Mom On A Mission

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Best Birthday Present

1 Corinthians 1:26-31

English Standard Version (ESV)

26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards,[a] not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being[b] might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him[c] you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

I have had something HEAVY on my heart for one of my kids. It has been building for quite some time and it was getting to the point that something had to "give".

We needed the Lord to step in and do a mighty work.

This kid has been so diligent and faithful to seek the Lord in this, and to seek wise counsel over and over. There was a lot of prayer going up on their behalf. God was using many people to speak into this kid's life.

Friends and family have been going to the Lord and asking for wisdom and direction and clarity and unity, and

PEACE.

We have been thankful because the "struggle" has not been out of rebellion....just total frustration....and unsettled, very stirred up.

God usually stirs us up and makes us really "uncomfortable" before we are willing to take a step of faith.

We were all "stirred up and uncomfortable".

There is a lot at stake.

On my birthday, I was feeling desperate for my kid.

I know that the Lord loves my kids much more than I can even fathom and I know that He loves me.

I asked the Lord for a birthday present.

I just wanted peace... some relief from the pressure and the frustration, some confirmation from God, the only one who knows how He created my kid and knows their hearts and knows the future.

I needed to be reminded and shown

GOD'S FAITHFULNESS,

I needed a present of His presence

TODAY!!

That prayer was early in the morning.

By noon......, God had given us a gift that confirmed that

"step of faith".

He met us right where we all are in this process.

I was given the birthday present that only God could supply!

He loves me, and He hears my prayers.

I am praising God for His peace, and for making me feel so loved.

I'm thankful for His faithfulness and His kindness and His gifts.

2 Corinthians 4:7-12

English Standard Version (ESV)

Treasure in Jars of Clay

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you.

We still don't know what the future holds...but we know

WHO

holds the future.

We are weak...but He is strong!

Friday, January 10, 2014

My man is coming home today!!!

Yippee!!!

I have missed him.

I can't wait to hear all about his trip.

3 1/2 years ago was Charlie and Lashae's first trip to Uganda and the Lord dramatically changed our entire families hearts.

Charlie's first trip to Uganda.

Our hearts were opened and broken in a whole new way.

My man has never been the same.

He came home with a fire burning in his heart and tears in his eyes.

Our trip to Uganda last year.

It's amazing how God can use what Charlie already knows and is passionate about to bless others across the world.

You may be able to take him out of the country, but he will find a cow, a piece of equipment, a building to climb on, lots of kids, and a baptism to be a part of.

I'm proud of my man!

I'm thankful for him!

I'm excited to see him!

Now it's time to quit blogging about him

and go

SHAVE MY LEGS.

hehehe

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

My blog is just a bunch of experiences of my life......

If I did not blog about Jesus, or if I did not have him in my life, this is how it would read....

I tried

I failed

I died.

But because of Jesus, my savior...this is how it reads:

I tried, I failed...

Romans 3:23

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

JESUS LOVES me,

John 3:16

16 “For God so loved the world,[a] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

JESUS SAVED me,

1 Timothy 2:3-6

3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man[a] Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.

God adopted me,

Ephesians 1:4-6

In love 5 he predestined us[a] for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ,according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

Galatians 4:4-6

4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”

He blesses my life more than I could ever imagine.

Psalm 103:1-2

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and all that is within me,

bless his holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits,

I will live FOREVER, with HIM!

John 6:50-51

50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Psalm 23:6

English Standard Version (ESV)

Surely[a] goodness and mercy[b] shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell[c] in the house of the Lord

forever.[d]

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Joy!

"Lord, let us be a part of something you are blessing."

Charlie and I have prayed this prayer for the last couple of years. It came out of a desperate heart....honestly, but God has used it, to change us....because it is an honest plea of trusting that He knows us and He LOVES us...and He isn't looking to hit us over the head...He is looking for us to enter into

HIS JOY.

It was a prayer of....

we are tired of ourselves...we are tired of banging our heads against every brick wall.

"OUR PLANS"

would continually frustrate us.

It was a prayer of

"I surrender".

And of course...GOD has BLOWN us away with HIS GOODNESS and HIS GRACE and HIS JOY.

1 Chronicles 16:8-11

English Standard Version (ESV)

David's Song of Thanks

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;

make known his deeds among the peoples!

Sing to him, sing praises to him;

tell of all his wondrous works!

Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

Seek the Lord and his strength;

seek his presence continually!

We can do NOTHING for HIM.

God does not NEED us...we NEED Him!

He was not waiting for me to pray that prayer so He could get something done....HE can do whatever He wants whenever He wants...He just LOVES me and can use us because

HE IS THAT GOOD!!!

He is perfect, He is complete.

And He can make us and mold us and give us JOY!

NOT because we deserve it or earn it...just because

He is good and He is GOD!

Psalm 40:16-17

English Standard Version (ESV)

But may all who seek you

rejoice and be glad in you;

may those who love your salvation

say continually, “Great is the Lord!”

As for me, I am poor and needy,

but the Lord takes thought for me.

You are my help and my deliverer;

do not delay, O my God!

Sometimes....He takes us to another country to share His love.

And sometimes He just lets us hang on the beach and dance.

Either way, and in both situations...we are His and when we recognize THAT and

enjoy Him and His creation and His people,

He can do a mighty work in us.

He can bring GLORY to His name.

As Charlie is in Uganda and going and doing what God has lead him to do .........God led us to sunny Southern California to enjoy family and fun!!! ha!

I know with everything in me...that both things, are a total blessing from our Lord, and He is just allowing us to be a part of
His blessings.

My encouragement is this......don't put God in a box....He is unlimited....He can bless you here and there and everywhere!

1 Corinthians 2:9-11

English Standard Version (ESV)

9 But, as it is written,

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,

nor the heart of man imagined,

what God has prepared for those who love him”—

10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11 For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Friday, January 3, 2014

Ministry Can "feel" Lonley

Hebrews 12:1-2

English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus, Founder and Perfecter of Our Faith

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

I've heard it, and felt it but don't understand why....there are so many running the race...why does it feel lonely at times?

I was asking the Lord this question.

I felt like His answer was that if He always paired us with people with the same callings and gifts we would begin to rely on each other, rather than Him and Him alone.

For example, Charlie and I have many of the same passions, but totally different gifts and totally different ways of going about things. We end up in the same place, but different routes. I feel this way with my sisters and my daughter as well...same in many areas, but spread across different states with very different races.
We are all running with the same goal, but individually.

It feels lonely when we are looking for human confirmation or affirmation.
When I remember to look to Christ alone, I am full!
And the times when our races intersect or there is a stretch of striding side by side, it is an amazing gift.
It is like a rest stop where you get filled up, pumped up, cleaned up, and then off to the races once again.

We are to function as a body, but with each a different role and many times one doesn't even "get" the other's role. So even though we are a body we are to do and act and be what God calls us individually to and allow for others to do, act and be what God calls them to.
If we are looking for (which is my tendency)that companionship of same thoughts, same function, same timing, we must only look to Christ. He is the only one who knows us inside and out, and can be our "perfecter" and our "all in all".

I think of Mary and Joseph. They were given the "talk" about what God was doing in them at different times and individually.
They both had very different roles with the same purpose. It must have felt lonely for a time when Mary knew what she knew, and nobody else did.
She had to trust the Lord.
Joseph must have felt like a weirdo among his buddies.
He had to trust the Lord.

If I were Mary I would want God to sit me down with Joseph and my parents, and my family, and my friends, and give us all the details of what He was doing, at the same time, and we could all ask questions and weigh in on all the details...take a vote, ya know......but that scenario takes no faith or trust or relationship at all.
He wants us to trust in Him
ALONE.

Even though it may "feel" a bit lonely at times....the reality is that we are all connected and we are all the "CHURCH"
together.
Here's the reality...God goes before us .....

The church! A cloud of witnesses. :)

and behind us to have so many with us....loving us, supporting us and praying for us.

We are never alone. Even when we feel alone...God is with us and He will never leave us, and He is all we need.

Friday, December 27, 2013

What do Lashae's wedding dress, building tools, pencils, sweeties, toothbrushes, a branding iron, cowboy boots, chicken ropes..... all have in common?

They are all headed to Uganda with my man.

Lashae's wedding dress was just an incredible gift from the Lord. She wanted one we could not afford and someone unanimously paid the exact amount that it took to stay within our budget. We still have no idea who...but it is the gift that just keeps giving because now it is headed to Uganda as a gift to be worn by a beautiful bride.

When Lashae heard that Mercy, from Redeemer House staff, was getting married she was flat giddy about sending her wedding dress.

We got it cleaned up and vacuum packed, and it is on it's way.

This is the darling couple.

They love the Lord with their whole hearts, they love each other, they are both passionate about the care of orphans...and God brought them together.

His timing is perfect. He is just so good.

I'm pretty sure when Charlie gets to heaven he will recognize some faces that are from other nations and tribes.

It just doesn't get any better than that.

Revelation 7:9-10

English Standard Version (ESV)

A Great Multitude from Every Nation

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”