My favorite time of the day

As all you all know, life is busy around here. :)
But i have discovered something that makes it all worth while, (one reason among many)
My little Annie girl I've discovered is a snuggle bug. So now, it's bedtime and I take her into her room, we do bottle, and i take care of diaper business while she insists upon holding the bottle herself now. (who's to argue with a blond haired beauty?) and then the magic happens. She climbs into my arms and we lay on the floor, me on my back, her flat out on my tummy/chest/neck/face.I rub her back, her arms clasped tightly around my neck. Her wisps of blond hair tickleing my nose, and then we sing.
"Jesus Loves Me" is the favored tune, I sing first that she sings her version. I can make out a few words like "Jesus" and "bible tells me so"
Yes, i cried. One because she is so very sweet, and two, because hearing those sweet words on her pink rose-bud lips...there is really no greater joy for a mother.
The fact that at 18 months (almost) she knows that she has a God and that based on what the Bible says, He loves her so...it is mind blowing to me.
I know that i cannot forever have these moments with her, but i will cherish them as long as i can, and as another mother we all know of did, "But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." Luke 2:19
Not that i am comparing myself to the mother of God, i am only following her great example and turning my little moments with my children into sweet pondered treasures.

Joy Regardless.

This is a topic that i struggle with. one, simply for obvious reasons, and seconding because once i claim that, i must own it. Joy Regardless is a goal, it's a focus for the days to come.
It means exactly that. Regardless of each situation that i find myself in, i should, no i am called...to maintain an attitude of joy regardless.
I WILL REJOICE IN THE LORD, I WILL HAVE JOY IN THE GOD OF MY SALVATION. Habukkuk 3:18
What does this look like exactly. You might be sitting there reading these words with tears of sadness or heaviness of heart about a current situation or tragedy. I understand these things are most difficult to "smile" through. I don't always think that God call us to grin from ear to ear about our trials. No-one can humanly do this. Its more the steady constant peace, knowing that regardless, God can be in this. Thankfully we do not have to call on human powers to accomplish this seemingly impossible goal. We have the Lord to supply us with not only the fill, but the desire to have joy. I am by my human nature, not one who naturally rejoices in the face of trials. My husband is by far one of the more optimistic people i have ever met. We had a conversation on this topic on the way home from all of our thanksgiving festivities...
When something negative surfaces (and I'm not talking about pimples) instead of looking at God and shaking his fist, he merely muses that the situation stinks but then says, well, "my one leg might hurt, but at least the other one does not.."
WOW. is all i can say to that. because if only that were my response with all my daily trivial trials, perhaps i could begin to see life this way more instinctively.
God calls us to this standard.
"THEY THAT SOW IN TEARS SHALL REAP IN JOY. HE THAT GOETHE FORTH AND WEEPETH, BEARING PRECIOUS SEED, SHALL DOUBTLESS COME AGAIN WITH REJOICING BRING HIS SHEAVES WITH HIM."
-psalm 126:5-6
Do you know what this says to me? You who have sorrow, there is joy in the wings. We only need to reach, wait and really, tap into it.
Asking God for this joy and this ability to be joyful is really ALL that we can do.
And really what this really reveals is a trust in Him. A trust that He can calm the raging the sea. Pull the blind up to their feet, and fill the arms of the barren. It might not be in the time we think, or the fullness that we expect, but we know this, that we can be safe in His arms.
Trust, Safety, to me = joy regardless. And let me tell you friends.. oh how i trust Him because anything else in the world will not hold you for more than a few moments. Stepping out onto the water is one of the most beautifully frightening moments one might ever face, but do you know what you find when you do step out? He's there. His strong, carpenter strong, hands are there waiting to grasp onto your shaking, white and cold hands. Not only does he replace fear with trust, His warmth leads to the joy and peace that passes all understanding.
So in my moments of fear when i doubt he's actually standing there in the raging waves of dark dark sea, i take the breath of Christ deep into my lungs, and i step. no, i jump. And then friends, i am caught, caught up in Him and His joy.
I may be in darkness, but i am held, safe, trusting and joyful..
may this be true for you as well.
You are loved, and you are not alone.

Goals.

Today, after my run, chatting with some people at the ymca, i came across a striking realization, not everyone thinks that goals and huge accomplishments are worthwhile.
Or, more so it's what the goals are.
I recently just read a book on a man who ran 50 marathons in 50 days, in 50 different states, i had the book on audio so that i could listen to it while running, and these past couple of weeks while listening and running, I've had some of my best runs ever. So inspiring to me.
To me, my running, my dreams keep me going each day. Paul speaks on running the race to completion and even though i know in many ways this was from a spiritual standpoint, it is also a rule that can applied to your physical life as well.
In this book i was so inspired by the way that the human body was designed for extreme tasks. Examples, God took the Israelites out into the desert where they walked around a desert for years. forty to be exact. (Exodus) He asked Sampson to kill i believe it was a 1000 men with a donkey's jawbone? (Judges 15)
and of course, David and Goliath.
I know we all have these mountains of goals that swirl around in our heads. What they look like change from person to person, but the goals remain.
I am tempted to get on my soap box and say, Everyone should try harder!!! but really, it's not the trying harder that helps us to complete our goals, yes, goal completion does take a fair amount of grit, determination and desire, but most of all, it's committing that goal to the Lord.
My running, is a form of glorifying my maker. one, because he made me with the ability to run, 2 because He desires my excellence. He created me to succeed and do the best i can do for Him. Excellence to me = fulfillment of goals by His standards. Not just my own.
So,
Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed."
Proverbs 16:3
And by commit, It means, lay before, ask for guidance, ask for His divine wisdom, and then examine your heart in your motives. The goals with human purpose behind them will soon be weeded out so that only His divine and heavenly goals will remain.
That was encouraging to me.
so if you run, run like the wind.

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn."
Psalm 18:32-36

His Thoughts

SET YOUR MIND ON THINGS ABOVE, NOT ON THINGS ON THE EARTH. Colossions 3:2

As a believer who is striving to always DO what is right to honor my heavenly Father, not because it's what I SHOULD do, but because i know it will PLEASE Him whom i serve. It's like folding your husbands shirts a certain way, not because it's what you need to do, but because you know it's going to make him feel like you care, honor him and desire to do your very best to please him as his wife.
So it is with my heavenly Father.
But today something occured to me as intense as a flash of lightening, while reading my devotional. It's one thing to have pure ACTIONS but it's an entirely different thing to have pure THOUGHTS. No-one sees or hears my thoughts unless i choose to voice them, i felt a sinking feeling in my stomach because of all of the thoughts i have had over the years.
My only saving grace and sanity is this, i know i will never reach a place of having every one of my thoughts be perfect but i can daily lay my thought life down before the Lord. and also being sensitive to the "starter" or "mother" thoughts. The thoughts that give birth to more evil thoughts and eventually lead to actions.
Starting each day not with the idea that I'm going to "try" my hardest to be perfect today, but to simply lay my very day beginning thoughts before the Lord.
He already knows my imperfections, but calls me to rise above the norms of today to show Him my adoration and respect.
But for me the underlining issue is not that I have to do this on my own. What God calls me to, He will also provide me the means in which to do it. If you want pure thoughts, they are available to you. You are not under any obligation to have bad or impure thoughts. And by impure, i mean anything that is contrary to Christ, How mad i might be at my kids for messing up my day by not taking their appropriate naps. (yeah, that's a real thought of mine. yuck.)
But the joy, the beauty and the peace that this story is wrapped in, is this, My God, is mighty to save, refresh and renew and He does each and every day. His knowledge of my not being perfect though is not a reason to go on sinning. NO. now, that i have knowledge of Christ, I strive, I must, rise above. My King calls me excellence because He created me to be the best that I can be to bring Him the most glory. Think about how proud your sports team coach was when you gave it your all, or your piano teacher was when you absolutely nailed that song because of all the good, sound, hard work you put into it. That is my desire.
WE PULL DOWN EVERY PROUD OBSTACLE THAT IS RAISED AGAINST THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD; WE TAKE EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE AND MAKE IT OBEDIENT TO CHRIST. 2 Corinthians 10:5
Not because i should, but because if i don't, I'm missing out the excellence that God has made available to me because of His beauty, design and great plans.
That is His thoughts, would be my thoughts, this is my great destination.

This little light of mine

Well I'm gonna let her shine, let her shine, let her shine, let her shine.
Ain't she something?
This little girl, i am telling you, she absolutely delights my heart. Every day when i see her sweet, gleaming little face, blond wisps of hair dangling in her face and the light she shines with each little smile.
She is His handy work and I am so blessed to be able witness this little light of mine.

HOPE

Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him, My help and my God. Psalm 42:5

Good days come, bad days come, but what keeps me hopefull? for most of my life it was the next big event, something that i could get excited about. you know, the excitement and "hope" for the unknown adventures of youth. today though, when life seems to stand still some days, and as i always joke with my husband, "it feels like ground-hogs day.." because of the sameness each day holds.
So i began to wonder why is it that i can still have such hope for the days to come? I do try and do interesting things with my children each day, even if its something as small as baking cookies for the police station just so we can go and see something new! but that is not really what gives me hope.
WHEN THEY SEE ME WAITING, EXPECTING YOUR WORD, THOSE WHO FEAR YOU WILL TAKE HEART AND BE GLAD. Psalm 119:74
And then today it hit me. Those around me need to be encouraged of His hope as well as I do.
O LORD!!! YOU ALONE ARE MY HOPE!!! I'VE TRUSTED YOU O LORD FROM CHILDHOOD. Psalm 71:5
Maybe i have not always trust Him from childhood as i should have, but i certainly am now, because He is my hope.
So when the sky turns grey, and the tides shift, we truly do have one thing that stays true. Now, life is good, fun and wonderful many days. But the reality is always there, that there is something bigger going on here, God has work to be done still and we are after-all, not only his handiwork, but also his tools. That is where my hope is. Not only was I hand crafted, i am also held. Held and hopefully usable. So in order to remain usable, i have to remain in HIM. Because in His hands, there is Hope, there is hope for joy in my day, hope for being used for His greater purposes and hope for the eternity that i will spend with Him when His work has been completed on me. what a beautiful cycle.
Somewhere from deep within me, a lie is whispered.."doesn't that sound like alot of work to do, to simply be?" If simply being, was all i was interested in doing, then yes, that would be alot of work. But i don't want to just be, i want to BE USED! i want to learn, grow, be strengthened, thrive and ultimately be who GOD WANTS ME TO BE. Hope. yes. we can live in Hope.

Jesus's baby.

Today, when my husband arrived home from work he is laying on the floor "chatting" with Joshua and catching up. Chris is asking Joshua what he did today, Joshua responds promptly, "we went the Y, i played with Kendal, and I went to bring cake and pizza to the baby." Chris looks at me..."cake and pizza to the baby?" then Chris turns back to Joshua and asks.."who's baby Joshua?"
Joshua responds quite matter-of-factly- "Jesus's baby."
I burst out laughing as does Chris.
I follow up with, "no we brought pasta and cake to Mommy's friends baby Joshua."
Joshua smiles, laughs and goes on talking about his day.
Under my breath i say.." never knew Jesus had a baby, but if he did, i'd bring him cake and pizza too..." from the mouths of babes.