Life As I Know It.....by Jaime: Never Give Up...

Life As I Know It.....by Jaime: Never Give Up...: In my bible I have a yellow sticky note book-marking a page. On it I have written: 2 Corinthians 12:9 The Lord said...."My grace is...

Never Give Up...

In my bible I have a yellow sticky note book-marking a page.  On it I have written:
   2 Corinthians 12:9
   The Lord said...."My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in
    weakness."

I was listening to Joyce Meyers this morning and she mentioned in her preaching as she does often the art of "Never Giving Up".   I instantly think:  "Yes, finally one I've got down that is something I don't do, I don't give up."   Then I got to thinking about how many times I have had this conversation with good friends and/or family (most of my friends are family and vice versa).  I can even remember the last time I said this because it was so recent "I never give up, even to my own detriment I never quit."  

What does that mean?   I said it, I should know, yet right now even I am confused.   So Lord, are you telling me to literally NEVER GIVE UP?  So does that mean if we are in a bad situation at work we should stay?   If we are in an abusive relationship at home we should stay?  If we have friends who take us farther from the Lord are we supposed to remain their friends and continue to live in their company?   I'm not going to tell you the answer to these because if I knew I would not have started the paragraph off with "What does that mean?"

I think it goes back to the verse I stated in the beginning.  With God all things are possible, and in the midst of your weakness his power is made perfect in you.   We forget that the real "church" is within us, we are the temple in which God resides, he is always there, he will never leave us nor forsake us.  Wow!  That can either sound really scary, or really comforting depending on how you look at it and what kind of life you live!  Either way, just hearing it makes me want to straighten up my act a bit.   I have often said to my kids "If God was sitting next to you on the bus would you have made that decision?"  or if  "God was sitting on the bed watching you while you hit your brother would you have done it?"   Of course, this hits home and they all know God well enough to answer "No", and then the almighty mother in me says "Well, do you think he isn't there?  Do you think there are times when he isn't watching you?"  

I always say "Thank God for my children" otherwise I might very well be in a loony bin by now, if not dead, or at the very least not living a very godly life.   Well, our good Lord gives us children to not only keep us sane but to teach us as well.   Any teacher will tell you they usually learn more while teaching others, and that is a lot of what I think parenting is about.  

So without getting side-tracked, how does all this relate to "Never giving up?"

I will give you my "motherly" advice on it and then I'd love to hear what you have to say.
I think we should all remember that God is with us at every moment, and we can always ask ourselves "Is where I'm at, is what I'm doing, or is how I'm handling this pleasing to God?"

If our bodies are Gods "temple" then exposing them to abuse be it physical, mental, verbal, sexual, whatever it be is probably not pleasing to God.   Now if we are in that position at a point in our lives we can always remember that "Greater is he who is in me, than who is of the world" and know that Gods power is made perfect in our weakness.   This will help us survive the situation, but I don't think protecting ourselves is "Giving up".   When we harm ourselves, or let others harm us we are destroying Gods temple.  You wouldn't just go by and throw a rock through your church window, or set the tree on fire out front, or walk on the nice carpet with mud caked boots one Sunday, would you?   Then why would it be OK for us to let our minds, bodies and spirit be just as ruined?   I think we can all guess the answer to that.

So being a "Pit-bull in the spirit" and pressing on through negative circumstances I believe has a limit, even in the Lords terms.   We just have to stop worrying about whether we are making the "right" choice, and pray that God leads us straight through the fire and to the other side without really having to make a "choice" at all.   He will do that, he will even pick us up an carry us if it gets too hot.

For me today, I am going to meditate on the circumstances in my life that are "ruining my temple" but I am withstanding because "I' don't want to give up"   vs.   the circumstances in my life where I could be leaning on God more to get me through it even if it means he has to downright pick me up and carry me for awhile (like when you take your toddler on an all day shopping trip or a long walk).   If we eliminate the circumstances that are chiseling away at us little my little and destroying our temple, I'm sure we know what decision God would want us to make, and I'd be willing to bet that if we did that we would be way more equipped to walk beside God through those other circumstances that may seem difficult but are on the right path. 

Make Sense?

It is important to realize that "Giving Up" and "Quiting something that is harming you" are not the same.   (I'm preaching to myself here).   So ask yourself that question as you "weed out" the things in your life that are ruining your "temple" and for the rest remember to pray, for a little weakness is not a reason to give up, it is only an invitation to let Gods power that is within you shine and be made perfect.

Have a blessed day everyone.....its good to be back!!  Thank you for reading.

Life As I Know It.....by Jaime: Jaime's Blog Update...

Life As I Know It.....by Jaime: Jaime's Blog Update...: So it has been on my heart for months now to start blogging again. I realized how much this blog has a direct relationship with my connect...

Jaime's Blog Update...

So it has been on my heart for months now to start blogging again.   I realized how much this blog has a direct relationship with my connection with God, my family, my children and just overall how my life goes.    Wait a minute!!!  No, let me re-phrase that.......my relationship with God should have came first......then the rest after it.   Really though, the less I started blogging, the less I was reading my bible, the less I was having an "attitude of gratitude", the less I was teaching my children about living a godly life, and certainly the less godly life I was living!

It finally took my son Drew (Yes, sorry to all who have emailed me or commented on facebook, it took Drew) to ask me "Mama why haven't you written on your blog for a long time?".   You see he has an IPOD and has my page bookmarked but obviously hasn't had any new reading material lately.  :)   I promised him I would start so I suppose today is as good of a day as any.

In the past, my blogs have been a bit long, or I have rambled into a few subjects.   I usually just let God lead me, but I'm not sure that I can't put a little rein on my typing for my readers sake.   So my goal for this new stint in blogging is to keep it a little more short & sweet.   Most of you who know me, when it comes to talking I'm anything but "short and sweet" but I promise with Gods help I will make an effort.

I wanted to let all know......"I'm back".........and here's to getting into the word, and some fun blogging.   As always, I welcome your comments; this is part of MY journey, but the only way I can learn and become a better believer and person is with others help.......and who knows maybe we will help each other.

See you in the next one!  

Without God, its all just "stuff"....

Woke up this morning with so many things on my heart.   Then I realized it was only 5:30am which happens to be the time when Joyce Meyers is on TV so I turned it on, got something to drink at watched the program.   Funny, God always has his way of bringing you back on track.   I've been working long hours, sleeping very little, not feeling well, and now am getting ready to spend the next 48hrs moving out of my house.  I could have stayed up last night and got work done to get a head start on the next two days but rather I found myself laying on the couch paralyzed in the "Where do I start" mode.   I had also had a bad incident come up at work which also had my mind off of moving forward and just kind of stuck with a yucky feeling in my stomach (I'll explain more later).

I am lucky that I have some great people in my life who have offered to help me move.   I tend to be someone who wants to keep everything, because you know...."I may need it some day".   I found myself thinking that, and being very depressed about the thought of getting rid of everything I own to down size and live in a motorhome for the next few months.   Just the thought made me feel like less of a person, like when it all was said and done, without my "stuff" I wouldn't be me, or able to be happy. I also felt sad or jealous to give my "stuff" away and then see someone else have it and not me.  Sounds crazy, but think on it for awhile, put yourself in my shoes. 

In the bible in the book of Matthew it mentions how it is easier for a rich man to pass through the eye of a needle than to enter the kingdom of God.   This comes after the parable where a wealthy man asks Jesus how he can get into heaven, and Jesus tells him to take everything he owns and give it to the poor.  What I notice in this is that Jesus didn't tell the man to take all the stuff he didn't "need" anymore, or never though he would need again, all his clothes that didn't fit, the stuff that was broken or not as "nice" anymore, etc.   He also didn't say go sell it for as much as he could so that he had some money left so that "just incase" his plan didn't work he could replace at least some of the stuff!   No, he said go give it ALL away.   Now in the story, the man was sad, he had worked hard to get where he was at, he felt he had done things right (I'm paraphrasing here) and fairly, therefore he was entitled to the "stuff" he had. 

Wow!  Hear any relation in the two stories?   Kind of hit me like a ton of bricks.  I was stressing about "how much could I keep", "how could I make it fit", "where could I store it all", "how I needed to plan a big garage sale so I could at least get money to replace things later or help me through now".   Then I realized what God was doing in my life.   I already have no doubt I'm where I'm supposed to be, even though its never somewhere I'd thought I'd be in a million years!   Its not even a great place necessarily, but I will say the "pieces to the puzzle" are starting to fit together, and the bigger picture is becoming more clear, and that is a really cool feeling!!

So, last night I was stressing for the i don't know how many time about all the things I have to get rid of.....and what happened I was paralyzed.   Now, think of what paralyzed means?  I'm not going to look up my own definition but basically it means unable to move, stuck in one spot.   Do I really want to be stuck right where I am for the rest of my life?   Of course the answer is NO, life may be going Ok, and I may feel I'm on god's path, but just because I'm on the path doesn't mean I just want to stop walking in fear that I may stray from the course as I have so many times!  I realized that God has had to allow bad things to happen to me in order for me to see the "bigger picture", and that a lot of those bad things were "taking the THINGS away".   So, just maybe God reminded me of that parable the other day because just maybe he was sending me a message.

As I said above, God asked him to get rid of all his "stuff", empahsis on ALL.   Not everything but his favorite stuff, he said simply ALL of it.    The bible also tells us that if we do what God tells us, if we sacrifice when he asks, that we will be rewarded tenfold.   Now, to be honest, the sad part is I've lived on my own for 16 yrs.  most of the stuff around me is not very nice or expensive.....even if it was at one time its old now.   In the house I sit in now, most of it I bought used for very very little becasue my other "stuff" was in storage.   So why, why, why am I having such a hard time?   Why do I want to just "keep my foot in the door" incase what God asks me to do doesn't work out........you know "I may need it some day, God".   I love the saying "If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans", but I don't think God would really be laughing at my thought process, I think rather like any good parent he would be sad that I wasn't just listening knowing that he knows best, and that he had to watch me go through more hurt until I finally "Recieved" his message.   Why would I want to do that to myself?   I don't know.   So I made up my mind, my stuff is stuff.   God is working miracles in my life everyday and has blessed me so much, why would I let a $300 couch stand between me receiving more of Gods miracles?   Doesn't make much sense when you say it that way, huh?  

I dare to think I am not the only one who runs into this problem at times in their life.   We are humans, and we are Americans both of which I think tends to make us a little more superficial when it comes to having "stuff".  Some how, we get our wires crossed and start putting our self worth on a stainless steel oven with a warming drawer than on God.  LOL, sounds silly, huh?   I will humble myself and be the example though, because its true. 

So today, I'm asking for prayers from all of you, and I'm praying myself for God's strength to help me see the "stuff" for what it is and to trust him that if I do what he is leading me to do right now, then I will only be one step closer to reaping the rewards of his great plan for my life.  So I must keep my eye on the ball, and keep pushing through, even though it hurts, its painful, its scary......now is when I must test my own strength and faith and do what I need to do.   What is the worst that can happen?  I have to go to garage sales and replace it all again?  It only cost me a few hundred dollars to get almost the entire household I'm sitting in right now, so I think I could probably do that again.   The cool thing is I know I won't have too, because God wants mroe for me than that, this is just a growing pain, but I will never get to the next level without growing pains, just as a child will never grow taller without those growing pains.   Some people have them very little, some so little they don't notice, and some of us remember being kids and just being in pain because of those "growing pains".   Well, today is a day of growing pains for me, no doubt.

Ok, back to the top.   So I mentioned paralyzed last night and a bad experience.  Last night I was calling to schedule appointments at work.   One man had requested two child safe kits, so I called him set an apt. and while he was looking for a pen I made small talk and asked the ages of his kids.   He then said "well, I guess you only need to bring one now, my daughter was five but she passed way".  This is what paralyzed me, because NEVER is it OK to lose your five year old daughter in my world, or any child for that matter!  I have never met this family before but I was instantly crying and sad for them.   So when I got home I couldn't get it off my mind, it just drained me.   Then I woke up this morning thinking, how silly and sad I am.  Here i am crying over some dishes I'm getting rid of, and this man has lost his daughter!! Yet, even though we may be squeezed in a motor home, I will be able to kiss all my kids good night, that right there is a blessing, and it doesn't matter how much stuff.   Then I got to thinking of all the blessings in my life right now, my children, my sisters, my good friends, my new friends, all the great people who have came into my life and who are lifting me up when my knees are buckling right now, or who are telling me to get up and wipe my tears and keep going when I feel "paralyzed".   Those are the "stuff" in life that you want.   Never ever ever will they be less valuable than a leather couch, stainless steel oven, or a nice bed set! 

So as much as I can preach an "attitude of grattitude" I myself am human, and found myself being right there at the very bottom of the grattitude list.    I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I'm not where I used to be, and really thankful that he now allows me to "figure out the lesson" faster than I used to.  Makes your resiliency so much better, and eventually that is the way to become the Godly person you should be.

I will leave you with this today.   I am going to pray that I can keep my eye on the TRUE prize.   I am going to count my blessings and not my things, and I am going to keep walking knowing that when my knees are buckling that is when God will carry me.   Whats the catch?   I've got to be walking with him, if I'm not how will he know when i need carried through the rough spots, like you carry your child over a creek or a log thats too big for them to hop over.  

I am going to have an attitude of grattitude for the real blessings in life, and then use my "stuff" to bless others.  Most of all I'm going to trust, that I will never see what is in store for me next if I don't pass this test.  I have recently watched friends do it, and I am so proud of them, and so happy I have such great examples in my lfie!  

So heres to a new start, walking with God, and keeping our eyes on the real prizes in life!   Don't feel bad if you too had temporarily lost focus as I had, just thank God you remember now, and then.......
Keep Walking!

Have a Blessed Day Everyone!

When God shuts one door, he opens another, but the Hallway is Hell!!

The other day a friend shared with me that they didn't like to read my blog because it makes him think of the ways he's falling short, and that feels bad. (I may not have quoted that exactly right, but its early and that was close enough)

I can SO relate to that!  I think we all can, any of you who have ever walked out of church with your head down and your tail between your legs knows what I'm talking about!   I used to feel like this a lot, and if I have portrayed a different image in this blog then I will set that straight today!  I would go out drinking Friday and Saturday night, leaving my husband at home and definitely not acting like a respectful wife, but yet I'd get up Sunday morning half hung-over and take the kids to church.  Now I don't think that was bad or good its both.....my intentions were all good, and the "bad feeling" I had while I sat there, the feelings of "not being good enough to be there, etc." helped me to eventually change my ways.  All the while I was raising a new generation that now I am proud to say has a closer walk with the Lord then I could hope to have.   Even my teenager who says "I'm too religious" (Oh, he is such a mini-me but I was WAY WORSE) has his own personal relationship with God that I am jealous of! 

Its funny the Lord's timing and how he ties things together because I opened up my bible this morning because God has clearly spoken to me lately and has told me to "seek him first, and all else will fall into place" but I'll get back to you on that later.   Anyways, I opened my bible and where was I bookmarked at?  The Ten Commandments.   Now,  I have a funny story when it comes to the Ten Commandments because at one time in my childhood I had them all memorized and some how between now and then I forgot them (I think my mind chose to, so that I would feel better).  My mom used to have a plaque on her wall that stated all ten commandments, now i have a sign on my refrigerator stating "Chore's For the Day".  When I was little I would sit in a bar stool and read those commandments not knowing what half the words meant, but just knowing "I never want to do that" because I had fear of the Lord, I didn't ever want to sin or break one of those commandments.  Now my children look at a list of chores & consequences on my fridge while they eat their cereal, yet I bet they do a way better job at following those commandments that I had memorized and looked at everyday while I was a kid.

Now, as an adult, a christian, and mother I have had opportunities to buy nice plaques like the one my mom had that have the commandments, and I've even found myself saying "I'd like to find one" but every time I have found one that I liked that matched my decor I have chosen not to purchase it.  Why?  Was it to expensive?  Was it to heavy for my wall?  Nope, have no excuse other than the plain fact It made me feel bad.  You see, I have broken nearly all the commandments at some point in my life, and if not completely have thought about it or came close.  So it makes me "feel bad" to have that reminder of my sins posted on my wall for me to look at everyday.

So by now you should be getting the point that I'm not a "model christian", I don't think I've even earned the title of "bible thumper" (not that its bad or good).   I started this blog because it holds me accountable to my own walk with God which includes reading the bible, studying it, meditating on it, and then ACTING on it.  This blog enables me to do one more thing and that is to SHARE my progress with others, and hold myself accountable.

I've said it before and I'll say it again.  This is MY JOURNEY, you have your own.  If you don't want to read because it makes you feel bad then don't, or if you look forward to it and enjoy it, then tell me, encourage me so I stay on my path with the Lord.  Its about accountability.   I will say this, (and its not my quote) when God shuts one door, he always opens another but the hallway is hell!    Now, some of us have just spent longer in the hallway than God ever intended us to.  Why?  Probably many reasons; We are trying to choose our own path, rather than letting God guide us to that next door; We are making poor choices, and usually we know it; We are distancing ourselves from the Lord because maybe "we feel bad" and in that becomes room for the enemy to sweep in.   I could go on and on, when I was  a teenager I was the queen of justifications and excuses; but there isn't any need, because I'm sure that each one of you reading knows your own faults when it comes to this, just as I have.

Now here's the good part.....
Part of my journey was going through that time when I would show up to church hung-over with my kids, and God knew it!  He already knew I would do that before I did it!  We forget this, at least I do, that so much of the time we are "feeling bad" about something God had already forgiven us for before we did it!  Now does that mean we have a free pass to act however we want because we will have unconditional love & forgiveness from our heavenly father.......NO sorry, I don't really think that's the point, but it doesn't mean we wouldn't get forgiveness for doing the same thing over and over 100x until we finally GET IT!  One things for sure, God will let you experience hardship, he will let you suffer, in order for you to learn your lesson.   He is a good father; and just as we as parents sometimes have to put our foot down with our children, so does he, but if your like me often times punishing your child hurts you more than them, well I like to think its the same for our Father in heaven; So if you think of it that way, doesn't it make you want to learn your lesson a little faster?   So doesn't that make you want to sit through church even though you feel inadequate, or read the bible even when its making you feel guilty, or even read my blog because I'm reminding you of things your not proud of, or of places you think you should be and your not?  


All this is what gets you through the hallway!   You see I've had to go through a lot of hallways and I will concur that every single one was hell!  Some were short, and some were longer......I'm even in one now!   But, something that stuck in my head while my ex husband and I were divorced was "If you turn back now, you have just as much hurt (or "Hell") to go through as you would if you were to keep walking toward that next door."  Now, please don't take that as I'm advocating divorce, and I have a much different view and opinion on the subject now, then I did then.........but the principle can still be applied to many of those "Hallways".  You see God knows your there, and he doesn't want you in them any longer than you want to be in them, knowing that should comfort you.  Want to know the secret I found to getting out?  Give it to God, all of it!  Dive into his word and embrace it, study it, learn from it, and try to be the best you everyday.   When I'd have a bad day as a little girl, I'd get in trouble, or my sisters and I would fight, my mom when she kissed me goodnight would always say "Tomorrow is a new day to play another way".   So, if your not prepared to post the 10 commandments on your wall as I have not been, then maybe you could write that quote and stick it to your bathroom mirror or somewhere where you will see it each night before you go to bed, because that is exactly how God loves us!  It may be a quote from my mom, whom I'm sure heard it from someone else, but it may as well be our Heavenly Father speaking to us, reminding us of his unconditional love as "our father" and that each day is a new day to make new choices!

So, since God definitely gave me the gift of gab whether it be speaking or writing :)  for the essence of your time and mine I won't list the Ten Commandments (that may get me on a whole another tangent) but I will tell you where you can find them in the bible.   They are located in Exodus 20:20.

My next blog will probably be about abundance because I have some cool stories and testimonies to tell regarding that.....but for now I'll stay on track!  :)

If you don't have the Ten Commandments memorized yet (as I don't either) then remember this.   God is Love.   You will have to find the definition of love in the bible yourself as I did, then meditate on it because you will realize that sometimes our humanly definitions are way off of what the Lord's definition is. 

One of my best-friends used to tell me all the time before she became a christian that she believed "there was a God" and that "God was Love"......I would always listen but kind of sluff it off.   Now I realize, how much her growth in Christ affected me and made me addicted to becoming a teacher of his word.   Do ya think God knew what he was doing?   Of course!!  He puts people in your life for a reason.   You learn from everyone and every experience bad or good.   When I first went to work I worked in an office full of Christians, and I thought it was wonderful and I could see their success coming directly from their closeness to the Lord.  Then some of those Christians hurt me very bad, knowingly or unknowingly, it still hurt.   Since then I've had opportunities to go into offices that were not so blatant about religion, and in my earlier walk with God it didn't "feel right" to be in that place.  Now, that I've matured a bit in my own walk with God.....the opportunity to be surrounded by people who are insecure in their faith is exciting to me!  God doesn't want us only preaching to other Christians, he wants us out there creating other Christians so that we are helping him do his work, being faithful servants to him!

So I'm going to close with this, as I'm already getting too long-winded.   Those of you who are my dear friends and I mentioned you today, you know who you are:  Thank You for being in my life.  Thank you for the good and the bad, and for being part of my "journey".   For those people and the rest of you remember this:  Life isn't all peaches & cream,  we need to take responsibility for the mistakes we made, the people we once were, and realize that: "Tomorrow is a new day, to play another way"..............
And know that God is telling you that every single night!!!

I love you!  God Bless!

Listen to the words in your head....

This morning I woke up with a song stuck in my head.   It’s a country song, and oddly enough I can’t even remember the last time I listened to country music other than a song here and there on my sons IPOD.  I think the song is sung by Rascal Flats but could be wrong.  Anyways, the part I have stuck in my head is “I will stand by you, I will help you through, when you’ve done all you can do……”

Now, the reason this gave meaning to my morning is a couple of things.   For one, I was supposed to pull an all-nighter studying, but just was too pooped out to stay up past 11:00pm.   The other is that I am supposed to take the state exam for my insurance license on Wed. and I feel unprepared due to my lack of being able to study all weekend due to things beyond my control……my daughters High School Graduation, my sons 8^th grade graduation…..things that I wouldn’t miss for the world.   I also got up this morning looking around my house, at the unwept floor, the sink full of dishes, the bag of groceries yet to be put away…and all I can think of is how I am down to the wire and I am falling short in every area!  With God’s grace I’ve made it this far and I cannot afford to fail the exam on Wed.!!!

So, the words came to me as I was getting my computer and everything set up to start studying: “Seek me first, and then all will fall into place”.  Now these words hit me like a ton of bricks; because the first thing and last thing I normally do in the day is read the bible and pray, yet for a few days I haven’t done that I’ve been studying but it’s been the wrong book.

With that being said I opened my bible to a place I had left off at last week in Judges finishing the life of Samson.  I’m sure most have heard of Samson in the bible, but probably have never actually “studied” his life.  At least I had never bothered to do so.  So I read the last chapters which led to the death of Samson.  Now I’m not going to go into detail because there is a lot more time I need to spend studying on this exactly before I go preaching to anyone, but here is what I will say.  Since before Samson’s conception, he was destined to be a leader and have supernatural strength.  An Angel appeared to his parents before his conception and told them this, and gave them a set of things they should and should not do to this boy, as he is a born servant to the Lord.   One of those things was to never shave/cut his hair.  Long story….skipped to the end, after several mighty defeats Samson had over the Philistines, they finally were able to learn the secret to his godly strength and cut off his hair in his sleep.  They then attacked him, gouged out his eyes, and put him in prison.  Later, after being imprisoned the Philistines brought Samson out so that they could all see him in his weak state for their entertainment.  When the guards brought Samson out he asked to be led to the pillars that support the temple so that he could use them to lean on, and the guard did as he was asked.   While Samson stood there with one hand on each pillar he prayed to God and asked him to please give him his strength back one more time so that he may seek final revenge on these Philistines for gouging out his eyes.  The Lord granted his prayer, and Samson with the strength of his two arms pulled down the entire temple, and it came crashing down upon him, but in doing so killed the Philistines and their rulers.  So in his death he killed more than he ever did in his life.  

Now, I’m not going to even to begin to explain something I don’t fully understand, but what I am going to do is tell you why this story affected me so greatly this morning.   As I said I woke up feeling weak, like I was being held back, like things were impossible for me to do, that circumstances beyond my control were causing me to fall short, that I was confused and blinded on what I should be doing.

Our Lord is wonderful, he is loving when we don’t know we need it, he is there for us when we don’t think we need it, and when we are lost in the darkness he is our light!  This morning I woke up lost in the darkness, the energy that usually comes in the morning for me was gone, and I was confused, the enemy had that quickly swept into my life and made me doubt myself and my purpose…but wait what words did I have in my head this morning? 

“I will stand by you, I will help you through, when you’ve done all you can do…” and then “Seek me first, and all else will fall into place.”

You see, God already knew what the enemy was trying to do to me today, and just like a mother bear protects her cub, he put those words in my head to take the focus away from any problem and put them directly onto him, which is where they should be.  

So as you go on with your day today first remember that all things are possible through he that strengthens me.  So put your trust in the Lord and rest assured that today will be a great day of enjoyment, success, prosperity, and deliverance!  FOR WE SERVE AN AWESOME GOD!!

Peace comes in the morning....

I'm going to make this short and sweet tonight, then I'm going to get to bed and get some much needed R &R  (for me that stands for Reading & Rest).

I entitled this post "Peace comes in the morning...."

For those of you whom have ever had their heart broken then you probably know what I'm talking about.   The nights are always the hardest.  I'm not sure why.  I'm not sure if its because you are alone, have quiet time to think, are exhausted from the day, or you notice your routine is different than it "used to be", but whatever the reason when your going through something the nights are always the worst.   Kind of like when our kids are sick, they seem to be OK, but the fever always seems to peak at bed time......I don't know the reason for that either.   Just something about bed time I guess.  Maybe its the enemy trying to steal our rest, the fuel we need to make the next day an enjoyable one, I don't know but seems logical, and why not blame Satan...if your going to blame anyone.  :)

I'm having one of those moments now....I did last night too.....and the sad part is I've been here before.   When I'm in the midst of it, I am calling to God asking him to stop the hurting and all I can think of is if I could take this pain away from someone else in the world I would because I don't want anyone to ever go to sleep feeling that way!   I'm assuming those reading know what I'm talking about.  I try to tell myself scriptures I know like "Greater is he that is in me than is in the world" and "all things work for the greater good of gods plan" (I may be a little off on that one) but you know all those that are supposed to make us feel better.   Notice I said a keyword:  "Supposed"....that's because they don't.   Why?  Because we don't let them.   We hear them as just words rather than from the voice of our heavenly father talking directly to us!  

I just received an email reassuring me that God is a patient God, he doesn't hurry us, rush us, he lets us take our time.....so if we are feeling "rushed" then it most likely isn't from God.   I haven't had time to meditate on that one yet, but I'm putting it out there because I think maybe someone else who reads this might need to hear those words as well.

I wrote on Facebook the other day a quote it was this "Don't be afraid to fall in love, you just fall in love with as many things as possible..." Gwyneth Paltrow from the movie Country Strong.

At the time I thought it was such good advice, and not that I don't now, but falling in love means you can get hurt, and that part isn't any fun.

So I'm going to give myself my own advice tonight:

"Remember this too shall pass, God doesn't give us anything we can't handle even when it seems like it.   Just think back to the times you've felt this way before and remember how you were able to gather the strength to get through.  When I think back to all those moments in my life the one thing I've learned is to look to God first, not after when you understand and are thanking him (not that you shouldn't) but look to him in the beginning for guidance, in the middle for strength, and at the end for thanksgiving!" 

That will be my own quote for this evening.

Because he is there, when you think you don't need him...he's there, when you are down on your knees....he is there, and when you are lifting your hands in praise....he is there!

So Good Night my Friends, and don't forget......He's there!

May you have Peace tonight & in the morning!



What is a Christian woman?

The other day I was asked the question of "How do you be a career-oriented, working mom, and also conform to what the bible says in regards to how woman/wifes/mothers should be?"

I was ready for this question, because I have asked it myself before and saught out answers.  Although, I don't know if I have it all figured out, which I'm pretty sure I don't.   I do have some of the answers that I've found that have helped me make sense of it.  

For one I believe that God knew when we were born how our lives were going to end, what choices we'd be faced with, whether we'd make good choices or bad ones, and whether we would reap the fruits or the hard time for these choices made in life.

Awhile back I had quoted a verse that I think is appropriate to quote again because to me it defines EXACTLY who God wants everyone woman/wife/mother to be;

Epilogue:  The Wife of Nobile Character

A wife of noble character who can find?

She is worth far more than rubies.

Her husband has full confidence in her

and lacks nothing of value

She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands.

She is like the merchant ships,

bringing her food from afar.

She gets up while it is still dark;

she provides food for her family

and portions for her servant girls.

She considers a field and buys it;

out of her earnings

she plants a vineyard.

She sets about her work vigorously;

her arms are strong for her task.

She sees that her trading is profitable,

and her lamp does not go out at night.

In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

She opens her arms to the poor

and extends her hands to the needy.

When it snows, she has no fear for her household;

for all of htem are clothed in scarlet.

She makes coverings for her bed;

she is clothed in fine linen and

purple.

Her husband is respected at the city gate,

where he takes his seat among the

elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them,

and supplies the merchants with sashes.

She is clothed with strength and dignity;

she can laugh at the days to come.

She speaks with wisdom ,

and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

She watches over the affairs of her household

and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children arise and call her blessed;

her husband also , and he praises her:

"Many women do noble things,

but you surpass them all"

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;

but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

Give her the rewward she has earned,

and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Proverbs 31:10-31

Now here is what I take from reading this, and how I can relate as an independent working woman (as well as the other side, the wife & mother).  It mentions she gets up while its still dark and provides food for her family.  Does this sound familiar to any of you mothers out there?   I know if I want to get a shower for myself, actually look decent for work, and have the kids bathed, dressed and fed before school I am definitely getting up before dawn, and that isn't even counting if I work out in the mornings!

This verse talks of her considering a field and buying it.   Hmmmm.......sounds like she's buying Real Estate, now I don't know but interestingly enough it does not include her husband as any part in this??? 

She then from her earnings she plants a vineyard!  Now she's going into business........now ladies who wouldn't love to own a vineyard?!?  

It says she see's her trading is profitable and her lamp doesn't go out at night.   Its funny because usually when I'm on here blogging, or working it is long after my kids are in bed, dinner is put away, dishes are washed, counters wiped off, outfits laid out for the next day, and then I go to "work".   I know this is the same for many of you.

She feeds the poor and gives to the needy.......how many of you volunteer in your childs school, or local community, be it the food pantry, community garden, working with children, etc.   Sounds like the woman of noble character, is a giver and a doer!

Most of all it tells us she is a hard worker, but at the end she reaps the best rewards of all and that is the appreciation, acknowledgment and blessings from her husband & children.

Now whom of you ladies wouldn't love to go into your childs room wake them up for school and they "arise and call you blessed"  or in modern terms "Ok, mom....wow do I smell pancakes? Your the best mom in the world, I am so lucky to have you, Johnny's mom down the street only gives him cereal."  Ok, well I may have went to far with the pancake thing, but you get the jist!

I have more to say though so hang on with me a little longer......

Of course we as modern women all strive to be this person, I mean who wouldn't?   But I'd be willing to bet 99% of us come up short.   Why?  Because we live in a different era than that woman in the bible, our grandparents, our parents.......yet we constantly are trying to compare ourselves to what was "normal" decades ago when circumstances were much different.

I was lucky and was able to have a mom who stayed home with us while we were little.   I remember my friends coming over and saying "Your house is always so clean!"   Well, that is because my mom was always cleaning!  Don't get me wrong she was a great mom, did tons of stuff with us, gave the best parties, etc.  but as for our home life I do remember her always cleaning.  

When I grew up and had a house and family of my own, I started down that route.   My family would all be huddled together in the living room watching a favorite show, and their I'd be "Ms. Cinderella" doing the dishes, mopping the floor, cleaning up after dinner, etc.   All I did was build up resentment towards my husband and children, and missed out on the fun family time.  Now there are two ways I could argue this, and they are I could have MADE them help or I could have JUST let the cleaning wait.   I found out that a little of both made us function best.   Was it hard for me to leave that mess sitting there?  Oh my gosh, you will never know!   But now I know that what is most important are my children and other than when things get way out of control I try to let a lot of stuff go, and make sure the basics are done.   Then every once in awhile I'll get in the mood to do a big deep clean, and around and around we go.   This may seem chaotic to some, but to me it seems very organized as we are all different.

This is once again longer than what I wanted but I am going to share a little more.  If you ever have the chance to read any of John Gray's books Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus he will teach you in very short easy to read ways on how the opposite sex acts and why and how our differences can be complimented rather than tear you apart.

So I'm going to start a series and quote a section from his book "Mars and Venus In Touch" by John Gray.  I think you will find it very informative, familiar and entertaining.   Maybe you'll even be able to print out this small blurb and get your spouse to read it????   Let me know how that works for you.....hey you could always copy & paste it in an email.....its so short he'll have read it before he realizes what your doing.....LOL

What Women Need Most and Men Really Want

The women who attend my relationship seminars are always amazed by the fact that half the audience is composed of men.   They find it hard to believe, but men really are seeking ways to make women happy and are just as interested as women in improved relationships.  The problem is that their traditional ways of doing so aren't getting through to the women.

If problems arise at home, the traditional male approach to solving them is to become more successful at work.  If a relationship is troubled, a traditional man doesn't take a seminar or purchase a book on relationships; he takes a course or buys a book on business and success.  Why?  Because from time immemorial, a man could always make his parnter happier by being a better provider.

In the hunter/gatherer days, this arrangement worked out fine.   IT worked well enough even for our fathers.  For us, however it doesn't work at all.   Today's wives do not leave husbands because they're not being provided for.  They leave because they are they are emotionally and romantically unfulfilled.  When a man does not understand a woman's new needs, it is inevitable that she will be unfulfilled.  This increased dissatisfaction is also what turns men off.  Husbands do not leave wives because they no longer love them, they leave becaues they can't make them happy.  Generally speaking, a man gives up on a relationship when he feels powerless to succeed in fulfilling his partner.

By understanding how circumstances hve changed for both sexes, we can gain the insight and compassion necessary to master new approaches to mutually supportive relationships.

So for today take heart in knowing your problems are not isolated to only your family.   We live in a world that is constantly trying to break up marriages, and tear apart families.   When you get frustrated with your husband look at what he's doing, because he just might be using all the "tools in his toolbox" to "fix the problem" he just doesn't even realize that he's missing the one right tool that would make it all better.   Husbands when you are frustrated with your wives because they seem to always be giving you unsolicitated advice or they don't seem to be as welcoming as you feel they should be when you get home from a long days work, remember that they are just more than likely exhausted in more ways than one, and when they see that you are dissapointed or a little angry about how they didn't greet you at the door with a smile and a kiss, and instead through a baby into your arms and a clean diaper in the other hand and said "Here he's your child now", is just her way of showing you she's overwhelmed and needs your attention NOW.   Most women just need some validation for what they do, and for someone to listen (key word LISTEN) to them while they vent for a moment (for some of us that stay at home it may be the only adult conversation they get all day) and just love them, compliment where you can, how they look, how the house looks, that dinner smells good, or if they all are out of wack, then say "wow honey looks like you've had a rough day, go take a bath and some time to yourself while I get the kids corndogs or grilled cheese for dinner.   If just these two peices of advice were taken from both men and women.....I'm sure it would reduce the divorce rate across our country significantly.

So look for some more quoted chapters from John's book in future blogs.......

What happened to teaching our children to vote?

Today I could go in a lot of different directions but I woke up with something on my heart so I'm going to try to stick to that.....

However, I will first say this:  I try to not get into politics with people and I consider myself very uneducated in this area really, so for what I'm going to say you can take with a grain of salt if you even care to read.   My son and I just got done watching the Presidents Town Hall Meeting with CBS.   Griffen just turned 3, when he got up it was just starting, and I made a big deal of it (rather than having his usual PBS cartoons to watch) I said "Today is special, we get to watch our President of The United States of America, where we live."   (I've taught him about this before, and both Brett and I have taught him the pledge of allegiance, etc.)  So he jumped up and down, and sat and watched the whole thing, despite having a very bored look on his face it was as if he some how knew this was something important and he should be listening.   When it went to commercial he would play with his truck and then when it came back he would yell & jump, clap and say "Mommy he's back on, its back on, our President!" 

Now I'm not going to tell you my political stance or which party I'm on.........but I'm going to say a few things:
1.)   I think it is really sad that it has become publicly acceptable to bad mouth, have bumper stickers and T-shirts poking fun, or plain being disrespectful to the man in the highest position in our country.  Whom "We" as a nation voted for.  Especially, when most of these people probably didn't even bother to vote at all, yet they feel the need to post their derogatory opinion on the back of their mini-van for everyone to read.  Then we wonder why our children disrespect their teachers, parents, and other adults in authority????   Yet, these are the children riding in the mini-van with the bumper sticker on it, where their own parents are publicly announcing that they "disrespect our President of the United States????"  This angers me to no end, and seems to be a completely assanign thing to do!

2.)  What happened to teaching our children to vote?  Or better yet, the importance of voting?  When I was a child I attended a school that rarely had over 90 students.   Yet every voting season they would give us age appropriate info. on the candidates, the different offices, then they would bus us up to the Grange hall where we would go into the voting booths and physically vote.   Now, in this day and age of mail-in ballets, etc. I know this is a little harder, but yet with budget cuts we can barely afford as a school district to "bus" them to school and back home, let alone on a field trip.  Yet, we are in the midst of the largest recession since "The Great Depression", we will know doubt read about this in text books some day.   Many baby-boomers are concerned that they will not have any social security or medicare to depend on when they reach age (I just don't plan on it at all for my generation), yet we are not teaching our children the importance to "vote"?  I've read many publications on our children and the problem of "Entitlement", so many parents living beyond their means and going into debt just to make sure little Johnny gets everything they didn't have as a child, despite whether little Johnny even wants it!  Anything to make sure they are keeping up with the Jones' next door.   With problems like these, it should seem to be even more important to teach our children on the value of living in a  "Free Country" (now you can argue that if you want, but hopefully you get my point by now).   Just by living in America we are already richer than 93% of the rest of the world!  Yet, do we tell our children that?  Are they taught that at school?  No, they throw a fit everytime they walk into walmart with their parents and aren't allowed to buy the toy they spotted (that was probably made in China no less).  We already are living in a population where half of us don't bother to take the TIME to EDUCATE OURSELVES to vote and we don't even have to leave our home!!! (I've been guilty myself)   So even if for some reason our childrens generation (the ones paying for our social security, by the way) bother to vote, they are so uneducated, they are unlikely to spend the time reading and educating themselves on whom to actually vote for.........which means the media will now have total control of our country (if you don't already argue that they do).   Our childrens generation are technologically savy, if they aren't watching commercials on TV, they will see ads on the side of their email, or on the radio, everytime they log-in to their computer, trust me, the media, the politicians will find a way.   So they will be voting, based off a quick blurb, and which candidate has the best hair style, or is the most attractive, just as we would pick someone to dance with at the bar, or the one car salesman that sworms you, or the realtor in the magazine.    Seriously?   We cannot as parents sit back and think that someone else is going to teach our children the importance of this!

Ok, I'm going to split this blog up into two because I seem to be a little more verbal on this subject than I thought (Go figure!)

So I'm adding one more....
3.)  I mentioned that we have taught our 3yr. old the "Pledge of Allegiance".   When I was in elementary school we started our day by singing "Good Morning" to our teacher (ie. paying respect), we then faced the flag (which was in every classroom) and said the "Pledge of Allegiance", followed my singing "My Country Tis of Thee"........so why don't they do that anymore?   I don't have the answer, but could it be that in the Pledge of Allegiance it says the words "under God" which might offend some students.   Yet, we are talking about what our country was built on!!  People who believed in God, people who believed that God was the way and the only way that we could be so blessed to live in a FREE country!  Many others in our world are not so lucky.   When did this change?   When did the need to be so removed from the creator of our world happen to people?  I mentioned how we started the day when I was in school (not that long ago I'm 31).....yet I remember specifically that we had an aetheist and two Jehovah's Witnesses in our class.   Yet, they started class the same way, the Jehovah's Witness got to go home early when we celebrated holidays, such as Christmas (You know the Birth of Jesus, the son of God)........we didn't call them "Harvest Days", "Winter Celebration" or "Spring Concerts".......we actually sang real Christmas Carols, you remember the ones that mentioned "God".  Now, I think that most Christians prefer their children not dress as devil, or scary monsterish characters for Halloween, yet even though asked not to I see children dressed like this every year.  I also see Angels, they haven't banned that one, maybe they just disregard and call them "fairy's"??? Who knows. 

I'm getting a little off track but I feel very passionate about it.   Its hard for me to believe our schools are "public" when we pay taxes to support them, and then that doesn't even ensure us that our children will get a good education.   Every year our parent club is responsible for raising thousand of dollars (additionally from parents and the community) just so our children can have PE., Art, and go on Field Trips.......in addition any special programs are usually funded by grants that our wonderful giving teachers and principals take their own time to write and apply for, yet still most are not funded by our government.   So I consider my children's public school a "Public/Private School"  if it were not for the Parents and Volunteers our children's education would be severely less than acceptable........yet, we are raising the future leaders of our "FREE" Country!?!?!?!?!

OK, I'm stepping off my soap box.  I'm sure I ruffled some feathers, but hey you can't please everybody.  
Just notice I'm not telling you whether I like or dislike our President, I'm not telling you which party I choose to side with or how or if I even vote.   I'm simply stating some very obvious concerns of mine, that should be obvious to all parents, and I guess even more concerning to the people in my generation who choose not to have children (at least I know I have influence over a handful of people...LOL)......with that being said, I don't tell my children my opinion either other than I do not allow any disrespectful comments to be made to any adult let alone the President of our country, and I'm sure they've heard be gripe when I've seen the bumper stickers.  :)   I encourage my children to share their opinion (I love a healthy debate), and I make sure that their opinion is "THEIR" opinion.....not because they saw a commercial on TV, or heard one on the radio.  Not because their teacher shared only their opinion with them, or because they saw a lot of signs all over town, or because it's cool to be different, or the same.....whichever age group their in!    I want them to do their own research and feel proud of their opinion, and ready for the debate when the questions are asked.

So I just ask you who have children.....think about what you do and say in front of them.   None of us are perfect and we are all guilty of something in the sorts I've been talking about.  Hopefully, I'm just making you more aware.   Take some time to talk about voting & our country, and the differences in other countries.   Just know that we cannot sit back and depend on an under-funded education system to raise our children!  Values & Ethics are taught at home. 

Remember that you are the most influential person in your children's lives, and that is a large load to carry at times.......but you are just the person for the job!!  I know it!

Have a good day!  Sorry for talking Politics  ;)

It's always cool to learn from your mistakes...

So I've been a little busy lately and haven't been able to blog as much as the ideas and topics have popped into my head, however I have taken the time to right them down in a notebook so now I have a "backlog" of ideas.....LOL    However, today I'm just going to write and see where my fingers take me since my ideas are not where I am   :)

Part of the reason I've been so busy is I've been putting my life in order; I guess you could call it Spring Cleaning of the brain, and with that has come the start of a new business and the change in some others.   Hopefully anyone who is reading this has read my other post where I kind of explained "what I do" and why I seem to be associated with so many different companies.

My new project is really a labor of love and I truly believe it was God's will that put it in my heart, and he has been driving the boat ever since.  I really feel that I'm just along for the ride, the cool thing is though I'm prepared.   By that I mean, I am getting to have A LOT of those moments that finally come full circle and you realize why something that you went through that maybe was negative or "not real pleasant" happened, and I'm now able to use those as learning experiences as to not repeat them.   See God let me fail when I was working in the flesh but it was not all in vain, he had a plan for me and knew I needed to learn from those mistakes so that I would be equipped to do things right when working for him.   Very creative our God is!!! 

So I've been taking every business/marketing course/class I can possibly take lately.   I am also learning a lot on non-profits (in hopes of having a ministries some day).   I used to do daycare and teach Pre-school as many of you know but its been about 7 years since I've done it.   For the past couple years I've found myself missing working with children, and looking for opportunities where I could.   Finally, the idea came to start a new Pre-school, and without going in to all the details (I will save that for later), as soon as I let that become a reality the Lord has just been opening the doors!  It has been a really awesome experience, and what is really cool is to know that you are doing things "right" because you have learned from your previous failure or just plain lack of knowledge.   I know this probably is cooler to me, than it sounds to you reading this, but if you've ever experienced this then you know what I'm talking about.

So that is what I've been up to......starting this process, and simplifying the rest of my "projects" so I have time to do the Lord's work.  I will keep you updated on how this goes along with the rest of stuff I have going on its all really cool!

If you are interested in learning about the Pre-school, or any of the summer camps, baby-sitting certification course, etc.  please feel free to call or email me!  swensonandhurst@gmail.com  or find me on facebook.

My family is crying out for my attention so gotta run.....

Have a great week everyone!

Expect Favor in Your Life...

Happy Monday Everyone!  It was nice to get a weekend with sun, but unfortunately it also means Spring cleaning time........so not always as fun as we want it to be, especially for the kids!

Like I said in my last post I have a ton of different ideas on my heart that I want to blog about, but for your sake I'm really trying to stick to one topic without jumping around too much........incase you don't know me well enough the is a VERY HARD challenge for me, but one I must push through if I want to speak & teach, and I really don't think God's giving me much choice in the matter.

So I have a testimony to share.....
The week before last I took a class at the Lane Business Development Center.   It was titled "Marketing on a Shoestring".   As I walked into the classroom I saw a middle age man with glasses working on the projector, I immediately thought Oh no this guy does not look like he should be teaching this class, he doesn't even look successful himself, how is he going to teach us?  Then I realized there was another man in the room who seemed to be preparing some papers and chatting with the man working on the projector.  I then thought "Oh Great this man looks like Orville Redenbocker and is probably near his 80's and ready to keel over dead!"  I thought what a waste of my time, gas and babysitting.

Then instantly I caught myself.   I had only been in the room maybe 3 minutes and had already judged the only other people in the room with me!   Here I've been studying the bible, and blogging about not judging others and how its a goal of mine, and God gave me one simple test and I failed miserably.   The good thing is I caught it, repented, asked for forgiveness and cleared my mind to "receive" whatever message was going to be delivered to me that hour.

Two funny things happened.  One he was doing roll call (oh by the way, the older gentleman was the teacher) and my name wasn't on the list even though I had registered, several others had the same problem.  So he handed out a paper for them to fill out with their personal info. on it, but skipped me for some reason????  I didn't really care, I didn't want to fill out the paperwork anyway but thought it was odd that he gave it to everybody but me when I was almost exactly in the "middle" of the room.  The second odd thing is he asked a question and started three people on my left, then got to me said "I'm going to skip over you" and asked two people on my right.   Now, I was really thinking something was odd.........but that leads to the true testimony.

Before he had even started teaching the class I had this feeling come over me and the only way I can describe it is "Love", I just felt like jumping up giving the man a hug and telling him I love him (this was before he even skipped me).  The other word I had on my heart as he was speaking was "Hero"  I felt as if I was listening to my hero, and at the end of the class I had determined he really is worthy of being my hero, but I didn't yet know this. 

Throughout the whole class there was a picture on the screen of a white haired man, with some words.  Now the desks were arranged in a horse shoe setting, so I'm usually a front row girl but in this case I sat in the back so that I could be "facing" the teacher and the screen......however I must be going blind, and I could barely read the text on the screen and I just assumed the picture of the white haired man was him (the teacher).   About halfway through the class, after all these feelings have happened and I am now engrossed into what he is saying he turns to the screen and points, says a name, and says "This man is my hero", he then tells of how he learned of the man, his history, how he came to meet him, and why he is his hero.

At that moment I didn't know whether to laugh or cry it was so inspiring, so in my head I do as I always do and I thanked the Lord.   I have this thing that i sing a song in my head that goes "Thank you for your favor, Thank you for your favor....."  over and over again in prayer to the Lord.  I do this when I get the closest parking spot in a busy parking lot, or when I am broke and find $20 in my pocket just what I needed to put gas in my car, things like that.   Just before that moment I felt God tell me "You are favored", I've had this in class settings before.   When I attended the International Management Academy and there were probably 300 people in the room, I was chosen to go to dinner with the teacher (who I was in awe of as well), I seemed to know that before he chose me, it was like God had already told me "you will be favored".   I had the exact same feeling in this class, but nothing unusual happened other than what I've already told you, which to some probably sounds pretty unusual.

At the end of class I waited for the room to clear and I approached the man and thanked him and told him how great I thought he was and that I've traveled across the country and paid thousands to hear people speak and I probably learned more in an hour with him than I ever did at any of those fancy seminars.   I told him I had one question (for your sake I won't say or go in to depth about what it was), he looked at me smiled and said "You have my card, I am Free, call me and set up an appointment or we can go to lunch.  I will answer your question then." 

So now I'm definitely in awe of the whole situation, but mainly excited.  I felt like I met a new "Hero"  a "mentor" and for me having a mentor that I can actually sit across the table from has been hard for me to find.  Then I felt God was just blessing me, so with all those things put together how could you not be excited?  I felt as if I was being anointed!

So today is the day I will call and schedule the appointment to meet with him.   I needed to get some stuff in order before I did so that I could make the most of our appointment.  I will let you know in future blogs how it went.  :)

So that is just one testimony for the weekend, but as I already mentioned I'm trying to stay on one topic.  :)  I will say that it reminded me of my Easter post where I told the story of Joseph and his brothers and how Joseph was "favored by the Lord".   Now I definitely don't think I have the Lord's favor in the same way that he had but I also know better than to not "expect" it.   I know our God wants to favor us all if we will submit ourselves completely to him, he is showing us that all the time (like when we get the good parking spot, or find the $20 bill in our pocket). 
I am reminded of this verse:

"No eye has seen,

No ear has heard,

No mind has conceived

what God has prepared for those who love him"

1 Corinthians 2:9

Is this verse not cool or what?   I love it.   It is confirming what I said that our God wants to favor us, he wants to bless us, but we must step out in faith first.   We must recieve his love as the first gift, and from there the possibilities are unimaginable! 

Something I heard in class that day, something I was in conversation about yesterday morning, then arrived at church only to hear again (God was making sure I didn't miss this message!!) was about succeeding, and fear of failure.   This is not my quote but it was told to me "You fall forward toward success."   and  "the only time you fail is either when you quit trying, or you have succeeded!"   Now these two quotes are ME,  anyone who knows me very well knows that they must have been talking about my life or directly to me when these quotes were said.   Of course, that was not the case, but God was talking to me.  In that moment, I had an "Aha" moment, and I LOVE those.   Its like you figured out a puzzle you've been working on forever and you get to advance to the next level.   When I say this I'm speaking in context of the things that happen in our life that we can't understand the "why?", and it feels so wonderful when the blinders are lifted because no matter how bad the situation was, when you learn God's reason for "why" it all makes sense!   So I was floating on a cloud yesterday.    In respect of time I will say my "Aha" moment had to do with a certain set of circumstances in my life, and how they played out, and how they resulted in where I am right now, and WHY I am where I'm at.   Which of course then gave me PEACE, knowing that although I'm not where I thought I wanted to be, I'm exactly where God wants me to be and that is the best place to be!!

So I will close with this verse which I found in my bible.   When I read it the first time I circled it, and then wrote in the margin "This is ME!!!!" with an arrow pointing to it:

The Narrow and Wide Gates

"Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Have a good day Everyone, and remember to EXPECT favor in your life today, and give thanks when it happens.   It happens to us far more than we realize, and much more than we give thanks for!!   God Bless You!



Some days you have to have a bad day, In order for God to show you the Glory of a Good One!

Oh my gosh I woke up this morning and just felt the need to blog!  :)   Well, I haven't been online for a few days and I got on my email only to find tons of very encouraging, nice emails from all of you who actually take time out of your day to read this blog, and some of my others, so today this is for you!

I will add a couple more things to that.   So many have asked about my career;  the answer to that right now is "Its part of the journey I'm on..." and I really don't know exactly where the Lord has taken me.   He has shown me a clear vision of where I'm going (I've shared a bit, and will share more later on that) and there is not one inkling inside of me that doubts that vision.   The part I'm having difficulties with is the "getting there part", but I wake up each morning trying my hardest to do what is right, and have faith that the Lord is taking me there, even when it doesn't feel like it.   I think the hardest part is financially, as we all would probably have to agree........our country has turned in to a society built on living above our means and keeping up with the Jones' and no matter how much to don't want to sucumb to that, just wait till your kiddo asks to play a sport or an instrument and you can't afford it, and then ask yourself how important money is to you!   The funny thing is that if we REALLY had given a problem like that to the Lord, he would provide, I know he would but you, just like me probably have that problem of keeping just one finger on it for that "just incase" moment so we can take it back and handle it ourselves (as if we are more capable than God????)!

So......hears the truth, I'm looking for my path.   If someone were to ask me what I did I'd probably answer that I'm an "entrepreneur" (yah, yah, I know what your thinking, thats another word for unemployed....LOL) but for me that word has great meaning and to think that I can actually call myself that is actually mind boggling.   I remember being about 7yrs. old and my mom taking a course at the community college, we stopped by her "school" one day so she could drop something off and I remember seeing her with this big thick book that had this ginormous word on it that I couldn't pronounce.  She told me it said "Entrepreneur" and then proceeded to tell me the definition.   Right then and there, I knew thats what I would be, I didn't understand, I can't remember the details of my thoughts, but I remember that moment, the car we were driving and a picture in my head of that book.   Through all my years it has stuck with me.    So what does that "Actually" mean for the right now......I currently have my Oregon Principal Brokers License in Real Estate, and I am in the process of moving to being the Principal Broker of our Referral Company, where I will no longer actively "practice" Real Estate?  Why?  Because I want to know that I'm serving my clients in the very best way they deserve and I've found a better way to do this, the other reason is that this allows me more free time to pursue what God's calling is for me, and the job description will also involve a lot of teaching and coaching, and helping people, which are really the parts I love most.   I have a team of two guys who will be working my "book of business" (this is YOU, so please don't stop calling me regarding Real Estate needs!!!) and I will be coaching and helping them through your transactions.    The second is I will be doing a series of summer camps this summer going back to another love of mine (kids), and I will start out Sept. 2011 by homeschooling my 4th grader and a couple other children, and it is looking like I will be directing a Pre-School (but this is still in the works).   I enjoy teaching, writing curriculum, sales, and marketing........wow!  I know what a combination!    So if you have any great ideas let me know!   Also, if you ever need a speaker for your work, church group, teen group, or any other type of group let me know.   It does not have to be religious, I have done a lot of motivational speaking that has nothing to do with my christianity, however I would love to be free to refer to our Father in heaven.   I feel like this is one thing I am being led by God to do, and he has provided opportunities for this, and coincidentally enough this kind of experience is what I need to eventually fulfill God's purpose for me.   Really cool, huh?   At least I think so.

So this blog post has became all about me, and that is not at all what my intentions were in the beginning.....but often times when I have this urge to write I just let my fingers do the talking and the Lord leads me to what I need to say.   So I'm guessing that right now someone who is reading this is probably having the thought "you just answered my question"  so even though it was God and had nothing to do with me,  I'll say "Your Welcome".  

A little bit more....I also feel like someone who reads this is in need of prayer (aren't we all), but someone more particularly.   The Lord isn't showing me more than just this that I should tell you that I am here, and that if you want to call me, email me, text me however you choose to contact me........all you have to do is give me one word, and I feel like I will know the rest.   However, if you want to tell me more you are welcome to.   I would like to pray for you, but I need that one word.   I am going to pray for everyone who reads this today, tomorrow, or whenever you get a chance.....remember God is with you.  Some times it feels like you are lost.   Like I mentioned above, I often have that feeling, but we all need to remember that its in those moments when we feel the most lost, when we are wandering around the darkness of the wilderness that we most need our Lord, and he knows that.   He knows that some times we must hit bottom, or wander in the darkness before we actually call out to him for his help.   That is why he's there, to help.   He put us here on earth so that we may enjoy our lives, his love for us is sufficient for any trial that we may go through and he already knew ahead of time what we'd go through, how we'd handle it, and how we'll end up.   Yet, regardless of if we handled it right or wrong, or if it led us toward him or away from him, he forgives us, and loves us even more.  I pray that you will feel God's love for you today, that you will feel his presence in your life and that if you have not yet asked him to come into your heart that you will pray that prayer and just tell it like it is, he already knows.  I also pray that the person who is in need of prayer, no matter how uncomfortable it is, no matter if they want to use a fake name or email account, and anonymously tell me that "word" that you will step out on a limb of faith and let me pray for you.   These words are not from me, but from our Lord and I know how odd this probably sounds to you, but our Father knows you are hurting, he knows you want prayer, he knows that it is going to feel uncomfortable for you to tell me, yet he's asking you to do it, and I believe its more for me, than for you, but we will find that one out together.  :)

God is Good.  He truly works miracles, if you don't believe me, just think of the day your baby was born or if you've ever got to watch a baby being born.   There is not a soul on earth that could argue during that moment that there isn't a God!   I love you.   He loves you.   Amen

In my bible is a torn piece of yellow paper acting as a book mark and on it I've written:

The Lord said "My grace is sufficient for you,

for my power is made perfect in weakness."

2 Corinthians 12:9

Have Faith today Everyone~!   For as it says above, some times you have to have a bad day in order for God to show you the Glory of a good one! 

God will never give you more than you can handle...

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."  Romans 8:28

So for part of my bible study today I read the story of  Joseph son of Jacob in Genesis.   Joseph has favor from the Lord and all that he does is blessed, because of this his father gave him favor.   His brothers being jealous, sold him as a slave to the Egyptians and then told his father that he was dead. (I'm really paraphrasing, so if I get something a little wrong forgive me, as I've said before this is my journey, you can read for yourself)

Although Joseph was a slave he ended up being in command of his masters household due to his "favor" from the Lord, until once again he was deceived.  His masters wife lied and told the master that he had tried to sleep with her (although, it was the other way around), and so he was put in prison.   In prison he again got favor and was made the wardens helper.

Long story put very short and in "Jaime's words" he ended up being advisor to Pharaoh in Egypt, one of the most respected places he could be.   His father and brothers continued to live in Canaan.   A great famine came over the land and was to last for 7 years.   Joseph knew of this ahead of time because he had interpreted a dream of Pharaoh's.   It was clear to him that this is why the Lord sent him ahead of his brothers so that when the time came when they were to meet again, he would be able to save his family through the great famine.

When he did meet his brothers again.........what do you think happened?   Was he angry?  Did he scold them?   He had the power to have them killed or imprisoned.....but he did not do that.   He wept and hugged them, and explained to them that it was not their will that enslaved him but it was the Lord's will that he be sent before them.  

This weekend is Easter Sunday.   Most know the story of Jesus' death and when he died on the cross, then arose from his death as he told his disciples he would.   Its an interesting coincidence that while he was going through this, he said these words "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do."   or in "Jaime's words: They don't know what they are doing".    Just as Joseph forgave his brothers knowing that they were acting in God's will and didn't know what they were doing.  

Now, you may argue the brothers were acting in their own will and they knew exactly what they were doing, they were GETTING RID of their problem, the spoiled baby of the family.   Yet, God had a much larger plan in place, and although Joseph suffered, he was spared as much as possible, and ultimately was always favored everywhere he went.   Had it been someone else who's faith was not as strong, and did not have that favor they may not have been able to withstand all the hardship that would come over them the years before they would once again meet up with their brothers, and even if they did, would they have it in them to forgive?

I've said it before and I'm sure you have heard it before, we forgive for OURSELVES, not for the other person.   Holding hatred, resentment, all those bad feelings inside us only eats away at US, often times the other person can live a completely favored life never even knowing we are still harboring that inside ourselves.   In Joseph's case it could have easily been the brothers who needed to forgive THEMSELVES as we often need to do in our lives, if they didn't it would have little effect on Joseph's life and being favored by God.   However, think of how many people we know that commit suicide due to unforgiveness, or go decades without speaking to a family member???  Some times the worst kind of unforgiveness is the kind we hold against ourselves.

Jesus knew he was going to die on that cross, he was spat on, and beaten, yet he still asked his/our Father in heaven to forgive them who were hurting him.   Why was it so easy for him to do?   Because he knew the Lords plan, and that all things happen according to his divine plan for each and every one of us.   

Try telling that to someone who just lost a child, a husband, or a baby they were carrying.   I've been there, and its not what you want to hear, it is beyond your capability of understanding because we are human, we are not perfect, we are not God, therefore we have all those feelings inside us bitterness, jealousy, hatred, guilt and even unforgiveness.

I know we've all had times like the ones mentioned above.    I know we've all been mistreated in our lives by someone.   We've probably all mistreated someone else.   Do I dare say, we probably all have some unforgiveness inside us?

Ponder upon the story I mentioned above.   Go to Genesis and read it if you have the time.   Think about the bad times in your life, maybe your going through them now, and if you can at all, ALLOW yourself to forgive either someone else or yourself, and believe in the fact that "we know not what we do" and that all things happen according to God's will.   Sometimes we find out tomorrow, sometimes in a year, and some we are still waiting on, but if we keep our faith we can rest assured that the time will come when we will understand, we will forgive, and we can prevail through those times of misery.

I hope that I've made sense.   If you've stuck with me long enough to read this whole thing, and you are one of those who has just lost a loved one (like so many of my friends, family & acquaintances have recently) please don't take this the wrong way, your right to mourn in your right, and God understands and acknowledges that.   I pray that for a brief moment, your pain is lifted, and God allows you to see his divine plan for you and your loved ones, so that your grief may be shortened, you may begin to heal, and you will believe that you will see your loved one again.

So I'm going to think about forgiveness today, and the fact that the people who have hurt me are no different than the people who hurt Jesus and as he said "Forgive them father, for they know not what they do."

Happy Easter Everyone!