Patience in the Midst of Excitement

When there is a sense God is about to do something extraordinary it is hard to be patient.

That is where I am right now. I was taking my bike ride a couple of days ago and had this awesome sense of anticipation. Something is on the verge of exploding and I am not quite sure what it is. All I know is that I am going to be ready for when God decides the time is right to burst it forth.

In the midst of this anticipation I have also had thoughts of discouragement and hurt popping into my mind. I have to remember to immediately rebuke these thoughts, because they are only what Satan has put there to distract me from what God is doing. I ask God to renew my mind and give me healthy thoughts that will encourage and lift me into His presence.

If we are not aware of this we can easily give into our negative thoughts and before we know it we are overcome with self-doubt, self-pity, and self-distruction. Come against those thoughts. God wants us to grow past this place in our life and go where He is taking us.

Are your kids disappointing you? Do you feel as if you have been overlooked? Do you feel unappreciated? Remember, God is God and He desires to be "I Am" in your life. He wants to be what you need Him to be at this point in your life. He will be the shoulder you can cry on for your children. He will be your number one supporter when no one else is looking, or around.

Don't let Satan win over your thoughts. Take them captive. Think on what is good, lovely, pure, right, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy. When we do this we are declaring we believe God and are ready to stand up against the enemy of our soul that is trying to destroy us.

So, I am excited about what God is doing. I can become impatient, especially when those discouraging thoughts begin; BUT I REFUSE TO GIVE INTO THOSE THOUGHTS and will continue to patiently wait with excitement, for what God is doing in my life, and those around me.

Just Excited About Being a Part of the Kingdom of God!

Today I was just excited about being in God's family...

I was excited about who God is in my life...

I was excited about what God is doing in my life...

It can be very easy to take our life in Christ for granted...especially if we are so busy in ministry and have a family to care for daily.

I have been reading Acts and studying how the church started and it's development; paying close attention to how Paul started the churches on his journey's and how he continued to lead oversee them. It has been a very interesting and thoughtful journey on my part.

I have been reading Paul's letters to those churches he established. I finished 1 & 2 Corinthians, Romans and am now in the middle of Ephesians. At the end of chapter 3 Paul encourages the church to live life "fully alive" in Christ.

Paul was an amazing man. God had completely changed his life. He went from persecuting, to persecuted. He once had a passion to destroy and kill the church. God helped him redirect that passion and energy to growing the church. Here he was in prison, much like the ones 'she once was determined to put Christians in, encouraging the Ephesians to be strong and fully alive in Christ. Our purpose is to be strong, fully alive in Christ, and motivating other’s in their faith.

That is what has made me excited. I want to follow Paul's example. No matter where I am, what I'm doing, I want my passion for Christ to permeate my every being.

The reality is when we are trying to develop teenagers in our home we have to work harder than we ever imagined to stay focused on the excitement of God's calling on our lives. Teenagers drain a lot of energy from our lives. We have to make sure we stay in the Word and have daily talks with God to keep sane and energized.

Well that is what has gone through my mind today. "God help me have the same excitement as Paul and stay fully alive in Christ. Amen."

Thank You God!

There are times when you just have to stop and say, "Thank You God."

It has been a while since I posted due to family visiting from out of state, but now that they are gone I hope to get back on track.

As moms we all want to be able to have our children come talk to us about any issue going on in their lives. When we try to talk to them and ask them how things are going they don't always have a desire to talk. The moments they do want to talk are few and far between.

Today was one of those days. After running some errands with one of my girls we came home and went for a bike ride. Now most of the time when I ask the girls this they don't want to go with me. Today she took me up on my offer. We took our bikes and headed to the Board Walk. We had a lot of fun and conversation just happened.

I was very impressed with the amount of spiritual maturity this daughter was exemplifying. We were discussing certain issues they are having to deal with in their circle of friends and as she continued to talk I was becoming concerned about some of the things she was saying. As she got into the conversation more and told me how she spoke up for what she felt was right I realized she was very mature in what she did.

Here I was ready to do something about the situation. I had already been praying about the situation, but when I heard these things I was ready to "do" something. After hearing what she had to say I knew she was very capable of hearing from God and doing what He would expect of her.

As moms it is our desire to protect our children. We do not want to see them get hurt or overlooked, especially when you feel they have been treated wrongly. We have to remember they are God's children also and we have to let them grow up. Sure we raise them and teach them how to live according to the Word, but it is, many times, hard for the parents to let go of them in order for them to mature. We may have the tendency to think they are not mature enough to make decisions, but if they do not get out there and learn by mistakes they make, they will not be able to mature.

Part of maturing is allowing our children the freedom to learn from mistakes. It is definitely hard to see them make a wrong decision, but we need to ask God for wisdom and guidance to help us "let go and let God."

I had tried several times, in the past, to talk to this daughter about this particular situation, but she never wanted to talk. In fact most of the time she thinks I am in the way and being nosy, when I am honestly concerned about what is going on. By spending time riding our bikes together, just having fun, and talking, a God moment happened. We were able to talk about all aspects of the situation and I was able to bring out the good and bad points of both sides of the situation. If I would have sat her down and tried to lecture her on the issue she would not have listened.

This is all part of "intentional mentoring" I wrote about in a previous post. Look for these opportunities and be ready for them. If I would have been too busy and not wanted to spend the time with my daughter, or did not even ask her because she says no so often I would not have had this time with her.

This was an opportunity to spend time with someone I love and want to help influence in the right direction. One day she will understand and be thankful also.

So...I want to say, "Thank you God!"