Quote O' The Day

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Hard work doesn't work in marriage. Soft hearts, do. And the Gospel.

~Pastor Mike Edwards, The Journey

No time to pray...

Sometimes I find myself wishing that I lived in another era. I am certain that "back in the day" it was so much easier to pray. There were so fewer distractions from God. Right now, my family is downstairs watching and cheering the Detroit Tigers in the World Series.

Back in the day, I bet families were gathered around the radio listening to ballgames. They werent in different rooms of the house, with various electronic gadgets. For that matter, farther back in the day.... I bet they were gathered around a piano and violin, singing hymns. Its probably not wrong to also imagine that those families prayed and read Gods word daily.

Regularly, I beat myself up with such thoughts. Today, while researching some great stuff on the computer... I came across some serious wisdom from Horatius Bonar, 1808-1889 Good meat to chew on.

(Lesson learned: Making time to pray is a self discipline and should be done regardless of circumstances, lack of time, environment, or era in which I live.)

Time for Everything but Prayer

Why is there so little anxiety to get time to pray? Why is there so little forethought in the laying out of time and employments so as to secure a large portion of each day for prayer? Why is there so much speaking, yet so little prayer? Why is there so much running to and fro, yet so little prayer? Why so much bustle and business, yet so little prayer? Why so many meetings with our fellow-men, yet so few meetings with God? Why so little being alone, so little thirsting of the soul for the calm, sweet hours of unbroken solitude, when God and His child hold fellowship together as if they could never part? It is the want of these solitary hours that not only injures our own growth in grace but makes us such unprofitable members of the church of Christ, and that renders our lives useless. In order to grow in grace, we must be much alone. It is not in society -- even Christian society -- that the soul grows most rapidly and vigorously. In one single quiet hour of prayer it will often make more progress than in days of company with others. It is in the desert that the dew falls freshest and the air is purest. So with the soul. It is when none but God is nigh; when His presence alone, like the desert air in which there is mingled no noxious breath of man, surrounds and pervades the soul; it is then that the eye gets the clearest, simplest view of eternal certainties; it is then that the soul gathers in wondrous refreshment and power and energy.

Aha Moments~

Some wisdom/truth/enlightenment and other assorted things to ponder that I brought home from my week at Acts 29 Boot Camp:

• The more influenence you want, the less freedom you have (the loss of Christian liberties) ~Ed Stetzer
• Yes, I am called to come alongside a church planter!!
• Yes! I am deeply burdened by nominal Christianity, (says this recovering nominal Christian)
• I want to develop my life so that I can integrate my work, and faith without compartmentalizing either.
• I am willing and desiring to make deep sacrifices for the sake of the Gospel.
• I strive to be holy and blameless because I am created in the image of God. (Gen 1:27)
• All of God's promises are YES!, in Christ Jesus ~ Daniel Montgomery
• Let's not forget the unity that is ours in Him ~ Daniel Montgomery
• I must preach the gospel to myself.
• Time. Talent, Treasure.. give all with generosity and enthusiasm as a core member in a church plant team.
• Support and uphold my Elders and their wives and childen in prayer and fasting as they uphold the Kingdom of God, and oppose the gates of hell.
• Love, exhort, grow, forgive, share, develop pray, and give with the soft heart that God has so graciously given to me.

This is one of the most exciting times of my life. Praise, and thanks to my love and my Lord Jesus Christ.

Kindergarten Graduation

November 4, 2006

Me and my husband, and another couple (treasured friends of ours)
Will finish reading the bible all the way thru for the first time ever.

I met these friends (family) on a trip to Mississippi for disaster relief work. I couldn't wait to get home and begin sharing lfe with them. It didn't take long for my husband to feel the same way...and thru chatting and dreaming and getting to know each other- we all had a desire to know God more through his Word.

We shopped together for the best one year bible to suit us. We agreed to make this one of our highest priorities and commitments. And, over the course of the year we have accomplished that.

Now, we are finding ourselves both awakened and provoked. While it feels like quite an accomplishment, keeping our goal, we realize that we are only in kindergarten. This is only the beginning. We are planning our next year of studies- and are inspired to never stop learning.

Romans
12:2Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and
approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Love Like Crazy

So glad to see But Seriously posting again! After reading your recent
He Loves Me, this song popped into my head and will NOT leave.

I only wish I had the blogger abilities to play the song while you read the lyrics.

Go love like crazy!

Love Like Crazy

Chris Rice (Eb+Flow Records, LLC. / Clumsy Fly Music [ASCAP])

I heard a rumor that love will make you crazy
Well is it true?
Well that’s no rumor, look at the crazy things that love made Jesus do
The friends He chose were thought to be outrageous
And you could even find Him touching the contagious
And the craziest is how He chose to save us
He gave His life away
Then He had to go and say
“Gotta love the same way that I love you”

Love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
The way He loves you and me
‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change
We gotta love like crazy

What the world needs now is for love to spread
As fast as the rumors do
But to make it, we gotta take this thing from another whole point of view
We can start by keeping our vows and not breakin’ promises
And bring hope to the women at the well and the doubting Thomases
And you kids, you gotta cheerfully do what your pops and your mama says
He gave His life away
Then He had to go and say
“Gotta love the same way that I love you”

Well I’m tellin’ you boy, you got a lot to learn
I think you’re crazy all right to love for nothin’ in return
You’ve lost your marbles, got a few loose screws
And if you count yoru cards, I’ll bet you got less than fifty-two
But now you got me thinkin’, you sorta planted a seed
‘Cause you know this might be just the kind of love that I need
Naw, your train’s off the track, you’re from the loony bin
You know that brain that you ordered? Well it never came in
‘Cause your lights are on, but ain’t nobody in your house
Your elevator doesn’t quite reach the top floor
I think you’re out in left field, and I could say a lot more
But you don’t care what I think, it doesn’t matter what I’m tellin’ you
You got the love of Jesus, and He’s the one compellin’ you to love
Like He does
You gotta love like He does
You gotta love like He does

‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change
We gotta love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
The way He loves you and me
‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change
‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change
‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change