Running to His arms....

Goodness I have not been able to get enough of this song... I usually go on these hmmmm what do you call it... well I get stuck on a song and I hear it all day long... its like that is what I am feeling at the moment... and this week once again its been this song...  

My heart will sing no other name... Jesus Jesus

Oh I'm running to your arms, I'm running to your arms....

I guess that is what I want to do - I just want to run to His arms and just fall into them... and to fall into His embrace.  How wonderful would that be.  

Changes

Wow this week I've noticed how many distractions we are ( I am ) faced with daily. But distractions that I allow to happen... not the ones that come up unexpectedly... but that I invite in to my life.  We may start the day with the best intentions and then WHAM... I end up getting sidetracked and then there it goes.  God has really been stirring up my heart with this... So in order to stay focused - I need to focus more on Him and His Word for me.  Honestly the solutions are all there in His book... gotta get back to the basics.  Reading, studying, praying and in doing those things I will then have time for my children, my husband and my home.

Praise God that in Him I can start brand new again and its okay...

My Delights

Resolutions... yep I wrote about that a few days ago and now that I am into day 2 of the new year I am changing things around.  Resolutions doesn't quite roll off my tongue and make me happy.  So I've decided to change the word to Delights... yep - Delights!!!  Delights make me happy... its something about the word that makes me smile.

What do I want to Delight myself in this new year?  What causes me delight?  So the following is my list of Delights and what I want to work on and grow in:

• The Word - my relationship with my Savior
• My hubby - being the wife I was created to be - my husband is a gift from God - Am I taking care of that gift?  Of my responsibilities?  
• My children - I want to be a better mom...  The Lord has entrusted these children to me... 
• My home... seeing it "clean" and "organized".  This home is an answered prayer...  I am so thankful for it.
• Challenges - taking risks, being different!!!
• Fun - laughing more, being silly, being me
• Changes - been in a funk - getting out of it and making some internal and external changes - I don't know what they are yet - but I've put it in God's hand and I'm ready
• Red shoes - but of course...
• Red lipstick - to match the red shoes!!!
• Working Out - Zumba!!! - Gotta get in shape but need to have fun in the process
• Relaxing - I felt I was too uptight in 2011 - going to learn to truly relax and breathe
• Not Yelling, Shouting, Screaming lol - Yep I do way too much of this that it drives me bonkers.  My kids aren't hearing impaired... so why???  

These are just a few...  2011 was an "odd" year but it was GREAT... I can't complain - we were healthy, had a roof over our heads... our needs were met.  For 2012 I want to take it up a notch...  to take that step, to leap forward without doubt and having full FAITH in Him!!!

The New Year

This week I have been thinking about New Year's resolutions and traditions in the Cabrera household and even though I've tried to get some going... and making them special and memorable I think that its just “one more-thing-to-do-but-nobody-really-cares-about” tradition.

So I've looked up the definition of tradition: “the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., from generation to generation, especially by word of mouth or by practice.” The second definition read, “a long-established or inherited way of thinking or acting and a continuing pattern of culture, beliefs or practices.”

I am realizing that the tangible traditions that we carry out are not the only things we pass down to our kids; the true traditions come from the heart.

For 2012, we are making a New Year’s resolution to focus on the spiritual traditions that we can pass down throughout the entire year in the Cabrera home. Traditions that will matter long term, and make a difference in the hearts of others.

Traditions like the importance about God’s Word and growing in Him; putting others first; caring about our sisters and brothers; honoring my husband; being respectful to parents and elders; being polite and considerate; forgiving others; and making Christ a priority year round, not just during the "holidays". But most of all, I don’t want these spiritual traditions to be passed down simply by word of mouth, but rather by practice... having my children seeing God at work in me. I know I need to live out these traditions in my own life before I can pass them down to anyone else.

The tradition of making Jesus a priority, is a tradition worth passing down. This year I pray that I will not lose sight at times of what is really important, but that God will help me to see ways I can build new spiritual traditions in my home which will impact hearts and lives for generations to come.

Ghana

I sit here clicking away and look up from time to time to look at my husband. He is sitting in his little corner of the living room moving things around on his laptop... and shuffling papers around.  He then gets up and goes downstairs and comes back up with his suitcase...

You see in a couple of days my husband is going to Ghana, West Africa. 

Why???

Our church supports many missionaries. One of those is the Mephibosheth Ministry. In Ghana, people who are disabled are considered "cursed". They believe someone in their family broke a taboo to cause the disability. Sometimes the family is advised to leave the disabled person in the bushes and let nature take its course. Some parents cannot do this, so they make sure their child has some food and clothing. They may not be able to afford to send all their children to school, and not realize the importance of educating those with handicaps. Their goal is to equip disabled children to become productive members of society and share God's love for them and their families.

A group from our church went several years ago to Ghana W. Africa and helped them build some facilities.  Two years ago another group went to do Vacation Bible School and a Teen Rally - and my husband was part of that group. You may think - hmmm pretty cool... no big deal.  

But if you know my husband - this trip was a very big deal.

When the first group went to Ghana and came back and reported on their trip... Ray joked that he would never go on a missions trip, much less Ghana.  He mentioned this several times... missions trips were not his thing at all.  Well time passed and our Pastor started planning for another missions trip to Ghana.  All of a sudden Ray starts talking about it, but nothing serious... just small talk.  

Several weeks after Pastor mentions the trip to Ghana, Ray begins to consider this trip.  

While on our date day, we pull up to Houlihan's and while sitting in the car Ray starts talking about the possibility of maybe wanting to go... I laugh thinking he is joking - but he was serious.  As soon as we get into the restaurant all I could do was encourage Ray to call the Pastor and let him know of his decision and that hopefully it wasn't too late. 

Well it wasn't too late and yes Ray got to go on his first missions trip to West Africa.  He came back excited and wanting to return, no one could believe it!!!  

He will be returning this Thursday to serve in Ghana - he is going to be doing VBS during the day, preaching several messages and teen conferences and rallies.  And he is excited.  I am also beyond excited for him and very proud of him.  

God sometimes has totally different plans from what we might be thinking of.  Ray said never ever will he go on a missions trip... and he is packing to get ready for his second trip... 

Its these things that make me love him soooo much more.  Not that he is going on a missions trip but because of his obedience to His call.  Ray isn't going because he wants to go, he's going because this is what He wants him to do.  

All the voices...

If you’re anything like me, you have several voices in your head telling you what to do. (I may just have admitted that I should be admitted.)

I have voices in my head like this:

“Don’t compliment your child too much or they will be vain.”

“Make sure you require first-time obedience.”

“You shouldn’t be making any money.”

“You shouldn’t let your kids watch that movie.”

“You should be good at cleaning by now.”

“You should always be submissive to your husband without any argument.”

There is a long line of voices, and some are good and some aren’t, but the point is, none of them really matter. There is only One voice that matters, and that is the one that needs to be listened to.

I need to listen to that voice even when others think I’m wrong.

I need to listen to that voice even when it’s easier to take someone else’s opinion.

I even need to listen to that voice when that voice points to how He made me…I need to listen to my gut sometimes (maybe that is the Holy Spirit).

If I want to compliment my kiddos day and night and tell them they are “good” and “important” and “beautiful” then I’m going to do that. If I know that God is doing something in my life even when others don’t understand, I’m going to say, “Okay God, I trust you with this so I’m going to dance it out as you lead.” Etc., etc.

It is so freeing to hone in on my Father’s voice and push out the others. It’s not easy (there are so many voices), but I’m learning how to distinguish His (and it certainly helps if I’m staying in the Word everyday –one of my goals).

If you have many voices telling you how to act, what to do (or not do), might I encourage you to ask God to teach you to hear His voice? Listen to Him, He will guide gently, and He isn’t in a box (so don’t assume). Approach His throne of grace, and push back all others.

If you know Him, you have His spirit. Listen.
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27

By S. Mae

My Mission Statement

For the past several months (6 to 8 months) I've been on a transformation journey to become the Guardian of the Home - of my home.

 Diane, my Pastor's wife gave this "title" to my sister when she moved to Florida and was having some time adjusting to the change.

After thinking and thinking about it I realized that I wanted to become the Guardian of my Home, hey why couldn't I?

In order to take this journey I had to pause some things - including my blogging, crafting, etc.

I had to start my taking care of my house... first part was the organization of my home. When you think of it, everything is tied to organization. If we are the Home Makers - we need to be organized so our home can run smoothly.

For YEARS I've been blaming my "messiness" on my mom... I guess its easy to pass the blame on someone else. Why my mom - hmmm maybe I was rebelling because she took such great care of her home. She was a true Guardian of Apartment 2K. She always made sure that her apartment, her home was clean, organized and well taken care of.  A time came that my mom didn't work outside of the home, but she sure did inside the home.  She took care of several children full time, and a hand full after school. So it wasn't like she was sitting at home eating bon bons. She helped us with our homework and dinner was always on the table and the list goes on and on.

The more I prayed about it and looked deep into those secret places of my "issue" I realized that my "messiness" was not due to me being "rebellious" but rather me being lazy. Oh my, yes I said it... my laziness!!!! I just didn't want to, moving stuff around was simple enough. I preferred to watch tv, be on the computer, or look away.  Ahhhhhh. No more excuses. It was time for change. Change is hard, but it was something we all had to do.

When did this happen, how did it happen??? Well those questions no longer mattered. It was affecting my life and the lives of my husband and children negatively, and I needed to acknowledge how bad it really was in order to make changes.

My messiness has nothing to do with having a dirty house. My house is pretty much clean... the problem is STUFF... much of my stuff is homeless, my stuffs are gypsies - they travel from corner to corner, room to room. Why??? I don't know... and this "stuff" made me suffer from DPD - (Doorbell Panic Disorder).

So I started thinking why do I want a clean home... I came up with three basic points:
I love having people over – to hangout, for coffee, Bible study, etc. and so hospitality is a huge reason why I like to have my home clean.

I also felt that health (hygiene) was another important reason. I don’t want bugs! Haven't had them and don't want them. I love it when my kitchen is clean and sparkling, and I really like the bathroom to be CLEAN!  Those rooms are like the jewel to a home.  With three little ones the bathroom is not always and it can make me insane! I don't want to have to run into the bathroom when guests come by and do a speedy check!!!

Its sooo easy to justify it - many people have said: You work, you have three young kids, you do ministry, etc., etc. - and for some time I was like "Yeah, my home can be like this because of all these reasons"... but then the word Stewardship came to mind (which means: the conducting, supervising, or managing of something; especially : the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care).  Ouch!!!

You see - we didn't get this house, we had nothing to do with it. I remember we saw it and we were excited about it and before we even went in to see it, my husband and I sat across the street in our car and we prayed for this house. God gave us this house... and He wants it to be taken care of, He wants us to use it for His honor and glory. Therefore that means that I have to take care of it and teach my children to take care of it... keeping it clean, picking things up, putting things away, etc.

And then finally happiness. It makes me happy to walk in the house and have it be clean – or rather tidy! I know it’s not always dusted and the baseboards are not always clean, but tidy…tidy is the goal.  Its a tremendous feeling coming home and seeing how wonderful it looks!!! It not perfect but I'm really enjoying the change.  I want to walk into a room and literally be able to WALK in the room. LOL I have a place for everything and having everything in its place makes me happy.  And when mom is happy... everyone seems happier!!!

I haven't reached my journey, but its looking good... I'm happy, my children are picking up on it. So now I begin to improve on the changes, take it up another level... I'm excited!!!