Story...

There is a young man in our church - Brandon Williams - who is an incredible writer... I truly enjoy reading his works.  Today I asked it I could share one with you and he said yes... I pray you are blessed by it as much as I was.  

We try to look and see, at a world that wasn't meant to be.

Darkness and deception, clouded by misdirection. 

Falling into the abyss, tainted by empty bliss.

We are chosen to shine like the sunrise,

But are stalked by those who seek our demise.

Its a lonely place, for those who hate us right to our face.

You're caught in his chain, and all you see is pain.

But all you seek is fame, and you're the only one to blame.

We are to burn bright, but we run in fright.

From the world He holds so dear, to the world of only fear.

The world He helped make, He came down for our sake.

He died so it wouldn't be, the fate for you and me.

To take the wrath of His Father, why would He even bother?

But He came to our aid, as we made Him march around like a parade.

A world so corrupt, He chose to bore up.

In His eyes it wasn't so nice, but that was the only thing that could suffice.

The justice of God in His hands, stung like a wipe with multiple strands.

Went up the hill, to finally lay white and still.

Came back to overcome the grave, that's the power that comes to save.

We don't have to be afraid anymore, we just need to open up when He comes to the door.

Written by Brandon Williams

and used with his permission

The Most Frightening Prayer I Could Pray for My Children

by Christina Fox

The most frightening prayer I could pray for my children is the one they need the most.

Now, I always pray about their behavior, their health, their progress in school, and their friendships. I also pray about their future and their jobs. I pray that my boys would marry “nice Christian girls.” But to be honest, when I pray for my children, it is easiest to ask that their lives be smooth and stress-free. It is easy to pray for their comfort and ease, for their lives to be absent of pain and grief.

When It Gets Uncomfortable

Yet when I reflect on my own life and look back on my faith journey, I see all the challenges and trials I have faced along the way, and the good God accomplished through them. I see the heartaches I’ve endured and the suffering that brought me to my knees. I also see the sins I’ve struggled with and the idols God graciously stripped from my hands. I see how God used all those valleys and painful circumstances to draw me closer to himself, to refine me, and to teach me to rely on him.

They have been the most important events in my life, but it’s not easy to ask this sort of thing for my children. It is hard to ask that God reveal their sin to them, that they see their need for a Savior, that they would be broken over their corruption and truly learn to cling to the gospel.

That kind of prayer is uncomfortable.

The Path to More of Him

It means that they will have to dig through rocky terrain like I’ve experienced before. They will have to walk through their own story of sin and repentance — of learning what it means to have empty hands. What’s frightening for me as a mom is to realize that their lives will not be smooth, comfortable, or safe — not if they will learn most deeply what it means to rely on God. In fact, my children may yet have to endure great trials, walk through dark valleys, and experience great sorrow. That could be God’s pathway to giving them more of himself.

I don’t want my children to treat God like a vending machine or like a fire insurance policy. I want them to have a passionate love for him that is alive and outgoing, bowing to his supremacy and anchored gladly in his gospel. I want them to love God’s word and hold to it firmly in times of uncertainty. I want them to show Jesus to the world. This is what I want.

Nothing More Important

And it will mean that my children have to see that they have sinned against a holy God and that it is only through the grace and sacrifice of his Son that they can be forgiven. Jesus said that those who have been forgiven little will love little (Luke 7:47). My children need to know what that means. They have to see the utter depths of their sinfulness and that without Jesus, they are without hope. And they have to trust in Jesus as their only source of hope and righteousness. Only as they acknowledge their need for him and his forgiveness will they grow to love God in the way I most want for them.

The path could be hard, and praying for this can be frightening, but there really is nothing more important. . . . Father, give my children more of you.

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/the-most-frightening-prayer-i-could-pray-for-my-children

God is always at work...

Last night during our College and Career meeting - the conversation turned to one of my husband's favorite memories - "Our Dating"... oh yes - he gets a kick out of telling this story... and gets everyone cracking up... and as I sit here and type away I do so with a smile on my face because God had a wonderful plan for both of us - and we just needed to be obedient.

So for those who have not had the honor of listening to my wonderful husband share how he "dumped" me twice... and how he "chased" me for three months for a date... here is what really happened...

Many many years ago in Washington Heights, NY... there was this young lady who had come out of a very abusive relationship. She was still healing from the wounds of the abuse that were no longer visible. She had a little boy named Benny... oh he bought her so much joy... he was her reason for survival. After much turmoil and finally saving some money they were finally able to find a place of there own, a place to call home.

Across the bride in Clifton, NJ... there was a young man who was going through his own struggles... trying to get his life back in order. He had a little boy that he was doing his best to raise. There were alot of changes going on in his life and he believed he had it all under control.

She had just accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior... He had just recommitted his life to the Lord...

*****

I remember it was a Friday in April of 1993 approximate 7:30pm... I was at the young adults meeting... sitting all the way in the front... someone walks into the sanctuary and we all turn around, and here comes this guy dressed in black... with perfect hair... wearing a black leather jacket... making his way toward our meeting. He takes a seat... and our eyes meet, and we go back to listening to what was being shared, and that was how God introduced us to each other.

Ray continued coming to our church... whenever there was something happening at Primera Iglesia Bautista de Manhattan - he was there. He even joined the church choir (such a coincidence that I happened to be part of the choir also) It was cool and stuff to know that he was interested in me... but I was finally happy... I was trying to raise my son - who was a handful, I was busy serving in the church, surrounded by awesome people, and the nightmares were gone.

As much as my flesh craved a relationship, I just wasn't interested. I was finally discovering who I was - my identity was no longer the girl who disobeyed her parents, or the girl who married the wrong guy, or the girl who was abused, or the girl who was struggling. Now I was Deborah... I was finding my identity in Christ... I didn't have it all together, I still had my struggles - but God was showing me through His Word, through my spiritual mom Ligia, through other women of the church who I was in Him and I loved that. I just wanted to soak in that....

But Ray didn't stop pursuing me... and because of a "bet" he made with one of his friends... he asked me out... and in September we started dating... it was awesome... but there were alot of issues going on and in November things changed, I couldn't make sense of it... I remember it clearly because I was going to get baptized and he didn't come. When we spoke he told me there were alot of things going on in his life and this wasn't the right time for a relationship. WHAT??!! Are you kidding me... That was a heartbreak because I allowed myself to open up to someone - to trust again.

Life continued... sort of... and one day we got back together again as if nothing had happened.... but it only lasted a few months... things just weren't right. The pain was worse than the first time. I was devastated.

I stopped everything - I got depressed and I was not understanding what God was doing and why He was doing this to me - I was doing everything right!!! My spiritual mom who didn't give up on me during this time shook me up. She would come by, call me, pray for me, read scripture, and she reminded me of my life verse... Psalm 37:4 - "Delight youself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." And that is when God began to do a major over haul in both of our lives... God bought people in to my life who taught me what service to God was... I got more involved with the youth group at our church and the women's ministry. I was able to travel and go to youth conferences and women's conferences and trainings and even lead several conferences... my relationship with Him was just growing and getting deeper...

Ray was doing the same thing...serving at his church, being part of the Fellowship of Spanish Churches, he became the youth leader at his church.. he was learning, studying, attending seminary...

And yes, we met other people... and in time started new relationships. But those relationships fell apart... On Easter of 1998 I sent out my Easter cards including one for Ray - part of me knew he was the man that God had for me and this was my way to see if there was any possibility for "us"... When he received the card he called me and we spoke for a very long time on the phone... and continued to talk on the phone for a couple of more days until we were ready to meet.

Our relationship started again... it was different this time, we had people who were praying for us and with us, mentoring us not just regarding ministry, but regarding life. October of 1998 he proposed to me at the Seaport in downtown NY... the same exact spot where we had our first kiss... and on April of 1999 we became one.

I didn't write this to share our love story, even though I love to share it because I can see how God worked in both of our lives... but I did so to share that God has a plan for each of our lives... and when we submit to Him and call Him Lord - we are saying that we want Him to have complete control of every area of our lives.... No matter what Ray and myself tried to do to make our relationship work... God wanted our lives first and foremost... He had to be the priority in our lives... We had to discover who we were in Him. For me - it was a very painful experience - but it was through that pain that God worked in my life and made Himself so very real and personal to me. God had to strip us and become real to us so that we knew that He was the one that bought us together... My friend, whatever it is that you are going through... as painful and as difficult as it may be, its not impossible for God, its nothing new for Him. Maybe its all part of His plan... does He want to reveal something to you:? Teach you something? Calling out to you?

If you are lost, confused, need prayer, wisdom, direction... reach out, call out... He will answer you and / or He will send someone your way...

Remember my friend you are loved beyond words... xoxoxo

Floating

When I was young, the tradition was to get up early each Sunday morning, the family would pack up into my dad's car and take the trip to Connecticut, to this beautiful beach.

As I have mentioned before, my mom wears many many hats. This Sunday, she was a Swim Instructor. While in the water, my mom decided that she was going to teach us to swim (mind you - the woman doesn't know how to swim - or even likes the water too much, she has a slight "fear" of it). Her lesson consisted of telling us to move our hands and kick our feet... simple enough lol!!!  One Sunday, the lesson was how to float. While waist deep in the water - she told us to lie back. WHAT!!??! She had made it sound so simple - just fall back into the water... did she not understand the concept of drowning. She put out her arms and said "lie back"... okay well with her arms out of course that wouldn't be a problem. And back I went.... but all of a sudden she would start removing her hands and sinking down I went!! Was this lady nuts!!! AHHHHH!!!

Again we tried, keep your head back and pretend you have a string in your belly button pulling you up... slowly I would feel her hands begin to move from my back and I would begin sinking... and again and again we tried until one Sunday I got it. I was able to float and what an awesome experience that was. I loved it. I loved the peace I felt - until a wave came crashing on top of me!!!UGHHHHH Yuck!!

Floating - is something I am teaching my daughter... but teaching her to "spiritually float". Yes, I took after my mom and taught her to float and she got it - but I took it a step further... I can just see my husband's face while he reads this...

No no its not a crazy teaching... I'm not going out there and being all nutty... honey keep reading - there is a point to this - I promise!! this is my lesson to her:

When life gets crazy, when something makes you upset, hurts your feelings, gets you confused... our first reaction is to get angry... and lash out... (now this doesn't just pertain to a 12 year old... I feel it pertains to all of us - that is why I used myself as an example to her.)

I love the beach - when its not too hot or too crowded or too sandy (you know what I mean). That perfect day... when you actually get to enjoy your time at the beach... lovely, just awesome!!!

Well there are those moments in that perfect beach outing, when you are in the water, having fun and a wave comes and knocks you off your feet. Ughhhh I really don't like those. I get very panicky and scared. For those of you that know me know that I have a very creative mind - so in seconds - in my own mind I start creating a dramatic episode in some movie that I'm starring in. Yes it is funny... my nutty side thinks that my whole life is a movie and He is being constantly entertained by me. Sooo going back to "drowning" when you are under and you open you eyes - its all cloudy and sand all over the place, you have no idea where you are at. You are wailing your arms all over the place and just exhausting yourself. You make it very difficult for someone to help you... and mind you this is happening in waist deep water!!! Ay ay ay!!!! Well my mom - who remember is a "Swim Instructor" taught that in those moments try and relax and float. Easier said than done... but surprisingly enough it does work.

That is the life lesson and I have been teaching it to my daughter. You see when life happens and you are not happy with what is going on... how are you going to hear God's voice if you are complaining and getting upset and huffing and puffing and just working yourself up into a frenzy... I remember a good friend of mine Gerri saying that God is a gentleman - you see He will not come in unless he is invited. God gives us the power of choice, you can choose if you want him to come in or not. If you want to get upset - He is not going to stop you, if you want to get angry - He is not going to stop you, if you want to huff and puff - go right ahead. So the lesson is instead of reacting like you are drowning... stop and relax and float... float yes float... Personally it is the most relaxing feeling - knowing that this water, this liquid is sustaining you - its this peaceful sense that envelopes you... In the same way, stop and go to a silent place, whether its the bathroom, your bed, or even a closet... and close your eyes and breathe. Its a hard place to get to - but its not impossible.  Think of the pros and cons... if we continue to get upset - we will say something that will get us into trouble, we will hurt the other person or even ourselves... we will do something we will regret... we will not be pleasing our Lord... the pros - its during those moments that we can have the privilege of going before the Lord and to go into His presence and hear God's whisper to us. During those moments its when God can speak to us ever soooo clearly... and He will calm our minds and heart... So my word to my daughter is to float... when I see her getting ughhhh I tell her float... its our special word, with our special teaching.

During a trip to one of my favorite stores - Hobby Lobby - I found a little plaque that reads: "Let us be silent that we may hear the whisper of God". I kept it near my bed which is where I tend to retreat to when life gets to me... and it would remind me to shhhhhh - listen to God, stop with all the thoughts, stop talking, shhhh - listen. I have now passed it on to my daughter. I told her to place it somewhere she can always see it so when "things" get to her - and she needs to go to her room - she can see it and remember to float, relax, calm down and listen for God's whisper.

So my friend - I pray this will be a blessing to you...  when things get tough, when life gets hard... retreat somewhere... even if its just for a couple of minutes and go to God... and listen to His whisper...  hmmmm - and what a sweet and loving whisper that will be.

Who are you...

When you go and look in the mirror and stand there a while what do you see?
Wow that's alot of gray hair...  gotta pluck those eyebrows...  where are these wrinkles coming from... do I look fat??

Move beyond the exterior...
I'm a wife, a mom, a daughter, a sister, a friend - we tend to identify ourselves by our relationships with our family and others; and that's usually a part of what we talk about with other women, but go beyond your usual titles...

Who do you truly see?
Go deeper, beyond the image staring back at you in the mirror...Who is that woman staring back at you?

What is your identity...your identity in Christ?

1 Peter 2:9 says, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness in to his wonderful light".

Often times we forget who we are and we fall into comparing ourselves to others and allow feelings of insecurity to rob us of our identity in Christ. It is important that we see ourselves the way God sees us and then live in obedience to Him. God knows who we really are. He loves us and created us for a purpose.

Our single most valuable – yet least understood treasure is our identity in Christ. We accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we receive His spirit who resides in us. We begin to take on the characteristics of our Father. We are shaped into His image day by day. But nothing we can ever do makes us any more or less of a daughter of the King of kings. He loves us.  He loves that woman you see staring back in the mirror... He loves her beyond words. There is nothing you have to do, no list to check off for Him to love you anymore... Do you believe that?

As a woman in Christ, our desire should be that when other people look at us they see Jesus - our identity in Christ means that we are being formed more and more into the image of the Lord (Galatians 4:19).

Once we discover our identity, it’s simply a matter of walking in it.  And yes, this walk can be hard - but my sister that is where Titus 2:3-5 speaks to us... older women are to teach the younger women...to love, to be self controlled, pure, take care of our home, to be kind, to be submissive...  You don't have to take this journey alone.  Do you have a woman in your life that speaks Truth to your life, that prays with you and for you, that steers you to His word?  If not, I want to encourage you to pray for God to send a woman like that to your life, a woman who can be your accountability partner.  That when our identity becomes clouded, she can remind us what Scripture tells us.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:17-21 - NIV)

Because your identity is "in Christ"

You are righteous, alive, forgiven, justified, redeemed

You have been sanctified, justified, made holy and perfect

You have been reconciled to and accepted by God

You are without blemish, free from accusation, and complete

You are alive, forgiven, justified, redeemed, free from condemnation

You have wisdom and understanding

You have joined Him in His death, burial, and resurrection

Your old identity is gone and your new identity is eternal

You have been given the righteousness of God

You are His friend, His child, and His heir