Make a Smilebox slideshow Greetings from California! I know that you will not believe this but only a smidgen of the photos that we have taken this past week are on this "Smilebox". My photo frenzy got so bad that honey was only allowing me to take pictures out of the car window as we drove by AMAZING things!!!! This was NOT fun while driving down Lombard. If you just can't stand it and NEED to see more you just let me know. I have a few more to share. Tomorrow morning Honey heads home to Tampa and Jules and I are off to Stockton!! Fully Loaded!!!! p.s....I do have my camera! Viewing Tip......Advance photos with arrow on bottom right of photo |
In My world….this is the East. "East" being Florida's WEST Coast.
I know that Florida has a more Eastern coast than the one that I live on but my everyday East is the West Coast of Florida. This is our shoreline just a few days ago at Longboat key, Florida.
As smooth as glass. Almost always calm and tranquil.
On most any day you can see your toes on the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico as far out as you can walk into it.
This is the shoreline of Monterey Bay, California.
and this...
and this...
and this.....
Hey, I could go on and on. I took so many pictures I ran my camera batter down.
We flew into San Francisco and drove Highway 1 into Monterrey Bay. All three of us were asleep by 9pm (12 pm our time) on Thursday night. Honey was up and about at 4:30 am yesterday, which of course was 7:30 am to his brain!
We spent the day exploring Monterey Bay, the Monterey Aquarium which is UNBELIEVABLE! We had lunch watching the kayaker's play with the otters and then headed out to travel the 17 mile shoreline drive from Monterey to Carmel.
WE ended our day in Carmel at dinner with Clint Eastwood at the "Hogs Breath Inn" (doesn't that sound appetizing?)...Well, Clint didn't show up but we enjoyed it anyway!
As far as just how FAR we have come form home, based upon our time in the air on Thursday, it is a REALLY LONG WAY!!!!! We were up at 4:30am EASTERN time to start our journey Over the Gulf, over Texas, over, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada. It was beautiful to see but a long flight. I drew the short straw between honey and Julianna and ended up BETWEEN honey and Julianna. She had the window seat, and my shoulder and he had the aisle, and my other shoulder! Both of them slept most of the flights. I on the other hand, could not move my head so I listened to pod casts for 6 hours!!
I have always wondered why I am not allot smarter with all of the teaching I have listened to and the books I have read.
During our flight I was getting VISIONED UP by Andy Stanley. By the time we arrived I was ready to make an appointment with Governor “terminator” to help him fix things up in his beautiful state.
I had me some IDEAS but I still don't know how far the East is from the West.
I do know it is REALLY, REALLY Far!! Praise His Holy Name!
Psalm 103:12
as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
I try to spend time critiquing my thoughts and didactic words before writing, attempting to be sure it all makes some sense. More often than not I imagine, my rumblings result in a bunch of blotched or bumbled blog-bites that only I can understand or at least, care about.
This may be another one of those. I hope not.
I felt so stirred about this that I started typing my thoughts on Saturday afternoon about 30 minutes before heading out to a party at "GYMBOREE" for 3 G-babies all having a birthday just days apart.
This is the deal, over the past few weeks I battled the blahs big time.
I am not completely sure what seemingly small life issue caused my personal pit visit. I have had a few family things stressing me out, some ministry disappointments that have altered my path and (only those who truly deal with this will understand the enormity of this one), my jeans have been too tight. ALL of them.Whatever.
Yep, I know, you thought I was a spiritual giant right!!?? Wrong!!??
I any case, the final result was a bit of a PIT FALL!
I truly had several bad days when I struggled with what to do to get out of my mind mess. I am not making light of the huge numbers of people, Christians included, who suffer from serious depression. As I write this my heart goes out to those who have had much bigger and much longer challenges.
I purposely spent extra time with God knowing that "in His presence is FULLNESS of Joy" (Ps 16:11) That did help bring me to a place of peace and a reminder that God knows where we are at ALL TIMES!! (Psalm 139)
Up/Down, High/Low, Dark/Light.
In all of my reasoning and trying to figure things out, it never occurred to me that I was lonely.
I consider my life pretty full of people and activity, a good marriage, wonderful ministry friends and staff but I often let real friendship time take a back seat to busy.
You know the times of "girl talk", accountability, transparency, good old dumping your guts out and letting them do the same.
As always, God led me to just the medicine that I needed to help pull me up from the dark side into the light!
Over the past few days I have had the chance, rather I should say, I TOOK the chance, to spend some time with 2 special friends--one old friend, the kind who can finish your sentences and knows the history of any given life challenge, and the other with a fairly new friend. We are still getting to know one another and learning more and more about why God has connected our hearts in such a short time.
It reminds me of an old song I learned in Girl Scouts..."Make new friends and keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold!"
I spent over 2 hours with each one over the past few days! Just talking and laughing and sharing a few tears.
By the time I left the second meeting I felt 100% better and ready to take on the world again.
That is what prompted me to write this post.
First, we have to be REAL with one another in order to survive this life that we live.
Sometimes depression is caused by physical changes, sometimes fatigue or pressure or a feeling of failure or loss.
Number one for me as a woman who is fully persuaded that God is the source of my joy and peace. I start with HIM!!
I try to review the 3 W's that lead my life: Word, Worship, Wait.
The WAIT part is always the toughest as I try to keep my heart fixed on God until He leads me and shows me what to do next. Sometimes we just need to stay busy doing things like cleaning a closet, writing a thank note, reading a good book.
Some other obvious life things that I always consider when I can't get out of the pit are some practical health and wellness pieces that sometimes slip out of order in my busy life. Things like eating right, exercise and getting a good nights sleep do amazing things to improve our heart and thought life.
In my recent case, what I discovered I needed was just some good old friendship and girl talk!
Much to my surprise the message in church yesterday was on loneliness.
It was confirmation to me that regardless of how clever my words come together and regardless of any misspelling that I miss, someone who is reading this feels:
Unwanted, Unneeded and Unnecessary.
If that is you, I pray that God's Word, not mine, will reach down into your heart and draw you up into His light!
Get into His presence, remind yourself of HIS promises and for goodness sakes---if you need to share your heart---Call a Friend. My prayer is that you will reach out and find "SILVER or GOLD" and discover as I did, the arms of a friend or two who will reach down into the place you are sitting and pull you up into the light.
God knows what you need today. He cares and He will show you the way up!!
It is not nearly the same but if you leave a comment, I promise to pray for you the minute I read it.
25 years ago today a beautiful young woman by the name of Terri Garrett invited a shy, broken hearted, messed-up-life woman like me (actually, it WAS me!) to hear a Bible Study teacher.
The LAST thing that I thought I wanted in my life was to listen to someone talk about the Bible but I did want what I saw in this woman’s face. She glowed and I wanted some glow. She was happy and peaceful and I wanted some joy and peace. She was confidant in who she was and I wanted some confidence.
Terri had no business cards, no office, no ministry building. She had no published books, no facebook and no blog and no website.
She was just a woman who wanted to share Jesus.
She picked messed up me in her car on Saturday morning, 6/9/84, and took me to a one day ladies event being held at her church.
The speaker was Beverly Abel and her topic was how God uses anger.
As far as I knew, I was not angry, but I knew someone who was so I went to see if I could do something to FIX her!
God captured my heart that day and as I listened to every word as the speaker told my life’s story and all of my secrets, (you know how it feels like that when we sit in front of good preaching). At the close of the day she extended an invitation to ask Jesus into our hearts.
I RAN to the alter to surrender my life to Christ.
On that amazing day, I watched and heard that 50 something teacher unfold the word of God tenderly and delicately like we unfold a blanket from around a newborn. She treasured every word and every detail to the point that I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for the next promise.
She had no business cards, no office, no ministry building. She had no published books, no facebook and no blog and no website.
There was a point in the day when she asked us to write down a prayer. She encouraged us to ask God for something BIG and to expect His answer.
I had lots of BIG things to ask that day (That has not changed in 25 years!).
I needed to have my marriage restored, my children protected, my entire world put back together. I am certain that I asked for those things but the thing that I KNOW I asked for was this:
“Someday Lord, I want to do what Beverly Abel is doing today. I want to teach your word and I want to partner with you to change women’s lives.”
It was also on that day that God placed writing on my heart. I had never desired to write before but I left that day with the knowledge in my heart that one day, I would be a writer and a Bible teacher.
I am walking in my "someday".
What about you?
What has God called you to do?
Where has He asked you to go?
Who has He prompted you to tell about His Love? His Mercy? His Plan?
I thank God for Terri Garrett (wherever she is) and Beverly Abel as well as the many mentors who came along beside me after that day and ROCKED my World!!
3I thank my God every time I remember you. 4In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Phil 1:3-6 (NIV)
Happy 25th Birthday to me!! I LOVE being YOUNG!!!
3Roll your works upon the Lord [commit and trust them wholly to Him; He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable to His will, and] so shall your plans be established and succeed.
I have some things that I have believe God wants to do with the new stage of my life, with my ministry gifts, with my vision, passion and experience. I have spent a lot of time talking about some of them, waiting for some things to take place, looking for some proof that others believe in me.
I think God has been stirring me to ROLL MY WORKS UPON HIM ALONE.
I think it may be time for me to switch from Checkers to Chess .
How about you??
Is there a dream in your heart? Is there something that you feel God is calling you to step into that you have been afraid to believe? afraid to try? Have you been waiting for someone else to say "You can do this?" or even afraid to admit to people around you that you WANT to do something? Embarrassed that they might think you are off your rocker?
Maybe it's time to change your game and really believe that God has placed His dreams in your heart and that HE alone will make them come to pass but you have to make a move!! You have to be a bit strategic.
Maybe it is time to take a chance.
I know that it is for me!!
ps...Please check out our "Fight Like a Girl" Ministry Giveaway at the "Surrendering the Secret" Blog.
A few weeks ago I took a weekend girl trip back to the place of my birth, Savannah, Georgia. I grew up being referred to as a "Georgia Peach". I am defiantly a Southern Girl to the core and was raised on Sweet Tea and Southern Hospitality.
keep watch over the door of my lips. (I am still carrying this one around on a note card!)
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. (NIV)
John 10:7-9
So Jesus said to them again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. (NAS)
2 Corinthians 2:12
God's Doors are so different. I am still in training for sure. I actually blasted an unrequested opinion the very first day that I wrote that first scripture about the "door of my lips" on a card to memorize! I probably always will be learning to recognize the DOORS that God has opened or closed verses those of the world. My desire is to not only recognize but to SEEK them, to expect them. God's doors are opened through humility, gentleness, love, truth, passion, service, patience, forgiveness. The doors that I seek now lead me into places of character change. Places where I am not as quick to judge and quicker to forgive, not envious but seeking the best for others, not seeking approval of man (or other women) but seeking approval of God and evidence of a renewed heart. I desire doors that God has opened. Revelation 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. I desire opportunities to be a true Southern Hostess for My Abba Father and His children. PS...If you would like to OPEN A DOOR for post abortion healing in your church or community, there is some southern hospitality waiting for you at the STS Blog. Ya'll Come over for a visit!! Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me,