Just Waiting..

Sometimes I can type a novel..sometimes I cant come up with five words to describe everything I feel and am thinking. I read this on a friends blog about waiting. Waiting and having FAITH where God has you and FAITH that God knows what he is doing in your life. I figured I'd repost in case I need to read this again..and again and again!

There are times when we really want to know WHAT to do. We question situations. Our decision making skills get sharpened by gathering the opinions of others, and setting up ‘what would you do’ scenarios. If you have a heavy question on your mind, it is my strong belief that you already have the answer; take time to get really silent and wait for the inner prompting. Your heart speaks to you all the time. The vision has been there all along.

"Your vision will become clear only

when you look into your heart.

Who looks outside, dreams.

Who looks inside, awakens."

~ Carl Jung

P.S. Waiting is just God’s timing. Trust me when I tell you that when you wait and trust…God is going to give you the BEST…and it will be worth all that wait time. It’s like they say, good things come to those who wait. I’m still waiting for certain things, and all we can do is trust and thank HIM that HE is working! Everything will come together!

Desert Song

This is my prayer in the desert

And all that's within me feels dry

This is my prayer in the hunger in me

My God is a God who provides

And this is my prayer in the fire

In weakness or trial or pain

There is a faith proved

Of more worth than gold

So refine me Lord through the flames

And I will bring praise

I will bring praise

No weapon forged against me shall remain

I will rejoice

I will declare

God is my victory and He is here

And this is my prayer in the battle

And triumph is still on it's way

I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ

So firm on His promise I'll stand

All of my life

In every season

You are still God

I have a reason to sing

I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest

When favor and providence flow

I know I'm filled to be empited again

The seed I've recieved I will sow

Think Twice

You know what is really amazing (besides the fact that I am drinking a YooHoo in bed). I just got off the phone with one of my friends and he told me that he will never forget the nicest thing someone has done for him. I said oh yeah whats that!?! He said the day you brought me a cup of coffee to my work just because. He said I have never had anyone do that for me.

That is what life is about. I wish I could do something like that EVERYDAY...

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

yoohoo's and doing nice things for people

CLC

Friend or Foe

Friendships are important…but to what degree? I’ve noticed how everyone seems to have a cell phone, and everyone is on their cell phone. Have you ever wondered who everyone was talking to? I’m hardly on the phone, so maybe I have the time to notice everyone’s conversations. Some people seem to be talking to boyfriends or girlfriends, their friends, and even the occasional co-worker or boss. We are surrounded by people and engaging in conversation with others, but how do you know if the people on the other end is a real friend or a body with a lending ear.

I heard that everyone you meet is by divine assignment. Everyone you meet is there to help teach you something. I like the concept of that, because life is always there to make you grow and mature, if you open your eyes for the opportunities. Is that person a real friend or is that person in your life to teach you something; A teacher in friends clothing. Either way, lessons are to be learned in both friends and foes.

Friends should make you feel good about yourself. A real friend is there for you in all areas of your life. A foe friend is the one in your corner when your corner happens to be of winning success. A foe friend likes to gossip to you (and probably about you) and never considers your feelings. There are countless examples of friends or foes; you can probably list a few personal experiences.

I’ve learned that God is the best at picking my friends for me. God knows everything, and he knows who has the right heart to be called a friend of mine, and he has that for you too.

I’ve learned that it’s okay to have few friends, as long as they are true. True friends come and go, but the one friendship that I can always count on is God. God can give us favor with people and can soften people’s heart towards us. It’s great to have earthly friends, but if I only had God and my heavenly family as friends, then I know I have a great support team on my side.

Think about what real friends should be like, look like, act like and sound like. Not only should you think about the quality of friends you have in your life, but think about the quality of friendship you bring to your friends.

God is our friend, he’s always in our corner, and he’s always there to talk to…no cell phone plan required.

Soul Mate...Part 2

Part 2 on Soul Mates/Button Pushers Continued...

LOVE is where we want to be in our relationships, but you have to view your button-pushers as your soul mates too. Why? Because they are causing a REACTION in you; THEY ARE ABLE TO PUSH YOUR BUTTONS FOR A REASON. Just like how our soul mates can make us happy, we have to figure out why someone pushes your buttons or makes you jealous. I think it is an internal awakening to see an area YOUR soul is obviously struggling in, and what YOU need to improve on. Your button-pushers should cause you to become BETTER, NOT BITTER….THAT is why they are considered your soul mate!

Why he pushes my buttons?

He is selfish.

He talks about nothing but himself or his family to impress people.

He want open up and communicate with me.

He blames me for any argument, he can never take fault.

He is to proud.

He doesn't care enough to let me know he wants me around.

He is unappreciative.

He talks to me bad.

Why he makes me jealous?

He has had everything handed to him in life.

He has had it easy his whole life.

His dad is willing to be there for him and have a relationship and he doesn't care a thing about it.

That I have fought for our relationship and he hasn't sweat a drop over it.

That one day some girl will come along that he will fall in love with and he will be everything I wanted him to be but he will be it for her.

What reaction is he causing in me?

Hate

Bitter

Resentment

Misery

Unhappiness

Self Consciousness

Soul Mate...Yeah Right

Puppy love and crushes are charming… for their time. We think that special person is so perfect, and we’re convinced we have fallen in love with our soul mate. Call off the cupid squad, because that cubby cupid finally got off its ass and shot you with his love arrow. Soul mate love feels so whimsical, doesn’t it?

We equate soul mates with looovvveeee. We tend to view our soul mate as the love of our lives. We can’t live without that person who seems to make us feel safe and complete. Fairy tales and romantic comedies are much to thank for this soul mate definition and its much desired search.

Way back, I remember learning about soul mates; it was an eye-opening lesson. The lesson put a twist on the conventional soul mate classification.

When we think of a soul mate, we think that the person is so in sync with us; they match our morals, ethics, likes and dislikes, and they’re our biggest cheerleader.

As wonderful as a soul mate is, and as wonderful it is to find a partner that truly unconditionally loves us, let’s take a different look at what a soul mate can actual look like.

In this lesson, we will put our traditional soul mate expectations on the back burner.

What’s the opposite of love? Hate. I know, I know, hate is a strong word. But, there are some people that we have a hard time being around. There are people that seem to push our buttons. We can encounter rude people, people that make us feel small, we can be jealous by another, and we can even find ourselves in debates over viewpoints with another.

So where am I going with this? Well, love is comfortable. Yes, love is where we want to be in our relationships, but you have to view your button-pushers as your soul mates too. Why? Because they are causing a reaction in you; they are able to push your buttons for a reason. Figuring out why someone pushes your buttons or makes you jealous is a great internal awakening to see an area your soul is struggling in, and what you need to improve on. Your button-pushers should cause you to become better….THAT is why they are considered your soul mate.

Remember, I am not talking about a loving relationship….because you deserve a healthy relationship where someone is treating you right.

Not everyone is going to like you, that’s just a fact; don’t let that fact upset you. Button pushers are showing up in your life to teach you something about yourself.

I struggle with this too. I have a friend; his wife is my biggest button pusher. She never fails me at pushing my uncomfortable button. She is my soul mate. She makes me realize that I can change, even though I can’t change her. Why would I want to change her anyway? I’m responsible for myself. I’m the one who wants to come up higher. She holds the password to my button pushing frustration, and when I figure out the code, her access will be denied.

Our soul searches for love. But, look a little deeper for motives

that stupid cubby cupid knows exactly what he’s doing after all

HEALING HEARTS

A BEAUTIFUL FRIEND OF MINE POSTED THIS ON HER BLOG TODAY. IT WAS EXACTLY WHAT IVE BEEN NEEDING TO HEAR THE PAST 2 YEARS...

The biggest temptation when we have been hurt is to close off our heart. Pain and hurt can come from just about anywhere, but it's usually the relationships that mean SOMETHING to us that cause us the most pain, that is how it has ALWAYS been with me anyway.

And when we get hurt, we want to NEVER be hurt again and protect ourselves. We want to wall ourselves in, but it also walls LIFE out. We might even try to "not care" anymore because CARING is why we got hurt in the first place, but these are all paths to loneliness, depression, anger, resentment, isolation and a dead heart.

Even when we are TRYING to do these things harmful things to ourselves and our relationships, God is still there. He stays after us to love again, to laugh again and to LIVE our lives out. He doesn't want little people with stone hearts, scowls on their faces and the absence of all joy. And believe me, it's NOT fun, I've tried it. I'm embarrassed to say that I've tried it WAY more than once too. I'm a slow learner. I tend to keep trying MY way until I just about can't take any more. Then I finally turn to the Lord and get the break-through, renewed hope and restoration I was so desperate for.

I want to encourage you to take heart, out of pain comes power for us if we choose to keep LIVING. Pain is a funny thing, not ha ha funny, but peculiar, it can actually take us to higher levels of glory and faith when we abide in God through it rather than trying to muscle our own way.

Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

I remember once when I went to go encourage an elderly family member who was just home from the hospital. She ended up encouraging ME, even though she was the one who was facing a terminal disease. THIS is the kind of POWER that pain can produce. It's not something that we can see with our naked eye, but it's a deeping in our heart. Like we are all very shallow pools, but life comes with pains and hurt and our pools are dug out deeper and can hold more and more. But of WHAT it holds is what matters. Is your pool holding more and more pain? Or have you given that pain over to God for Him to do a wonderful work with it? With God, we are filled with understanding, empathy, sympathy and that beautiful glory that shines deep from the heart which is only purified by pains fire.

Some of the best things come from great pain, a mother laboring to deliver a child. The hard work to achieve the status of an olympian. A tender and kind heart, from being worked over with meat tenderizer! That's me.

God loves you too much to leave you where you are. He is constantly working to pull us up higher, to greater and greater things, even if it doesn't LOOK that great now, trust Him, and close your eyes if you have to, just don't close out your heart.

John 16:22 Therefore you now have sorrow, but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you

I love you and I'm praying for you, for God's love to wrap around you like a big poofy blanket and for His amazing peace to rest upon your anxious heart.

-CLC

Ordinary to Extraordinary

In my daily devotional this morning I read about Esther. It talked about Esther's faith and how Esther was a orphan and she wasn't born into privileges and on the outside she looked like any other normal person. But on the inside she had a hope of excellence and a attitude in believing that she had a purpose greater than her self and that is what made all the difference.

God trusted Esther with tremendous favor and Esther later went on to be the Queen and used her influence and good attitude to save her nation.

Today God wants to crown us with his favor just like Esther. He wants to position us in a place we never thought possible. Take us past our small dreams and expand them and use us in extraordinary ways. It all starts with being a good steward of your influence and mindful of the example you setting for others. Don't let the world around you influence your choices and standards; instead you be the leader and set the standard. God has equipped you with power to overcome in every area of this life. He has deposited his wisdom in you, and he is ordering and directing your steps. As you approach life with a heart of excellence and focus on living your best, you are tapping into your influences. God will multiply and use you in ways you never imagined. Believe it today because his hand of blessing is on your life to accomplish everything he has placed in your heart.

Leviticus 26:9
I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you.

Remember God a lot of time uses the most ordinary people to do the most extraordinary things...

ordinary and following the Lord
always yours
CLC

Obstacles

I think loss of people, things and dreams can be so devastataing that it can actually cripple and hinder us from EVER moving past the loss. And most times I think that people can't even imagine HOW to ever move on again. How do you pick up the pieces and carry on? Where can you buy a new carton of "WANT TO" or a box of "I CARE"?

The biggest loss I think we ever experience is a loss of another life. The pain can be so intense and relentless that your new goal is escapism. Whatever it takes to mask the pain, we will start doing. Drinking, drugs, eating, shopping, you name it, it can become your false sense of escape.

And other types of losses can devast us in huge ways as well. The loss of a marriage relationship, a dating relationship, friendship, job, dream or a thing we were hoping for.

How DO we move past the loss without forming some bad habit that will only cause us MORE suffering? In every loss, regardless of the enormity, we need Jesus. In Hebrew, His name is Yeshua which means Salvation. This little morsel of Hebrew means more to me than 10 million feasts because of all the things that my heart cries out for when I have loss, it's SALVATION from it and even more, salvation from myself. It's a desire to be saved in a way that we cannot even concieve because the pain is too great to even THINK sometimes. That's the salvation I'm talking about!

Yeshua IS our Salvation. Not only from the present life's death, but from all loss we encounter here on this dusty planet.

Now, for a very raw heart-- this scripture will sting a little, just as when we put an anticeptic on a gaping wound, but it IS good and it will allow for your heart to heal with out infection and disease, just like our outer body needs anti-bacteria, so does our heart...and this is it.

John 16:33 (Yeshua speaking) "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

This verse is a powerful reminder that PAIN and SUFFERING are a part of this life, no one gets by without experienceing those ugly twins. And yes, it DOES FEEL horrible and I wish no one would EVER have to feel those types of pain. But loss is a part of this world becaus of the sin it is weighed down with, the life we have today isn't how God intended us to live. I firmly believe that He wanted us to ALL live and remain in the perfection of the Garden of Eden. But there was satan, to tempt, lie to and create doubt in Eve and Adam's minds. And now we all must live in a world that is burdened under the curse of their sin.

Romans 8:20 "For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God."

Our hope is renewed by knowing that THIS isn't all there is. This isn't as good as it gets. When we have lost someone in this life, if they had faith in Jesus, we WILL see them again. Someone once called those who she lost (she lost 2 of her 4 sons in thier early twenties), "deposits in heaven." I think that is one of the best ways to frame the pain of loss. Its a win win situations if you really think about.

My prayer for you, if this is something you are enduring now, is that God is healing your heart, mending those wounds and filling that empty space with His love.

This is a comforting verse to hold in your heart.

Psalm 34:18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

John 16:22 Now you are sad, but I will see you again and you will be happy, and no one will take away your joy.

For those suffering loss of any other, relationship, job, home, etc. I pray that you hold on to this verse, as it is one of my very favorites.

Zechariah 9:12 Return to your fortress, O prisoners of hope; even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you.

I pray that your fear is turned into FAITH, your pain is turned into GAIN and your loss is RESTORED--DOUBLE!!! Your faithful sister in Christ and prisioner of hope!

to overcoming obstacles
always yours
CLC

Food for Thought

"don't worry about anything that happens or doesn't happen, God knows why it didn't work out, he was most likely protecting you from something"...And maybe whatever you went through is the very something that would make you and change you into something and someone stronger and more amazing!

That Little Word Called HOPE

Sometimes we have so much heartache, hurt, emotional or even physical pain...that we are simply ready to let go of life. For me, these feelings usually come at night, after a miriade of things had happened and I felt more than exhausted, frustrated and tiny (in comparision to everyone else in the world, not weight wise!)


Even if you have totally BLOWN IT today, doing whatever it is that trips YOU up, gets under your skin or makes you want to look out the window to see in Jesus is on His way yet because life has gotten just to hard to take anymore...this is for you!

God has such wonderful promises for us, just crack open your Bible and SEE FOR YOURSELF why people call it the "Good Book!"

Nahum 1:7 "The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him,"

Isn't that a comfort?! God is our safe place, not food, a dumb guy or shopping until your shoes give you blisters!

God is watching over us, I think it's easy to forget because it's not like He texts us: "Dear Heart, I'm watching over you now, before you even formed in your mother's womb and after when you will be with me in heaven. Stop worrying about your life and trust me. I have a good plan. Just keep seeking Me, obeying my instructions and it will go well with you. I love you! - Abba (father in Hebrew).

And take heart, because JOY is on it's way!
Psalm 30:5 "... weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning."

Sometimes the best recipe for a bad day is heading to bed with God's Word. I promise you that getting some of the God's Living Word into your heart and head will be enought to get you back on track and on the road to recovery from whatever the injury you endured from the day.

Hide this one in your heart:

2 Corinthians 4:17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

I'm going to tatoo that on the inside of my eyelids. Just kidding of course, that is what our BIG brain is for...storing good info such as this!

Hang on to God, even if you have to shut your eyes for awhile

hope

CLC

you are...

Like timing a red light that's never green, a underserving individual will come along and catch you on green and just walk right into your life with none of the stops and goes.