaustion and frustration because we didn't get ourselves or them any further.

The Holy Spirit works in and through us to give us the power and desire to be all that Christ suffered for. It's the Holy Spirit that radically changes the desires of believers. Teaches them the profound truths of God's word and helps it to take root in their hearts and manifest in their lives. [Philippians 2:13 Not in your own strength for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you- energizing and creating in you the power and desire- both to do will and to work for His good pleasure.]

Do you wanna see a change in the church? Let that change begin in your heart! Pray for a deeper revelation of the Lords love for you. As the Lord continues to open your eyes to His love it'll have a trickle down effect. It'll cause others to turn their heads towards you. Prayerfully they'll seek to know what it is that's taken place in you and the Holy Spirit will till the soil of their hearts to produce a crop in them as well. Now what if this just kept on rolling???????

Here's some lovely truths:

John 17:26 I made your name known to them and revealed Your character and Your very Self, and I will continue to make You known, that the love which you have bestowed upon Me may be in them- felt in their hearts- and that I [Myself] may be in them.

Galations 5:22-23 the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit, [the work which His presence within accomplishes] is love, joy, peace, patience... kindness, goodness... faithfulness, gentleness... and self-control.

See the rest of the gals sharing today over at The Next Step.

One Thousand Gifts of Gratitude Monday's

2010-05-23T15:57:00.003-04:00

... Thank You Lord for unconditional love this week...

... Thank You Lord for strength to carry on when part of me wants to just quit...

... Thank You Lord for the sound of little giggles from the niece I adore...

... Thank You Lord for the man you gifted to me who kisses my head at night...

... Thank You Lord for the birds and their nest making out the window. I'm learning it's those simple things that give me laughter and hope...

... Thank You Lord for a great study to learn more of who I am because of what all your Son accomplished in his obedience...

Be happy [in your faith] and rejoice and be glad-hearted continually... Be unceasing in prayer... Thank God in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

What are you thanking the Lord for this past week? Please do share!

Better Late Than Never!

2010-05-19T15:34:00.003-04:00

"Out of the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks." ~Matthew 12:34

How's that for a sobering thought?! Read it one more time. "Out of the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks." Simply put: Our words are saying a whole lot on what your heart believes about the Lord. I ask you, "What are your words saying?" Are they voicing how you don't think God's capable of rectifying your situation? Maybe they are saying He doesn't even want to? Or perhaps speaking to the things of your old nature. You know, the individual who existed prior to a personal acceptance of Jesus for your sin debt.

I think it's time for a visual... I'd say to close your eyes, but if ya did then you won't be able to know what I continue saying so work with me here... Visualize your old self, the one chained down by the wieight of sin. Now pretend your handing over those luggage-like cases of hurtful sin to Jesus. Guess what happens next? Jesus exchanged identities with you. He's handing you His righteousness and all of His inheritance while you hand him that exhausting pile of luggage representing sin.

We should be speaking to that new man or woman we are in Christ. Which means our mouth's should be spewing forth all of the Lords promised blessings, favor, and expressions of love & growth. Not vomitting out satan's lies he's trying to pour on us like thick oil over our heads until we can't see out our eyes!

My prayer is that we will learn, through the power of the Holy Spirit working in and through us, to speak the truth about ourselves and all the Lord has for us as we take upon the nature of His Son through belief.

What are you speaking words of life into??

Divanomics- How to be fabulous when your broke By Michalle Hammond

2010-05-13T17:51:00.003-04:00

Divanomics

How to still be fabulous when your broke

By Michelle McKinney Hammond

Divanomics is a book aimed at teaching a diva how to be frugal and make better financial decisions. Michele herself has suffered several times financially from her spending habits and economic downturns. She tries to share the importance of good decisions when it comes to money in a funny, casual way. At the end of each chapter is a section called "What's a Diva to do?" In this area you ask yourself some questions and assess your thinking, spending, and monetary habits.

I can't say I learned anything really new from this book. I could go forever without ever hearing the word 'diva' again though! I think Michelle went a little overboard on that part. Also, I thought she basically reiterated the lessons and advice we have heard from Dave Ramsey, Suze Orzman, and a few other financial adviser's for years.

If you have never read a financial book before then you might appreciate some of her advice and reiteration of the ideas from the other great financial adviser's. All in all, it was just mediocre for me.

*This book was graciously provided to me by Tyndale publishing for review purposes. Above is my honest review of the book.

Life, In Spite of Me by Kristen Anderson with Tricia Goyer

2010-05-13T17:07:00.003-04:00

Life,

In Spite of Me

Words cannot express how absolutely touching this young woman's story is! I could hardly put it down to accomplish anything. This book will touch the lives of many with Kristen's transparency and openness about the brokenness she experienced and the actions it led her to.

Kristen is the young seventeen year old survivor of the suicide attempt on the tracks of a Chicago railway. Her story will bless your heart and no doubt bring you to tears, joy, and a revelation of our Lord's great, amazing grace & love. In her book you'll hear her story of how she came to know Christ as her Saviour & Lord though her attempt to end her life once and for all. The miracle of her survival will still be unfolding up until the last chapters of the story.

Don't waste one more minute! Order yourself this book (Go Here for ordering and a sneak peek) and start being blessed. It's nicely hard bound with easy to read pages and notes from Kristen to you. Also you can visit her ministries website here: Reaching You.

*This book was graciously provided to me for review purposes by Waterbrook Multnomah.

Bridegrooms by Allison Pittman

2010-04-20T18:12:00.004-04:00

Bridegrooms by Allison Pittman is situated in the hustling town of Cleveland, Ohio during the late 1800's. It's a dramatic story of three sisters, all so uniquely different. The mother of the girls left in the night not long after the youngest sister, Lisette was born. Since then they are living with a physician father who's renting out rooms to boarders, all of which are eligible grooms for these wildly, romantic girls ruling the roost. Father stays mostly consumed with his medical business that's run out of the family basement. His patience and words are few with his girls. Vada will guide you along in this tale of Bridegrooms with her business and love for the symphony. You'll follow these sisters through a their tale of love, mystery, and laughter.

If you are inclined to read romance novels, era written stories or just like a good summer read this would meet all your desires. You'll follow these sisters through a their tale of love, mystery, and laughter.

You may purchase the book through this link: http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?isbn=9781601421371

*The Bridegrooms book was provided to me at no cost by the publisher for review purposes.

Be Real. (At Extravagant Grace!)

2010-04-11T09:46:00.004-04:00

Monday (April 12th,2010) I'm taking part in an interview with ELisa. I'm 'being real' about where I am right now in my walk with the Lord and the main thing I'm struggling with.

Be sure to check it all out over at Extravagant Grace. I assure you that you won't be sorry you visited her blog! ELisa is a beautifully gifted writer sharing in this grace journey we live. Her words touch my heart again and again.

Click on the icon above to be directed to her page & the interview.

BibleMan Combating the Commandment of Confustion DVD

2010-04-08T10:55:00.004-04:00

BibleMan

Combating the Commandment of Confusion

This Bibleman Powersource DVD is on the topic of The Armour of God and how the devil tries to confuse us. I admit this was my first experience watching any of the BibleMan dvd's and I was quite pleased. It's a great live performance for your children ages 6-10 to experience.

One of my favored things about this dvd is how much scripture it uses. A good half of the words spoken are scriptural. And when they use scripture the characters will give the reference to it.

The main aspect of this series I love is how at the end of each live performance BibleMan gives the plan of salvation in a kid-friendly way using the acronym ABC. A- Admit you are a sinner. B- Believe that Christ came and died for your sin. C- Choose to believe in Him. Of course he elaborates more than that for the kids and then prays the prayer of salvation with those who ABC.

* This dvd resource was provided to me by the publisher for review purposes.

Adoption Update #2

2010-04-05T13:57:00.003-04:00

I know... I have neglected to get on the blog and update you all on our happenings! So here goes...

The first week of March 2010 we completed our 10 weeks of MAPP classes. In case you don't already know, those are the State required classes to either foster or adopt through the State of Florida (and most other states). They were grueling at times because of the negativity you hear. I suppose if you don't keep your eyes on Jesus and focused on His kind of hope then you only see hope through the efforts of the mortal man. Which as we know are hopeless without Christ working through them. One night after classes I became so sick from the discussions I was throwing up violently in the night. It was awful! I have a heart for these kids and I see hope because I know we serve a big God so to have my mind polluted with the awful negativity it just got to me. So praise the Lord those are over with.

After ending our parenting classes we were on to the big wait of getting in line for homestudies. Which as we heard could take months to get done and a month to write. But my bible study girls who are learning more of their identity in Christ prayed for a miracle in the timing (to be done before my birthday the first weekend of April). An as you can imagine the Lord answered! A rare thing happened. We were the second couple farmed out to have a homestudy done by an independent contractor for the agency in charge of case work and management. Ha! Not only that but it was done on Friday and back to the adoptions boss lady by the following Monday! On top of that the woman who did the homestudy is a retired adoptions specialist from the adjoining county and boy is she an asset to us! We both were so excited about the whole thing. I fell in love with our home study lady. She was just precious and so full of valuable information. How awesome to have our friends be part of this special time and their prayers being answered.

Since the home study completion and approval we are able to find out more personal information on the kids we've looked at on the numerous Heart Galleries of our state. If you don't know what that even is go HERE to look at them through your state. Barry & I are interested in a set of siblings ages 4 & 6 but so are a lot of other families. We are awaiting more information on them. Prior to them we looked at the info on a set of twins and declined. That was kind of a bummer.

In the midst of all this craziness we were approached by a friend of the family, Meda, with an interest. Meda's friend has a daughter my age who is pregnant and wants to give the child up for adoption. So they are looking for an interested family. As of now, they know about us from the family friend and we know a little about them. The father is not wanting to adopt as of the moment, but the mother is. Obviously that causes a disruption. Which is okay. Because we don't want a baby from anyone who is not sure that it's what's right for them and for the baby. I wouldn't want to live with regret and I certainly don't want them to either. The family and us both want to remain private until all parties are on board IF that is the decision come near birth. The due date is unknown to us completely. Which is kind of funny to think we could be called at any moment. Surprise!

Also, a young friend of my 19 y/o cousin is now pregnant and not sure about her babies future with a father who's uninterested. This mother also knows about us and likes the fact that she knows our family and our character. This young mother was considering abortion. If anything hopefully we have given her hope that there's no need for such a hurtful thing and a future for both of them.

I would be lying if I said I was really excited about both of those possibilities. I mean I dream of raising a child from birth with the love of my life, but at the same time these could both never work out and there I'd be an Olympic size pool of tears. People knowing we are adopting puts us in this weird situation over and over. Barry & I are just playing it cool. We talk about the what if's... both the happy & the sad. But we are resolved to just letting the Lord work out whatever He wants for us for now. By the way, that isn't always easy but what's right! I don't what you thinking I'm super human or anything. "smile"

Everyday we talk about what the future holds for our little growing family. We dream. We laugh. We hope. We trust. and ..... We wait.

This Little Prayer of Mine by Anthony DeStefano

2010-03-27T14:32:00.003-04:00

This Little Prayer of Mine

by Anthony DeStefano

illustrated by Mark Elliott

First, I have to say that this book has the cutest illustration ever! Just look at it's cover! The expressions on the faces of the characters are absolutely adorable.

As for the content of the book it's quite short. Although, it covers a multitude of topics that relate to the happenings in our childs days. Those topics include: fear, sadness, help, behavior, friendship, materialism, thankfulness, His love,

caring for others, sharing, future, and trust.

I believe the ages of children that This Little Prayer of Mine would appeal to would be under the ages of eight.

You can purchase this book now through this link: HERE.

This is my honest review of the book that was provided to me at no cost for reviewing purposes by Random House.

So Long Insecurity By Beth Moore

2010-03-05T10:43:00.001-05:00

I set out reading So Long Insecurity with an open mind because, although, I do love Beth Moore bible studies I find them quite cumbersome. She is a fantastic teacher of the Word and has a beautiful anointing in women's ministry. Yet sometimes I feel things a bit wordy and I find my mind wandering off to things like my grocery list.

The truth on which this book is founded I wholeheartedly agree with. That truth being how so many believers know nothing of their identity in Christ and therefore seek to find that identity in other places. One of the entrapment's to living fully in our Christ-given identity is insecurity. We spend a lot of time feeding into it and staying bound by it. When what we really need to do is get set free! Beth does a great job pointing you back to your identity in Christ. Also by helping you to see some of the ways you get caught up in your insecurity without even realizing it.

Although I think the book is quite a bit longer than it needs to be it's still a great read. (Particularly Chapter 8) This would be a great book to give to a friend who may have never been exposed to Beth Moore or her ministry.

For additional support and encouragement you should check out the website for readers of the book. Get to that website by clicking here: So Long Insecurity by Beth Moore

This book was provided at no cost for review purposes by the publisher. The above is my honest review of the book in my own words.

In Other Words- 3/2

2010-03-02T00:00:00.002-05:00

One who has been touched by grace will no longer look on those who stray as “those evil people” or “those poor people who need our help.” Nor must we search for signs of “love worthiness.” Grace teaches us that God loves because of who God is, not because of who we are.
~ Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace?

Grace. The most heated discussion amongst churches across the globe. Why is it so controversial we ask? Simply because it causes us to believe the profound truth that it's not about us and our efforts, but solely about Jesus Christ and his one act of obedience on Calvary as the only acceptable payment for all sin for all time.

To receive grace we have to decide to lay down our desire to work it out with in and of ourselves. I could work lots of things out in my flesh, but the results are based on my performance. If those aren't good, the result isn't good. Or I could simply receive what the Lord's results are based on His goodness, love, mercy, and grace. How are our efforts gonna outdo His love??? They aren't, so let's just rest in Christ. Lean back on Him and just receive and relax!

I'll share with you a moment of transparency: For years my grandfathers friend, whom he went to prison ministry with, would ask me, "Do you know what grace is?" To that I'd always answer, "YES! I know what it is. A free gift!" He would irritate the heck outta me every Sunday asking me that. I wondered to myself... What are these two old men teaching the corrupt young twits in prison that they don't already know or haven't heard a hundred times before from a prision chaplin? I obviously didn't know what grace really was or how much that meant for me. Yeah, Yeah. I understood salvation, but I did not know victory. It is possible to be saved but clueless about the inheritance won there for you.

Once the Lord gave me a love revelation, after I told Him it's the truth or I'm gonna leave this religion and find another, I was wowed to say the least. I was humbled He showed me His love and why I can enjoy victory in Him in this life I live now prior to eternity. He taught me grace that no preacher in a pulpit ever told me. He made it personal.

Now I know what those two old men were telling those guys in the prison and why so many were giving their hearts away to Jesus. They were telling them "It's not about you and your efforts and the sin that many times results in because it's about Jesus and his obedience on Calvary. The Lord is looking at your sin, He's looking at Jesus who was the payment for sin. An it was soooo good that now he's sitting at the right hand of the Lord interceding on your behalf. You can go free because the debt was paid in full. Right believing always leads to right living!"

Grace. It's for real. It's for you. It's for freedom. It's for living. It leads to a life of exalting. Which is what we were created for... To exalt Jesus and His sacrifice for all.

Lastly, It's love.

2010-03-01T10:43:00.000-05:00

24 Verses in 2010 ~ 3/1

2010-03-01T00:00:00.002-05:00

The verse I'm presently putting to memory and to heart is 2 Peter 1:2 from the Amplified. I chose this verse because it is the truth on which I'm co-leading a women's study on right now. We are journeying through the latest read from Joseph Prince called Unmerited Favor. What a journey it is beginning to be! \

May grace (God's favor) and peace (which is perfect well-being, all necessary good, all spiritual prosperity, and freedom from agitating passions and moral conflicts) be multiplied to you in [the full, personal, precise, and correct] knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

So as we increase our knowledge of God & Jesus through the truth in His word grace and peace are multiplied to us! How is that for awesome! His word is power! I just love this verse. It's spelling out more of what our inheritance in Christ is. The peace that's here in this verse is the shalom peace too. I get the chills just thinking about all this.

We could serve & exalt no greater God. He is meekness and majesty. Oh I love Him so!

One Thousand Gifts of Gratitude~

2010-03-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

Continuing on in my quest to One thousand Gifts of Gratitude with the Gratitude Community of Holy Experience. I encourage you to join in with us if you too have a heart of gratitude. No doubt you will be blessed by the experience. Click on the link in the icon above to be directed to others sharing and info about how to join with us.

... Wisened mothers to give encouragement to a woman hoping to be...

... Husbands who show their love in their tender words and actions...

... New beginnings in new places...

... Calls made when we least expect it...

... Moms and their mothering...

... Other women to encourage me in the ways of life...

... Hearing about youth who love Jesus and desire to follow after him...

Dear Readership

2010-02-17T13:50:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to inform you all that Swallowing A Moose is gone for the week. She will return to normal blogging on Monday, February 22.

The Voice of Psalms

2010-02-11T12:07:00.003-05:00

The Voice of Psalms

The Voice of the Psalms is a beautifully bound collection of the Psalms. My first experience in reading from this new translation they refer to as the voice (a collective work by a team of pastors, scholars, writers, musicians, poets, and other artists) was a rather good one. The styling of the translation is very easy and enjoyable.

Inside you'll find a twenty-eight day reading plan for the season of Advent, a forty day reading plan for the season of Lent, forty day reading plan to worship the Eternal One with your praise, and a forty day reading plan for seeking help from the true God. Along with those plans underneath of many of the chapters of Psalms you'll find some thoughts or opinions on the reading by the collaboration of people who helped to create this translation. I can't say that I agree with all the things I read in those areas. This is the same place many can twist scripture into aligning with their own opinions.

For those of us who are into deeper study, this would not be a resource you'd enjoy for study purposes. It's lacking in footnotes and parallels. They have done that with purpose in this translation though of which they explain in the front of the reading.

Overall, this book is great for reading and I enjoyed it very much. I would be interested in seeing the many other portions of the Word that they have done this same work on.

FTC: This complimentary book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson for review purposes.

Precious Treasures of the Lord

2010-02-07T19:16:00.012-05:00

Collin & Christian:

They may be twins, but these two bundles of energy are very much individuals! They do agree though on how much they enjoy playing outside, riding bikes and swimming. They also like playing video games and their favorite food is pizza. Still, sibling rivalry and personality differences can get the best of them at times.

Due to abuse, neglect and exposure to domestic violence in their past, Collin and Christian need a mom and dad who can offer patience, love and support as they learn and grow. Calmness, respect for others and nurturing is needed for the boys in order to help them overcome their difficult experiences. Ideally, a forever family would advocate for the siblings, recognizing that with hard work comes a lot of fun, raising two active boys through life's challenges.

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Dane & Stephen:

Dane
Outgoing and affectionate, Dane is also a protective and loving older brother. Born in 1996, he is very proud of his ever-expanding vocabulary, and of how fast he can run. Dane loves to play the drums and his favorite food is yams with marshmallows! When he grows up, Dane wants to be a politician or an entertainer of some kind.

Steven
Steven is a very loyal and caring young man who really looks up to his big brother, even though he is just one year older. Though a little shy at first, as he becomes more comfortable, Steven reveals his loving and affectionate side. He doesn't know what he wants to be when he grows up yet. Steven's sensitive side shines through when he truly connects with someone he cares about.

Dane and Steven would thrive best in a caring, patient two-parent home and, if Steven has his way, one with lots of love and ice cream! These siblings are so close that you would believe they were best friends.

* There is a very good possibility that these two have been adopted. Praise the Lord if that's so but they were the first two we fell in love with many months ago via the WWW. But regardless there's nothing wrong with us still making the attempt to adopt them if their present 'match' has fallen through.

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Justin:

Justin is utterly and completely a sports fan. When he isn’t watching his two favorites – football and basketball – on television, you’ll find Justin playing a sports video game or maybe even watching a local game. He hopes to be a football player when he grows up, but for now he keeps himself busy with his love for dogs, dolphins, and hip-hop music.... AND Jesus!

*Wait till you see this video you'll have to pick your jaw up off the floor! My heart lept inside the day I came across this precious jewel. Regardless of the statistics these kids may be part of they are NOT out of the grasp of one awesome God. This is gonna melt your heart.

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Well, if your anything like me your probably filled with tears at this point. These are real, precious little lives here. Each so loved by our Creator! Each with a God-sized purpose only He could plan out. Perhaps the Lord has put it upon your heart too to sow into the kingdom through a young life.

Before placing your vote (for fun) on whom we should pursue adopting I ask you to please lift up all five of these and the thousands across our nation that they will all be found by loving people such as yourselves. Until that time, our prayer is for their little minds and hearts be guarded from the ugly in this world. After, happily place your 'vote' by clicking on the click here to comment link below this post. If you don't have google as your e-mail or blogging platform just sign it anonymously, but be sure to sign your name to your vote. Barry & I are excited to see who each of you are choosing for us! We are so happy to have such awesome friends & family to share in these joys with us! You all make us who we are. Prayerfully, that's a good thing! :)

Now don't forget there's a possibility that all of these children could find adoptive parents before we get the "OK" on our home study or we might not be able to meet their specific needs. Therefore, we may have to seek out other children if that's the case. Either way it's still a HUGE mystery WHO the Lord will bring home to us. Who ever they are we simply cannot not wait!

Happy Voting!!

**All the photo's above and video's were borrowed from the Heart Galleries of Miami, Jacksonville, and Tampa Bay.

Mom's Bible~ God's Wisdom For Mothers

2010-02-02T10:27:00.003-05:00

Mom's Bible with Notes by Bobbie Wolgemuth is written in the NCV (New Century Version). The quality of this bible is beautiful! It has a hard cover sure to survive a life on the bedside or dining room table as you use it over the years. More bibles should have these nice covers to help them last through their lifetimes. As for the translation, this was my first time reading the NCV translation and I found it to be a very simple read. For those of us who are lovers of the study bible or amplified you won't enjoy this particular translation or type of bible. It's more along the lines of a devotional bible for gift giving purposes.

Mom's Bible would make a perfect gift for a mother-to-be or new mother. Through the pages you'll find little boxes containing sweet stories from real life. The women share their thoughts on particular verses or sections of scripture. Also, in the back of this bible are answers to many of the most curious questions asked by children. (IE. Where's Noah's Ark Now? Who Invented Baptism?, How Big is God?, Where Did God Come From?) I was most curious to see the answers to these. Some of them I agree with and some I believe to be more of an opinion.

This complimentary book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson for review purposes. The above is my honest review of the product and nothing short of that.

2010-02-01T08:32:00.003-05:00

As many of you already know, I have committed this year to learn Romans 8, 7, 6, and 5 in their entirety. I decided to embark on this journey not only because I'm crazy to think my adult brain could actually retain that many words but because I yearn for my heart to be filled with that truth.

I feel confident my brain could remember the words alone but I pray for my heart to be changed by the truth they hold. As we know that will only happen if I get my flesh outta the way first. Easier said then done.

So far I have managed to get 3/4 of Romans memorized. In the process the Lord has opened my mind up to comprehend some of the most profound truth written in that chapter of His Word. I was beyond excited to be part of what takes place when we truly seek after the Lord in His word.

Once I get this whole chapter put to memorization I am thinking about video recording it for you to see/ hear. I can assure you I won't be even a speck as impressive as John Piper. But my heart will be there none the less.

What scripture are you working on memorizing presently?

Why did you chose that particular set over others?

Would you join with us gals at Extravagant Grace to embark on the journey? (click on the icon above to be redirected to her and find out the scoop!)

One Thousand Gifts- 2/1

2010-02-01T08:20:00.004-05:00

Continuing on in my quest to One thousand Gifts of Gratitude with the Gratitude Community of Holy Experience. I encourage you to join in with us if you too have a heart of gratitude. No doubt you will be blessed by the experience. Click on the link in the icon above to be directed to others sharing and info about how to join with us.

... a fellowship to join in exaltation...

... a father to celebrate a birthday and Moonpie's (a redneck delicacy) with...

... friends to share in worship...

... the sight of little kids running around the church...

... a mother who drives me crazy from time to time...

... best girlfriends to laugh about cat happenings with...

I encourage you to walk in your already earned victory today! Know that you are loved abundantly by your Abba Father right where you are. Invite Him to let His love change you in the deepest parts! And perhaps join in with us on this journey of gratitude to our Father.

Walk With Him Wednesday- 1/20

2010-01-27T01:00:00.002-05:00

Experiencing God: How have you recently Experienced God in Your Life?

This is my first week joining in with the girls sharing in this Wednesday walk with our Lord. I couldn't be happier to have this opportunity to share how we've been experiencing God in our life.

Lately, my Sweet Lord has been opening my eyes to the importance of understanding my identity in His Son. It's not a new revelation I've received or anything because I've known this now for two years since He answered a prayer of mine to know His truth (you can read more about that here). He seems to be bringing it to the forefront of our lives at this moment because we are in need of the truth we know about Him right at this moment. He's so awesome like that isn't He?! Right when we need it, whatever it is for you, He brings His word & promises to us so we can just grab onto them. Oh gracious this gets me so excited!

The Lord pointed me to this truth in the following places in the last week:

In the hospital hallway of my former employer while talking with a old friend an two new one's. The husband and wife are pastors of a church here locally and their next series of teachings were on knowing your identity in Christ. (You can bet I watched those via the WWW!)

In a book I received for review. (Free Book by Brian Tome)

While at church last husband was on wrong side of our follow along paper and opened his bible up to look at a verse. There on the page right below it was a big block that said, "Your New Identity" and listed all the verses that said who you are as a new creation. Hubby started nudging me with the elbow to look. We smiled at this talk yet again.

Also, the Lord blessed me with the opportunity to share with a recovering addict some support by sharing with them about their new identity. Actually this was the first thing that happened and all those above followed.

Our church hosted a Spa Night for the ladies to promote the small group fellowships we have starting up. Our pastor's wife shared a message and what do you think she spoke on... uh huh... your identity in Christ.

My husband and I have giggled at all this being put before us now. It's at this moment we are trusting the Lord to be large in our lives and exalt His Son through us every breathe, moment, and hour of our days. This year we are having to trust and rely on His like never before as we keep stepping forward into the role of parents through the adoption. Some things have come up over the past few weeks that are no doubt Lucifer's attempts to trip us up and scare us. If I know my identity then I will be focused on the Lord working this out for His Son to obtain glory. If I know my inheritance I won't be disillusioned by Lucifer's attempts to scare us because I know the Lord will move in those areas just like all the others He is. If I know my inheritance than I know I'm loved beyond brain capacity and I can simply rest in the grace of our Lord and be refreshed. Or I could forgo all that and just work it out in the flesh till I'm so weary I'm sick. Nah... I don't think so. I tried those ways in my past and they were far too exhausting to live over again.

I'm experiencing God in my daily desire to live a life of exaltation. In doing that this week He's been conversing with me in His word and through his messengers on who I am in Him and what that means for my days here on Earth while i live in the inheritance His Son has earned for us all through His death on Calvary.

What about you? What's He been up to in your life?

In Other Words- 1/26

2010-01-26T01:00:00.000-05:00

Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth.I did not come to bring peace,but a sword.
~ Matthew 10:34

After going back to read this verse, in its context, in both accounts (Matthew 10 & Luke 12) I believe Jesus was trying to make the point that His message was going to cause division/ controversyas described above by the sword. There will be people who will reject the Truth, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't share it. Our job is to sow the seed. The Lord will be the one who prepares the soil for the seed to take root in.

I've always been the type who would get frustrated when people reject the love of Christ. Mostly because i've experienced it for myself to know it's profound transformation power and goodness! I know it's not my responsibility to drag the unbelieving to salvation, but my heart breaks to see lives changed.

We know our battle down here until He returns is with the darkness who tries to dim the lights. But we can rest assured that as the time of His return draws nearer our lights will shine brighter! Praise God!

Regardless of who the sword will divide on that day, perhaps we should pray for those who are living in unbelief that their heart will be softened to receive the Lord and His mighty love. My heart is to see all His sheep return to Him. How about yours?

Free Book By Brian Tome

2010-01-24T17:10:00.004-05:00

Radical Freedom! I could think of no other words to describe what is being shared in this read. If you are looking for a book that backstrokes the fabric of the mass of four walled churches you will really like this book.

For the individual who is seeking more by way of the Christ life you will enjoy this after you choke down the first few chapters. I say choke because Brian has chose to use words like 'pissed off' to describe the lack of knowledge people have on their identity in Christ. I am in complete agreement with that fact.

What Brian aims to do in Free Book is teach about how to get this new identity, how to let go of the old, what & who you are in Christ, and the freedom with comes in believing you are who He says you are. Not who society or those who are empty themselves yet filling pews of churches all over America say you are.

Free Book will give you the knowledge to slough off the old ways which lead to bondage, addiction, mediocrity, lukewarm, lack of grace and lack of biblical knowledge. Trade those in for your new life in Christ and WALK IT OUT!

This book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson for review. Above is my true, honest opinion and nothing short of that.

If you'd like to purchase this book you may do so at through the link provided below!

Amazon

Tea With Hezbollah by Ted Dekker & Carl Medearis

2010-01-24T10:34:00.001-05:00

Profoundly honest with a heap of laughter and the painful pinch of reality! It would be impossible to compare this book to anything else out there. The lover of current events will be floored by the discussions taking place. The person craving a fresh view on an over two thousand year old story of The Good Samaritan as told by Jesus Christ himself will never ever think of it the same again.

Two men on a journey to find answers the question: Can you really love your neighbor as yourself? Carl, a Nebraskan country boy, who as a young man heard the Lord give him this message, “You will love Arabs.” The other, Ted, who was born in the jungles of Indonesia to missionary parents and later as an adult came to the United States. An unlikely combination of personalities these two hatched a plan over lunch to travel through the heart of the Middle East to sit down to pose some candid questions to several of the most controversial individuals on the globe- namely, a cab driver or two, a humble boat driver, Abdul Fadeel Al Kusi, the Bin Laden brothers, Sheik Yamani, Sheik Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, a Hezbollah fighter, Hezbollah Sheik Nabil Qaouk, Mufti Abdul Fattah Al Bizem, Abu Joudea, Mufti Sabri, Sami Awad, Hamas leader, and one of the only remaining living Samaritans alive.

Ted and Carl travel with a long time friend of Carl’s named Samir Kreidie who is of very high regard throughout the area. Samir is responsible for the arrangements of the meetings with all the influential people the two will be meeting and posing the questions to. Throughout the book you can expect to hear about Carl’s tales of his travels to meet and love these Arab’s the Lord spoke to him about in his youth. His stories will no doubt have you on the edge of your very seat.

Prepare to be forever changed by what you read even if you’re a current events buff or a history scholar. Prior to reading this book I myself didn't even know if I knew the difference between a mufti or an ayatolla. Plan on getting a history lesson from Ted and Carl!

At the same time your reading about their exciting adventures in the Middle East having tea with some of the thought to be scariest leaders you'll be engrossed in the tale of a young American girl on a search for her father in a land foreign to her. I had a terrible time putting this book down between reads!

You may purchase the book HERE! or....

I'll be mailing off a free copy of this book to one of our commenters so be sure to leave a comment. This would be a fantastic Valentine's gift for your hubby too!

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Putting A Face to the Children

2010-01-20T17:41:00.003-05:00

Meet Salvatore! He is one of the precious children waiting for parents to adopt him. If you'd like to find out more about him or see his video please do so HERE. Perhaps you may be just the parents that can meet his needs and share your life and love with him.

I sure hope Miami Heart Gallery won't mind me helping to share the faces of these children with the world wide web or at least this other little corner of it. Even if your not from the State of Florida your home state probably has Heart Galleries as well. You might consider surfing them up and considering adoption as well or maybe you can't adopt but could take a moment to lift this sweet boy up in prayer that the Lord would send to him parents that will enrich his life.

As you may already know my husband and I are also adopting at the moment. If your interested in finding out about our story please click on the tab at the top of Swallowing A Moose called "The Adoption."

Share Your Thoughts...

2010-01-19T09:37:00.004-05:00

Please share with me your thoughts on the following question?

What do you believe or understand our (meaning those of us who are believers/ recievers of Jesus Christ for the payment of the debt for sin) purpose to be in life?

I'll be answering this question in the coming days after I have recieved some responses. This is gonna be really fun!

One Thousand Gifts~ 1/18

2010-01-17T20:00:00.002-05:00

Continuing on in my quest to One thousand Gifts of Gratitude with the Gratitude Community of Holy Experience. I encourage you to join in with us if you too have a heart of gratitude. No doubt you will be blessed by the experience. Click on the link in the icon above to be directed to others sharing and info about how to join with us.

... Friends who pray....

... Healing that is coming...

... Carbs in the form of garlic knots... My fav's...

... Things I completely don't understand but that the Lord already has worked out...

... Resources to share with others...

... Opportunities to sow into the kingdom...

... Others who share my revelation of grace...

... For knowing my identity in Christ and not settling for less than my inheritance in Him...

I encourage you to walk in your already earned victory today! Know that you are loved abundantly by your Abba Father right where you are. Invite Him to let His love change you in the deepest parts!

PS~ If you are one of my regular readers, you will need to update my web address. Our domain was lost to a snaf-foo with google and is now owned by an advertiser. Sorry for this incovienence i'm still trying to not panic about it!

UPDATE!

2010-01-17T11:47:00.003-05:00

Swallowing A Moose has lost it's dot com address compliments of the lovely Google's ineptness. Therefore, I will still be up and running just at dot blogspot dot com!

Readers, I am so sorry for this snaffoo I don't know how I could have stopped it. Only if a nice man in Isreal will give it back to us will be be back at our usual home.

I'll ill over this! Really ill.

In Other Words Tuesday~ 1/12

2010-01-11T22:00:00.000-05:00

God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways.
2 Corinthians 9:9 (MSG)

Boy oh boy do I love that thought! Instead of sharing about my thoughts on this quote today I'd like to share the recent story of my husbands employee.

This particular employee and his family I have a soft spot for because they are believers and simply precious. The father was a former professional baseball player from outside of the US who suffered an injury which abruptly ended his career several years back. This sweet father works hard to take care of his three little boys and loving wife. Unfortunately, his hours keep him from much of his kids lives which I hate more than anything else for them.

Recently they lost their home to his loss of a job prior to coming to work for my husband which led them into foreclosure. He was upset at not having the resources to give a little Christmas to his boys or wife. An was praying for the Lord to help him out with this desire.

The company that my husband works for has a reward system for it's employees on days when there are no injuries or accidents. They carry around these cards for BINGO in their wallets and each day there is no injury they get a number. The game will continue as long as there are no injuries and the first person to get a BINGO wins a prize. Well, the Lord worked it out for this humble father to win the big prize of $1000 and just days before Christmas. "D" was so excited he was filled with tears. He came to my hubby and said, "Look at what the Lord did for me! Now I can go to get a little gift for the boys and wife." And with a big grin he tells Barry, "Hey Boss! I owe you lunch!"

Isn't our Lord simply marvelous?! Barry & I were probably equally as excited to know that not only did the Lord provide... but "D" noticed it and gave Him the glory! Is there life any other way?! I tell you I just get so excited when I see the Lord up to cool stuff all around me. I just wanna dive in and help!

Happy Tuesday! Walk in your already earned victory today!

Titus 2 @ Extravagant Grace~ 1/11

2010-01-11T21:08:00.000-05:00

Join us gals over @ Extravagant Grace as we hone in on the talk in Titus two!

3 Similarly, teach the older women to live in a way that is appropriate for someone serving the Lord. They must not go around speaking evil of others and must not be heavy drinkers. Instead, they should teach others what is good.

4 These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children,

5 to live wisely and be pure, to take care of their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God.

What do you personally think it means to become a Titus 2 Woman?

My personal take on being a Titus 2 Woman is that my life should reek of Christ because of what's He's done for & in me. My outward living should reflect my inward change. Not because I have worked that out in the flesh, but because of my personal response to the revelation of God's grace (a.k.a. His huge, mind-boggling, life transforming love that I have done absolutely nothing to earn or deserve but freely given because He just loves to love.).

What do you think is the general sense of the Christian community?

I presently believe that the general sense of Christian community is that an individual needs to work harder at making the love of Christ evident in their living. I believe the antidote to that is simply we each need to ask the Lord for a personal revelation of His love for us as individuals. Once your eyes see, your ears hear, and your heart gets melted, by this revelation, you won't need to work harder in the flesh. You will realize you have a new nature and that Christ is now at work in you to remove the desires of the old and implant the desires of Himself in you. Right living is produced by right believing. Never the opposite in your relationship with the Lord! Ponder that. I had to until the Lord removed the veil from my eyes and it changed me in many of these area's we are talking about.

What is the word's response, in your opinion?

One of which is work harder to change all things. The others of which are rebel against all things spiritual and set your minds on the things of here & now rather than there & later.

What challenges do we face as we pursue this mission?

I guess my biggest issue personally is reminding myself to let the Lord work in/ on me rather than me trying to work it out for Him. Which as we all know would wind up in a total Titus 2 disaster. :)

Where can we find the encouragement and support to press on?

Foremost, in The Word! Secondly, through prayer! Thirdly, other women who are in the faith that share our understanding.

We are so overcoming the things of this world! Gals we should just keep those mascara & eye shadow beautified eyes on our King. We can have the confidence that He has overcome this world and desires to lead us, in His love, to a life of holiness because as He said we are set apart. Praise be to Him, we are set apart because of His obedience on the cross.

Speak to what you already are because of Him. I, Heather, already am the Titus 2 Woman. The Lord is manifesting those characteristics of the godly woman in me now. He is doing the same in you!

One Thousand Gifts- 1/11

2010-01-10T10:54:00.001-05:00

Continuing on in my quest to One thousand Gifts of Gratitude with the Gratitude Community of Holy Experience. I encourage you to join in with us if you too have a heart of gratitude. No doubt you will be blessed by the experience. Click on the link in the icon above to be directed to others sharing and info about how to join with us.

... Barry's laughter that turns into mutual laughter...

... Chances to help or lift up friends...

... Girls who drag me out walking to wear me slick and prepare me for sleep...

... Worship to usher me into throne room...

... A young life so willing to bear her souls pain...

... The Word where I can rest my weary heart and have it revived again...

... A fellowship of believers to join in the journey with...

... Knowing kids who love Jesus on their own accord...

... For gratitude and how it changes an individuals perception of the small things and for how it turns their focus to the Lord and His infinite goodness spilled out around us every moment...

... OH! and for a little boy who told me he saw a dinosaur at the circus because for a split second, while holding you, I felt like a mother staring at her own proud little man. That makes me so giddy for the days ahead I can't stand it!...

Happy gratitude counting to you all! Be richly blessed this week as you go forward in Jesus Name!

Eat The Word!

2010-01-07T18:13:00.009-05:00

My theme for 2010 is "Eat & Exalt Christ's Love." So first things first, let's talk about eating together shall we?!

Why Eat?

Because we need nutrients! Duh, right?

In this life we desperately need to eat the word so it's powerful nutrients can not only keep us revived, but also seep out of our very pores and into the lives of those around us. I don't know about you, but nothing gets me through like a good sit down with my Jesus to delve into His Word for those very necessary nutrients. Without it my spoken words are many times pointy & jagged, my eyes see only a blur rather than the clear path, and my heart gets sidetracked on worldly yuk. What about you?

Ways to eat?

Memorization, Reading alone or as a husband & wife or as a family, Audio or Video, ect.

How many of us have index cards in purses or wallets, notes taped to our mirrors, devotional books to share as families, bedtime readings with your children. What about taping verses onto our vacuums or other items in our home we are with regularly? How am I doing this you ask? I use the first letter prompt trick I learned from Ann @ Holy Experience to help me put to memory certain chunks of scripture. My first letters prompt is kept in my purse so wherever I go I can work on my memorization. Already, the Lord has started letting those words marinade in my soul. The Holy Spirit opened my heart up to understand a particular few verses like never before and I was SO EXCITED! (To find out more on the first letter prompt trick and other memorization & eating the Word ideas for your entire family go here to read Ann's post. Or here is another post with more ideas. You won't be sorry you read it either because she's gifted beyond belief.)

Why is Heather focusing on eating the Word this year?

Because... I want to feast on it's life transforming power, I crave to take scripture from words in my head to words deeply engraved in my heart, I yearn to know deeper the heart of this King I'm the child of, I need to know more of my Saviors love for me, I'm eager to share the truths found in it with others broken around me.

I encourage you to find creative ways to fill your waking hours with the Word! You won't be sorry you did because like our momma's told us, "You are what you eat!" and "What goes in must come out!"

Share with us how you or your family eats the Word or what scriptures your working on memorizing and how your doing it. We'd love to hear all about your personal thoughts on eating the word.

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Here's the video that really set my heart on fire! Take notice of how John is sharing his memorization of scripture. I saw that it wasn't from memory but from how God's holy word has penetrated John's very being in such a way he is able to weave scripture from all over with a fiery passion for Christ! Whew! I cry when I see this because it makes me hungry for more and more of my Jesus. Mind you this is the only 5 minutes of the one hour he taught.

Living Intentionally- My Priorities & Goals 2010

2010-01-01T13:19:00.003-05:00

2010 Theme
Eat & Exalt Christ’s Love!

2010 Theme Verses
Ezekiel 3:3 “Fill your stomach with this, “He said. And when I ate it, it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.
1 Corinthians 3:7 It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.
1Corinthians 11:26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until He comes again.

One Year Goals
Outward Goals
Priority 1: To exalt the finished work of Christ in my relationships with others.
Priority 2: To encourage those I come in contact with in personal ways with Christ’s love- meeting their needs, sharing words, giving of my time and talents.
Priority 3: Temper my mouth. The words that come out of it have power. I want to be more conscious of that and choose words of life and edification. (Lashon Hara)

Inward Goals
Priority 1: Scripture Memorization. Romans 8 and then Romans 5, 6, and 7.
Priority 2: Starting every day off by sharing in communion with my Sweet Jesus. So that I can start my day off being reminded of what was finished on the cross and live in my inheritance that began there.
Priority 3: Prepare myself scripturally & spiritually for the journey of motherhood approaching.

Click on the link above (Where it says "Living Intentionally") to see the post on what this about. There is an awesome printable sheet, to take part in setting your personal Purposes & Goals for 2010, as well as, Life Goals & Purposes.... and if you feel like sharing them on the Linky @ Extravagant Grace. I really enjoyed sitting down and thinking this out for myself. I'm excited to share mine with you my readers and look forward to what the Lord will being up to here on Swallowing A Moose in 2010.

"Come To Me Like These Little Children," said Jesus

2009-12-30T12:15:00.005-05:00

Sleepless, I decided to go browse the Heart Galleries of FL to kill time till I started getting sleepy. The cat camped out on the desk winking at me between his cat naps. I browsed the sites of all the children awaiting adoption. As I came across this little boy, Justin, who I've watched the video of several times I just wanted a closer look at his face. I was wondering what color his eyes were. When I proceeded to click on the video to see his face closer I had the volume completely shut off but my cat stood up started pawing at the screen and trying to climb over our monitor like he wanted the child to come out of it. Mr. Kitty Bubba rubbed his face back & forth over the screen as if he was loving on this child. I sat there in amazement watching. Then I just posed the question to him, "Bubba, do you want us to bring home Justin?" To that he just sat staring me in the face.

I laid there that night just praying that if it's not us the Lord will send parents for this special boy who has a heart bent for his Jesus. Some parents who will encourge him in the faith and feed that growing love for his Saviour. If your wondering how I know this about little Justin I encourage you to watch for yourself and see. No doubt you'll sit there like me with your mouth hanging open! While your at it I ask you to pray for this young boy and all the others like him who are waiting for adults like you & I to step out of our self-centeredness & personal agenda's to align ourselves with the things that break Christ's heart. When I watch the video's of these precious kids I cringe at the thought of what I did for a living- interior design. Why? Because I helped to spend my clients loads of money on crap that matters not in the scope of eternity. Does a 12,000-35,000 square foot house with a movie theatre really matter when there's a boy who has but only a bag full of possessions to his name? Are umpteenplasma tv's really worth the money when there's a child who'd love to just sit at your dinner table for a real meal matter? What about thousands in custom bedding when a child longs for just a room & bed to call his own? What matters- the things or the relationships? Could you forgo the desire to store up treasures on earth for the chance to change the world for eternity... starting with a young life? I pray our eyes will be opened to the things that break the heart of Christ! And quickly!

Now, Meet Justin:

No Room At the Inn by The Hungry Bible Project

2009-12-29T18:01:00.005-05:00

No Room At the Inn by The Hungry Bible Project is an Audio CD & DVD-ROM set aimed for putting a face to your local homeless community. It's purpose is to encourage and empower individual or groups to go out into our communities to serve the homeless. To aid you in your serving the materials included on the DVD in the form of PDF files are all perfect for showing to businesses, churches, small groups, and many other organizations. The PDF files included are ideas or aids for:

Coordinating a Food Drive
Ways to help reach out to the homeless community
A small group study for perhaps a team or group wanting to serve together
A New Living Translation copy of the birth story of Jesus Christ
List of the statistics of homelessness (This will absolutely blow your mind!)

On the DVD you will see several humbled women & one family sharing their stories of homelessness and it's sad effect on them, as well as, their families. Along with the heart wrenching stories of what brought them to homelessness you will hear of the joy in each of their new found relationships with the Lord Jesus Christ. You'll also meet the husband, wife, and preschooler that took this journey in an RV across the United States to meet and put the face to the organizations aiming to end homelessness and the homeless individuals themselves.

I enjoyed listening to the audio CD which is made up of a mosaic of homeless women and the producer for The Hungry Bible Project, Mr. Michael DiMarco, all reading parts of account of Christ's birth from the Bible. At first, I wasn't sure if I would enjoy this but as I worked around my kitchen and was able to just hear this story rather than read it, I learned and latched on to different parts like never before.

Do you have a heart for service? If so, pick up this little treasure and it'll touch your heart and also give you so beautiful tools to get on your way to being the hands and feet of Jesus.

Food for thought...

30.2 percent of households headed by single women with children were food insecure
(10.3 percent very low)
Approximately 3.5 million people are likely to experience homelessness in a given year
in the United States, including 1.35 million children.
In 2003, children under the age of 18 accounted for 39% of the homeless population;
42% of these children were under the age of five.

Sources:
Mark Nord, Margaret Andrews, and Steven Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2007. ERR-66. U.S. Dept. of
Agriculture, Econ. Res. Serv. November 2008.
National Coalition for the Homeless (http://www.nationalhomeless.org)

Misc. Info:

Tyndale House Publishers has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book.

This review is my honest opinion after going over the materials myself.

Adoption Drama #1

2009-12-29T11:10:00.003-05:00

Barry & I are happy to share with you our journey of adoption, including the moments when things could really get revved up. I'm not talking in a nice way either! Our desire is to see God glorified in all things! Because these are His children ultimately, we are just raising them up alongside Him prior to eternity. Here we go...

Drama #1

We are required to fill out a very large, very lengthy packet of paperwork prior to getting our 'invitation' to come to the parenting classes we have to take. I got the packet October 22 and returned it via mail one week later. It was a lot of work to get it all done. Nearly two months have gone by and we heard nary a word and saw no invitation. I broke down and called the office to make sure we hadn't missed anything and of course we did. They next round of classes were set up yet we mysteriously didn't receive any invitation. A bit of discovery turns out that the paperwork is lost in the Children's Services offices. Now we have to fill out more and turn it in ... Next Tuesday (1/5/2010)... WHEN WE START OUR PARENTING CLASSES!! Can I get a whoo-hoo, Yippee Jesus in the blogosphere??!! I'm sorry you'll have to yell louder I can't hear you!

Paperwork lost or not. I asked the lady to give me the parenting class info over the phone so as Lucifer doesn't try to toy with more lost mail mishaps. She was baffled by how our packet got mysteriously lost. I honestly laughed this whole thing off with Barry. We know & have known that we would be under attack but we also know that we have the Lord's favor & provision in this journey since it was His plan.

Glory to God! We'll update you on our ten weeks of classes and any other drama as it unveils!

In Other Words Tuesday~ Manger For Rent

2009-12-29T09:45:00.006-05:00

Listening to it in my kitchen, while cleaning, for the first time I really heard the words and received a message. The message for me being: For the King has left His throne and is sleeping in a manger tonight.

I pondered this notion of Christ rising up off the holy throne, the robe of righteousness trailing behind, and stepping down into Bethlehem that night. His manly stature taking on the flesh of a warm, naked babe. His royal robe being replaced by a burial garment of all things. As I envisioned this taking place all I kept saying is, "Why?" I mean I know why but why? I came to the only conclusion I know would be the cause for any king to leave their throne and that is He was motivated by love.

His heart couldn't bear not to come on this rescue mission to redeem the offspring of His spoken words! He wanted to once again show the depth & breadth of His love to us. And so He rose off the throne of the heavens to come to us as a babe in the night. I see the Lord wanted me to be again reminded of His love (It's our thing lately).

Bethlehem slept. They even turned their "NO VACANCY" signs on! My desire is not to be the sleeping Bethlehem, but rather the manger. See the manger was just any other boring, serving minimal purpose manger until the Son of the Living God was resting in it. It held the most precious gift of all time between it's edges. I pray my heart will be a manger! A place for only the King to dwell. A place once seemingly void of purpose now holding great treasure.

My talk here today was inspired by this weeks quote for In Other Words:

“Just as Our Lord came into human history from outside, so He must come into me from outside. Have I allowed my personal human life to become a “Bethlehem” for the Son of God?” by ~ Oswald Chambers My Utmost for His Highest

PS- Barry & I have something to share with you about our adoption journey that's taken place too. Be sure to check that post out in a few hours.

One Thousand Gifts- 12/28

2009-12-28T08:55:00.006-05:00

Gratitude. What better way to end one year and begin the next?! I continue on in this journey to one thousand thanks and beyond both to and with Our King.

... Grandmother's laughter that leads to her squinted eyes and tears...

... Grandfather's sitting and watching his egglings & their egglings playing about his home on the holidays...

... Powerful teaching on our true identity (that which is found in Christ)...

... For blessed friends and their encouragement to us...

... Chances to share a giggle and painfully learned wisdom with a fellow blogger beauty...

... and for the love shared between purrs & pats with our whiskered monster...

... Time to ponder and write notes from my heart to our future children...

Won't you join us this week as we journey to the heart of Christ through the attitude of gratitude?

PS- Please click on the link at the top to be redirected to Holy Experience and be blessed by reading Ann's heart and the other gals sharing in this journey of gratitude.

One Thousand Gifts- 12/21/09

2009-12-20T18:35:00.004-05:00

Continuing on with my quest to one thousand thanks...

Little hands pointing to show us the angels on the tree,

Wrinkled noses and wet kisses,

The unexpected love that is there when you become an aunt and can't seem to imagine your life without these special moments,

Staring into the life of such a tiny person who looks so much like your sister and trying to figure out how does such a great God make this happen so often and concluding that He is just simply marvelous,

For my husband calling me his 'hen' as he kisses me in the dark on his way off to work to provide for our family,

Seeing our Lord provide for those in need through the hands of those with hearts bent towards His love,

For giving us such an unquenchable joy when we give to others,

For His love,

For His Son,

For transformation that only He alone can bring,

For showing me victory and inviting me to walk in it with Him!

Merry Christmas to all you gals! Be blessed by our Savior's love this season!

Memorial Monday~ No Ordinary Box

2009-12-20T17:49:00.008-05:00

Have you ever prayed for something and laughed at yourself for requesting 'that' from the God of the universe? Many times I've convinced myself that the Lord probably had greater prayers from someone else to answer than my silly little request.

Today, I want to share with you a prayer I prayed back in September and how the Lord answered my humble prayer far beyond the expectation I envisioned. My prayer was for a box. Weird, yeah I know. About maybe a foot wide and maybe three inches tall. Plain in style. You know something sturdy but functional to withstand the years. Why a box? Well, I got latched onto this idea from a friends blog. She has a box called a Memorial Box. It holds little treasures for the 12 members of her family to remember what the Lord has done for them through the years.

This idea stems from Joshua 4 when the people crossed the Jordan and were commanded by Joshua to carry out 12 large stones to create a memorial. His words to them about their purpose was, "In the future your children will ask, 'What do these stones mean?' Then you can tell them, 'This is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the river right before your eyes, and He kept it dry until you were all across, just as He did the Red Sea when He dried it up and we crossed over. He did this so all the nations of the earth might know that the Lords hand is powerful, and so you might fear (have a holy reverence for)the Lord your God forever."

My desire was to have a box for my coming children that we too may share the joy in building a memorial box filled with ways we have each seen the Lord work on our behalf, answer pray, heal, and transform each of us through the years. So I prayed for a box but I certainly didn't ask for something complicated or ornate. Just a box. Now two months later the Lord used 'a vessel' who had NO CLUE about my prayer or need for a box to drop off one on my desk. An that was my boss, John. His love for a good cigar brought this box to him where he later brought it in for me to see and then announced it was mine. It took me a minute to laugh and choke back the tears because I knew exactly what the box was for... our memorials of Christ loving us in a multitude of ways. Have a look for yourself.

As you can see it ain't no ordinary box. I laughed because it was like the Lord was saying to me, "Heather, now I'm not the God of small boxes or plain ones. I am big and your gonna need far more space for what I'm up to in the years ahead!" This box is very large, very sturdy, and bedazzled to the hilt. An if I didn't know any better I'd say it even looks like a pirates chest. Can you imagine all those little boys the Lords gonna bring me keeping their hands off this pirate chest?!

Next time you pray a prayer be it in your mind silly, small, big, or anywhere in between you can know without a shout of a doubt that the Lord hears all those requests and desires to pour out on you His infinite & abundant love. The Spirit intercedes for us with groans words can't express. So pray with confidence that your prayer are heard!

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.

Romans 8:26-27

PS~ THANKS a million John for the precious box. It'll be with us for many years ahead! :)

Jesus Lives by Sarah Young

2009-12-08T09:37:00.003-05:00

Jesus Lives by Sarah Young is hands down the most life-altering carry-along book I've ever seen or owned! A truly splendid addition to a gift for any woman or even as a stocking stuffer. Anyone who needs or just wants to hear of our Lords infinite love for them will be blessed by Jesus Lives. It's love talk will bring you to tears of joy!

Jesus Lives is written in themes that are sprinkled throughout the book rather than each topic grouped together. Some of those themes are abiding in Him, brokenness, condemnation, grace, freedom in Him, Resting in Him, hope, peace, thankfulness, trust, victorious living, worry, and worship. For each two pages there is a theme, then one page is a love talk from our Lord to you and the next page is 2-5 scriptures (in varying translations) opening your eyes to those things in His Word.

If your anything like me, I opened this book up couldn't stop reading it! It's beyond refreshing to hear of the Lords love for us in a personal way. Each time it brings me to my knees in humble worship. This book will be in my purse for years to come! I'll be armed with the word for encouragement to myself or others at a moments notice.

Now a treat for you! A sample of what's inside Jesus Lives.....

Theme: Attitude

In My Presence you have infinite approval. You often judge yourself on the basis of what you see in the mirror, even though you know how fickle and shallow that ever-changing image is. You tend to be equally enslaved to viewing yourself through the eyes of other people, rigorously evaluating your personal performance and almost always feeling displeased with something you've said or done.

"Enslaved" is an appropriate word. You are indeed a slave when you try to measure yourself through any perspective but Mine. Evaluating your worth based on how you look, to yourself or to others, is always a trap. It's as if you are sifting sand in a search for gold- looking only at the grains of sand filtering through the sieve, while ignoring the priceless nuggets that remain. The gold represents the eternal part of you: your soul. It is invisible to everyone but Me, the One who plans to spend eternity with you. Though invisible, a well-nurtured soul can actually improve your appearance: As you rest in the certainty of My unfailing Love, your face glows with the Joy of My Presence.

My approval of you is infinite because it will continue forever. It is based entirely on My righteousness, which is yours for all eternity. When you look in a mirror, try to see yourself as you truly are- arrayed in perfect righteousness, adorned in glowing approval.

Now on the right hand page are the following verses written out:

Psalm 90:14

Psalm 21:6

Isaiah 61:10

.... What did I tell you?! It's a life-altering, heart-changing, soul restoring compilation of love talk because Jesus Lives! Three Hundrend Fifty-Nine pages of pure Truth for the changed life. Better hurry up and get yours!

Realness at it's core!

2009-12-06T18:53:00.003-05:00

You all have should join in with us on this journey to the heart. To find out more read this and get your Puffs with Lotion ready before you do- The Ten Dollar Story. What a blessing! Also, you'll want to read this little true story of a boy, his 'Jeezis,' a stranger, and giving heart. This story literally tore me up. God is so awesome guys! He is so in pursuit of us until our last breath. He loves like no other. He changes the innermost parts of us like no worldly thing can. He's crazy, madly, deeply, and largely in love with His dust children.

Jesse Tree's

2009-12-02T09:42:00.005-05:00

Have you gals seen this awesome Christmas idea?? I just got a clue from a sweet commenter (Mrs. Puebla Ponderosa) and now again over on In Courage blog.

(PS- You can get to her place through the comments on this post. She's AKA Adoption Mama.)

Check out this post and it's links for more: An Advent Calendar & Jesse Tree . I was just checking out the advent daily devotion to go with the tree. Very nice!

There is another precious family who's husband is recovering from an illness who are actually making the trees and you can buy them. Jesse Tree's Handmade here for $39.99 plus $6.99 Shipping. Now that's a way to bless a family that needs it! Looks like an awesome gift to give or even a keepsake for your own family to start using next year too!

Enjoy!

In Other Words Tuesday~ Busy Doing or Busy Being

2009-12-01T09:48:00.003-05:00

“Martha was busy for Jesus,
and that left her too busy to be with Jesus.”
by ~ Jon Walker
Growing with Purpose: Connecting with God Every Day

Welcome again to In Other Words Tuesdays! You can click on the icon and be directed to our host this week and more lovely ladies sharing their thoughts on today's quote.

Let's humor ourselves a bit here today as we expand on this story of Mary & Martha. Our Lord loves us women and I'm certain He finds much humor in the way He created us-- anal-retentiveness & all! Now for some fun...

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." -- Luke 10: 38-42

Martha's View:

7:00 AM- Oh my goodness, oh my goodness I have a list as long as the veil in the temple to tend to! There's cutting & prepping, sweeping & rug shaking, grinding & skinning, and mixing & baking all to be done before Him and his followers come.

10:00 AM- Mary better get up with her running sandals on and well rested after sleeping till this hour of the morning because it's gonna take both of us and then some to orchestrate this dinner and have it on the table at a descent time. I'm sure the Son of the King of Kings expects to have His meal at a proper time and cooked to His liking too.

12:00 PM- I could just strangle Martha! The nerve of such a girl. What kind of a flop house does she think this is?! Here I am workin' up a blue streak and she just sits over there listening away. Grrrrrr. If I burn this bread there's gonna be a holy war up in here!

4:00 PM- After all these hours i'm the one over here stressin' out doing everything and there sits little Ms Mary just soakin' it all in. Taking in every word. Not even giving a hoot about helping. That's it! I'm gonna bring His attention to her lazy ways.

Mary's View:

10:05 AM- "Good morning beautiful sunshine! Today the Master is coming to teach at our place! Yipee!, " squeals Mary. I had better run along and share the news with the neighborhood and see who else may wanna come hear.

11:30 AM- Here I sit right at the feet of the man we know as our Messiah. He's sharing with us a story about a man who was taken from robbers and the good Samaritan who helped him. It was a story of mercy. He compared "us" (those of us who are believers in Him as the foretold Messiah) to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers and Himself as the good Samaritan. He's telling us how His father is showing mercy on us by sending Him to be our sacrifice. He says He's making a way for us to live in His father's house of many mansions as His bride. I have never heard such good news! I'm so excited I have got to hear every word to share later with my friends down the way or anyone else who will hear.

9:00PM- What a day! What a day! I can't imagine missing one word of what he said. Hours went by and I don't even think I remember what the food tasted like. In fact I can't even think about cleaning up the mess. I just long to sleep on the words He spoke today and let them seep into my soul.

I don't find it one bit odd that the story preceding this one in Luke 10 is the Parable of the Good Samaritan. What beautiful stories of mercy right there together here in Luke's account. The Lord created us just the way we are. He knew we'd sometimes have our focus on the wrong things but that never stops Him from answering our call.

Jesus' View:
Martha, if she only knew that I'm here for such a short time. If she only would stop and hear my words. If only she didn't miss the true meaning. If only she really longed for more would she be filled by my sharing. Even still I'm loving her. Even still I'm gonna keep trying to reach her. Even still I'll be here when she searches.

Busy doing or Busy being

Which one are you? Either way don't let that stop you from finding time for the most important thing- Jesus. He appreciates your desire to be great at all things but He loves your desire to toss them to the side for more of Him.

Men & Christmas

2009-11-30T09:12:00.005-05:00

This month's Marriage Monday topic is "Men & Christmas: An Interview." Men & their opinions on Christmas will be shared amongst us girls. Boy, won't this be interesting! Here goes.....

The interview in our home took place while my hubby was installing new shelving in our closets and pantry. I posed the question, "Hey honey (insert long pause here)... What do you think we should do next Christmas with our kids? As in do we go buy everything in sight for them or what." Barry says, "We ARE NOT going to be going gift banana's with our kids! They won't remember it anyways. Did we? NO!" Before I go any further I should let you know we don't have any children at the moment but are in the process of adopting right now. Next Christmas there will be little feet in our home! (insert loud, excited scream here). Neither one of us really remembered gifts. Just what we did as families, the games we played (Hide the Santa- in the tree), mad libs, dirty Santa or the Pageants we saw.

Barry & I agreed that we wanted the real focus to be on Christ since He alone is the reason we have to celebrate all things. Our deepest desire in parenting is for our children to grow up with servants hearts. To find true joy in doing for others, not out of need or guilt, but out of a love for the Lord that manifests in a life of servant hood. Barry says his favorite thing about us is that we are alike in our desire to meet the needs of others. All our talks about anything in relation to parenting, which trickles down in to these holiday traditions, we desire to send the same message through & through- living like we've been transformed by grace & giving/ serving like we just can't imagine not doing this ______ for so & so.

As to how we will ultimately carry this desire out for the season of Christs birth we have discussed only us as parents purchasing gifts for our children on all occasions. All other giving to go directly to their school savings account for things they want to add or pursue with that or for field trips to special places or they can choose to put it into "Kingdom $'s" (money put aside for doing for others as they see a need and want to give or as the Lord puts it on their hearts). We have discussed making a decision as a family on who we want to do something for at Christmas time and giving each person a part in helping make it happen. Honestly, we are anxious to see what the Lord will put on our children's hearts during the holiday season as we know those will be what they remember most in their adult years.

If you experienced mothers out there have any traditions that your family does to keep Christ the center please do share with us. We are eager to learn and see what the Lord places on our hearts for His special season. Perhaps it will be through one of your sharings!

Also, If you haven't already gone there you should be blessed by this awesome site Christmas Change!

Multitude Monday's 1000 Gifts

2009-11-29T19:56:00.004-05:00

Have you captured the Lord in your days and have a heart of gratitude? If so, join us bloggers & journaler's as we share 1000 gifts of gratitude to the Lord. You can click on the icon above and be directed to Holy Experience's writing home to see more acts of gratitude and to find out about joining with us in thanks!

Another week Lord and you never seem to amaze me with the wonders of your hand. I'm honored to have had another week to scribble down my thanks for. With a grateful heart I thank you Lord for:

#52- A day to be together with family and friends to share a meal, pray In Your Son's Name, and share stories. Thank You for treasured moments.

#53- To be filled with inspiration to write out my beloved Christmas newsletter and tell of Your goodness, grace, and wonders. And also to encourage those who are not walking with You to not waste another minute. Thank You for friends and missions.

#54- For my crazy cat and his unquenchable desire to sleep in warm laundry and try to prevent me from folding it. Thank You for the joy he brings to my days.

#55- For father-in-laws & fish. Who else would I call when I catch the big one!?! Thank You for his sweet heart and laughter.

#56- Thank You for words. The one's i'm memorizing that bring me joy & peace in all that You do.

Here's to another week of You & little ole' me Lord. Wonder what this one ahead holds!

Scribbling Thanks,

Heather

Pelican Love

(See what the Lord does for you when you ask! I was laughing at these funny birds while we were fishing and I turned around to do something and when I turned back the two of them were loving on each other with their beaks making the heart shape. I was so wild with excitement I just knew they'd move but the Lord held them still long enough for me to capture it on camera. )

Love Note to My King

2009-11-27T17:01:00.006-05:00

How my heart feels at this moment while I write in our adoption journal to the children whom the Lord is bringing as I sit here typing to you my readership. Enjoy this song!

Lord, Your beautiful to me. You know me like no other could. I just wanna wait on you Lord. Not rushing Your will but patiently waiting upon You to move on our behalf. You are holy Lord. I love you so! Thanks for moments like this where I can sit here listening to words that worship You and I can love on You through my keyboard keys. xoxo Smootches, One of Your Redeemed

My Psalm of Thanksgiving

2009-11-25T14:15:00.005-05:00

I seriously struggled with trying to actually write a psalm. Not sure why. But I didn't stress for too long because.... when we don't know what else to say just call His Name....

....Abba Father...

...Abba Father...

Lord,

You know how my heart burns for You. I desire more of You with each breath I take. I long for the day to see You face to face. To touch the palm of the hands that were pierced for me. To look into the eyes of authentic love. To touch the hair of true royalty. The time to share with you how truly touched I am by Your words and the grace You've shown me in times undeserving. I love you Lord in a way words can't express. You know my heart. You know my motives. You know my needs. You know my struggles. You know all of me. And I want to know all of You My Sweet Lord. Breathe on me Lord. Breathe Your breath of life & victory on me and my home. Until we meet face-to-face Lord may my life be a sweet aroma to you.

....Abba Father... ...Abba Father...
...Abba Father... ...Abba Father...
...Abba Father...

Book Review for Greatest Stories of the Bible, NKJV

2009-11-24T09:40:00.007-05:00

Searching for a one of a kind gift for a soon to be parent, family, wedding or other special occasion. Look no further! The new Greatest Stories of the Bible will more than impress. The book features 250 of the best-known stories in scripture starting at creation and ending with the final victory in Revelation. Each story is creatively titled (example: 'An eyean average of three pages long so this makes for great family time bible reading where your children will happily be involved.

The beautifully styled hard cover and rough edged pages really make this an heirloom quality product. It’s ready to endure many years of family bible reading together as your children flip the large pages from story to story. The print is perfect in size and spacing on these pages too. No need to break out your magnifying glass!

I am a collector of bibles myself and Greatest Stories of the Bible is very unlike any of my others as it is wonderfully constructed for reading aloud as a family. We will be using this bible as we journey through scripture together for years to come!

You can go HERE to Thomas Nelson's product page to purchase your copy!

Happy Readings!

In Other Words Tuesday~ The Meat of the Matter

2009-11-24T08:36:00.006-05:00

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” ~ John F. Kennedy

Love this quote! It brings to remembrance one of my favorite entanglements of words in the New Testament... "Follow Me!" Jesus said, "Follow Me!" In other words, imitate me. Do as I do. Come, be changed! Let the message so penetrate your soul that moves from the head, then to the heart, and out through your actions. I have found this statement to be one that has intrigued and changed me in deep places sisters. Once the gospel message captured my heart it starts to seep out of your very pores in the new way of which I/we walk about this life following Jesus.

The more we as women spend in The Word seeking deeper the truths of the good news our transformation from the inside will start manifesting. Without us even meaning to, the power of the message itself will take us from hearing them just as words to living them out.

I challenge you to memorize scripture! I'm not doing this so I can tout that I can recite it word for word but rather to take it from words on a page to words on a heart (particularly my heart). Words I can meditate on in places or times I don't have my bible in tow. Words that will change me. Words that will inspire me. Words that I will live by.

Deut. 8:3

So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD.

Matt. 4:4

But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.' "

For some ideas & resources on how to start the journey of scripture memorization check out this AWESOME post from Ann @ Holy Experience. Go Here! At the bottom of her post she has some links to a tool for taking passages and converting them into just the first letter of each word to help you in our memorization. You'll enjoy the post and the tools.

Happy Thanksgiving to All You My Beautiful Sisters in Christ!

Multitude Monday's 1000 Gifts

2009-11-22T16:23:00.006-05:00

Have you captured the Lord in your days and have a heart of gratitude? If so, join us bloggers & journaler's as we share 1000 gifts of gratitude to the Lord. You can click on the icon above and be directed to Holy Experience's writing home to see more acts of gratitude and to find out about joining with us in thanks!

#47- For the opportunity to go as a women's bible study crew to encourage, bless & pray with a family over their little girl, Lexi. (By the way, if you have a moment and could lift up this sleeping child please do. You can hear her testimony on the website for her. She's the victim of a swing-set dismantling at age two. Lexi's Website) This was truly an honor to be with them and to meet this beautiful little curageous girl as the Lord works a miracle in her!

#48- An opportunity to magnify the Lord by sharing my personal testimony.

#49- For my beloved nativity snow globe the Lord knew I simply could not resist. I'm still so excited over this I could just scream!

#50- For being loved by Him.

#51- For urging me to chase after Him in a journey of gratitude.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving week gals! See you next Monday!

Scribbling Thanks,

Heather

In Other Words Tuesday ~ Dry Sink or Running faucet?

2009-11-15T16:37:00.008-05:00

This week @ In Other Words we are discussing the topic of difficulty. Are you a person who see's the cup half empty or half full? For the better part of my life I saw everything as half empty. I'd like to add that those days of my life were the absolute most exhausting days I've endured this side of eternity. Praise the Lord my half empty days came to a screeching halt once I realized who I was in Christ according to the New Covenant of Grace! (I/ We are the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ!)

Our I-O-W quote this week was:

“Life is difficult. This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult – once we truly understand and accept it – then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.”

I'm not sure where the writer of this quote was actually going with difficulty being one of the greatest truths and that once we accept it it no longer matters. Regardless, I am here to tell you what changed my life and has done the same for many I know...

When the Lord gives us a revelation of how...

HUGE, DEEP, FAR, WIDE, ABOUNDING, MIND-BOGGLING

...His love for us is you will no longer see life as difficult because you will walk in the power of the cross. Your new view of His love will help you to grasp...

He's on your side!

He's for y-o-u!

He's going before y-o-u to work all things out for good (Romans 8:28)!

He wants to get glory through y-o-u!

(FYI- He didN'T have to but He chooses to.)

He wants y-o-u to know he's your Abba (Romans 8:15-16)!

He's not keeping a record of y-o-u-r wrongs (Romans 8:1)!

He loves y-o-u because He can!

Perhaps your wondering ...

WHY ME?

...because His Son cancelled your debt (Romans 8:3)! Now that is the greatest truth, not difficulty! Now all you have to do is live like your an heir to the Son of the Living God (Romans 8:16). Walk in the power of the cross! When you do that His Son is exalted and this is the worship (what we were created for). Yipee Jesus!

For those who believe/ recieve what took place on the cross was for them personally you can walk in this world where difficulty may be in the lives of those unrecieving around us but we don't have to join in it (Romans 8:5-8)! When a 'situation' arises we can stop ourselves and revist the facts of who the Lord says we are and know we can trust Him with our whole hearts for whatever it is we are going through.

I'm sure someone reading this is thinking, "This kid must have been born with a silver spoon, never known death, hurt or maybe she's living in a place like in the movie The Village." Surprisingly not! I live in the real world where chapperones molest those they have charge over, where people run red lights and someone gets maimed, where boyfriends are killed by negeligence, where parents get diagnosed with cancer & have heart attacks, where earthly fathers criticize their children for imperfection, where job's get lost, where finances have been in the triple negetive, where Jesus was at one time put on the back burner or spit in the face of. Yeah... all that there ugliness was in my life, Mrs. Rosy Glasses. In fact, everything I do today has been taught to me twice because someone careened through a red light and left me in a coma dying in a hospital bed & hooked up to life support with all my internal organs living on the outside of me from a gaping beachball sized hole in my abdomen. Where blinking was my new way of communication with the world- yes or no answers only please. Where you & the surgical staff are on a first name basis and you have a reserved 'parking spot' in pre & post op. Where you are humbled whether you like it or not.

I have lived on the side of life where I viewed things as difficult (my half empty world view) and gimme a break I never would have sucked it up and got used to it. Then I had an encounter with a very real, powerful God by a friend telling me the very words i've told you...

Who I Am according to what Christ's body did on that cross of Calvary.

...Since that moment i've been forever changed. I discovered a love like no other i've known- The love of my Abba to me. It starts this side of eternity when we accept His Son and all the power that was on the cross where His sweet blood spilled out for me (& you). When I found Him I found...

A Cup Overflowing-

a life of ease, peace, joy, rest, grace, mercy, & love

...all for the taking. I choose to let my 'situations' (stressors, difficulties) be handled by the Lord and since He has a wealth of resources & abilities it's never difficult. Care to join me here? The weathers nice, it's paradise, it's summertime all year, .... ( You heard that country song?)

If you want to know more about this miracle the Lord performed in me I invite you to see the picture proof or even read my testimony. Especially if your thinking what you need is too big or too much for the Lord then you need to read. I am a walking dead girl! There is a God. He works miracles big & small in all things- health, marriage, family, work, changing heart desires, all the way down to getting a soon-to-be mom a parenting book on grace because she secretly wanted it.

Click here for:The Pictures or The Testimony

Debunking Difficulties,

Mrs. Moose

PS~ Now that you've made it wayyy down here... I have a brand new copy of Sound of Sleigh Bells by Cindy Woodsmall I would like to give away. It's a fabulous new book running about $14.99 on the shelves but you can enter to get one absolutely FREE! All I require to enter is for you to use either your bible or the link embedded to read these passages (John 1:12-13, John 3:18, Psalm 139:13, 14, 16, Romans 8:16-17, Colossians 1:13, Ephesians 2:8-10, 2 Corinthians 5:21) and then answer this question:

How does knowing this truth of your identity make you feel? Are you lacking in any good thing?