Into The Wilderness

^{Hosea 2:14} Therefore, behold, I will allure her [Israel] and bring her into the wilderness, and I will speak tenderly and to her heart.

This verse is very special to me. It was one of the first verses of my truest identity that I received. It kind of makes me laugh. Because I'm almost 30 and there are times where I feel like I'm just now realizing Who God really is.
God loves to speak to me when I'm doing things in my kitchen.You could say that it's because that's where I spend a lot of my time. But, I think it's because the kitchen is a picture of nourishment and service to ones family. Jesus' heart is that of a royal servant King. His heart is to see our souls nourished in his true nature.

God leads you into the wilderness to speak tenderly to you because it is a desolate place. A place where idols starve and we come to the end of our self efforts. He will share his glory with no one. There is a grandeur to his glory as well as a tenderness that is unmatched. When you leave yourself- your own efforts-He brings you into his heart and wraps you in the robe of his glory, provision,  favor, righteousness. And as he begins to reveal his truest nature to you- in the midst of this your identity, who He created you to be, will be seen. Leave your place of striving and rest in his unearned favor. In the arms of Jesus, who paid your price. Not because you deserve it, but because He deserves it. He took our place at the cross, so that we can take his place of Righteousness.

So if you feel as though you've been lead into the wilderness, then get excited. Lift up your eyes and ready your heart to hear his voice. Let the idols that suck away our time and provide false security starve and die and get ready to see rivers burst forth in a dry and weary land. Have a great week!
 

^{Hosea 2:14} Therefore, behold, I will allure her [Israel] and bring her into the wilderness, and I will speak tenderly and to her heart.

¹⁵ There I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor [troubling] to be for her a door of hope and expectation. And she shall sing there and respond as in the days of her youth and as at the time when she came up out of the land of Egypt.

Runaway Dog and Pajamas

You know, the Holy Spirit is funny sometimes. This morning I woke up early with the littlest, fed her and went to put her back to bed. As I layed her down and walked out I felt him prompting me to put on my jeans and get dressed for the day. I paused. Naaaaahhhh. I don't want to move around anymore and risk waking up a sleeping baby. I'll just put them on when she gets up. Pajamas and coffee it is. 

The morning moved at breakneck pace as usual. Getting kids up, feeding them breakfast and tackling the kitchen. It had thundered and rained earlier in the morning so I waited to let our dogs out until after it was over. We have two schnauzers, one is named Ruby. She is notorious for freaking out when there's anything resembling thunder or rain. Shakes, pants, hides. We have tried everything to help this poor dog. Knowing the storm had passed, I pulled her out and forced her to go outside. For the love of my carpet, of course.

 I went back to the kitchen and continued loading the dishwasher when my son came running up announcing that Ruby had gotten out of the backyard. Yet another thing she's become notorious for. I grabbed my phone, bolted out the garage telling my children to "Watch Mommy from the window!" in as happy of a tone as I could manage. Maybe if they thought it was some fun game they would refrain from doing something like removing all of the items from the pantry and hiding them around the house.

There I was, y'all. Running across soaking wet yards in my tshirt, lumberjack plaid pajama pants, flip flops and my hair in a bun bouncing like crazy as I yelled "Ruby!" and wildly clapped my hands. Oh boy.

Say it with me. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

My children watched from the window as mommy hunted up their precious Ruby. As amused as they were, I wasn't. Not until I came back inside and He said to me, "Hey, remember how I told you to put those jeans on this morning?" Yes. Yes, I do. :-) After all, He is the God of details. Nothing escapes Him. And His grace is huge- because right after I retrieved the dog and came inside, it began to pour again. Have a great day!

Reunited and now in need of a bath.

Proverbs 19:12

The king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion, But his favor is like dew on the grass.

 

^{Matthew 18:12} “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? ¹³ And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. ¹⁴ Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
 

White-Knuckling God's Promises

 I've been avoiding details about the past 2 years because some of them really were not fun to walk through. But, God said it's time to use this testimony to encourage someone that might be going through something similar or is simply facing a difficult time in their life. He has been speaking to me a lot about overcoming through the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. That's where the power lies. In the sacrifice that Jesus made to bring us into his family and in the testimony of our changed lives. To God be all the glory. 

In June of 2011, I sat in my favorite chair drinking a cup of coffee when my phone rang and our little world was shifted entirely. The kids were asleep and it was my husband calling. I always love getting to hear his voice in the morning. I answered, excited to talk to him and asked him what he was up to. He told me that he was walking to his car because he had just been laid off.  Uhh... Didn't see that one coming.

We had an almost 2 year old and a 5 month old. I stay at home with our kids. I had that moment of sheer panic running through my veins, but the sound of his voice is what broke my heart almost in two. My husband is a hard worker. No one out works him. And he's been given a gift to do the work he does. He came home, I hugged him. We cried a little bit and then did our best to focus on God. We know that God is for us, who can be against us? The next few weeks were about prioritizing our lives. What was essential and what wasn't. We were covered in prayer, prophetic words and encouragement. Our hearts were expectant but our knees were slightly shaky.

6 weeks later, we had a job offer and had "temporarily" landed with my parents in Texas while our house was on the market. When we arrived in Texas, we had 25 dollars between the four of us and bucketloads of hope.We thought for sure we would be there a short time, 3 months- tops. One year later, our house had not sold. But, it had been broken into and many of our things were stolen.  That sucked. There's no other way to describe that one. It felt like it was insult added to injury. We were away from our dear friends, our own space, and were living in the temporary. It was hard. It was really hard. And sometimes those bucketloads of hope felt like barely enough to fill a teacup. But we dug into God's word and white-knuckled the promises of God.

Through a job loss, a foreclosure, two new jobs, a move, and car accident that left us with one vehicle-I can tell you that God is still good. His heart towards us is that of a kind and loving Father. He protected us in many ways that we were only able to see later. I don't know why our house didn't sell when we needed it to. I don't know why Scott lost his job- But I do think He was protecting us. I don't know why the person that ran into Scott took off without stopping. But I do know that God's hand covered over my husband that day, and he walked away without a scratch on his body. Scott and I believe everything that happened is and was being turned to work for our good- as much as it hurt in the process. 

We can look back now and say that we wouldn't have traded that time in our lives. It has brought us closer together as a couple and as a family. I can honestly say that there's nothing short of sin that our family wouldn't do for us. I have abundant admiration for my husband. I learned so much about him in this relatively short period of time. He loves me sacrificially and with a servants heart, as Christ loves the church. I am completely convinced that the past almost 2 years have changed the face of our marriage. In a really amazing way. I've also learned the importance of rest during times of chaos. When chaos screams in our face, that's when God wants us to rest in Him. He is our shepherd leading us beside the still waters. That doesn't mean that there aren't wolves or lions roaming around looking for a nice fluffy sheep to devour. It simply means that HE is with us, and he will beat back the darkness as we commune with Him. He will protect us as we rest and drink deeply from the still waters of his heart.

Here's my point in writing all of this. It's not to gain sympathy or air out the things we've walked through- It's to encourage those of you that are walking through something that is much bigger than anything you've been through before. Grab a hold of Jesus, keep watching for his Glory to appear. It always does. Dig into his word, speak it out over yourself and let it sink down deep into your heart. As the 23rd psalm says, Jesus prepares a table for you in the presence of your enemies. That's not just for show. He intends for you to sit down and eat with Him in the midst of whatever you're facing. Trust Him with whatever situation it is, fan into flame the spirit that lives inside of you. And if it's barely burning, then come alongside a brother or sister and let them help spark inside of you what God has planted. God bless!

John 20:29

Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Psalm 23 
A Psalm of David. 
¹ The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not lack. 
² He makes me lie down in [fresh, tender] green pastures; He leads me beside the still and restful waters.

³ He refreshes and restores my life (my self); He leads me in the paths of righteousness [uprightness and right standing with Him—not for my earning it, but] for His name’s sake.

⁴ Yes, though I walk through the [deep, sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I will fear or dread no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with ^[a]oil; my [brimming] cup runs over.

⁶ Surely or only goodness, mercy, and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, and through the length of my days the house of the Lord [and His presence] shall be my dwelling place.

Just a few precious memories of what life was like right before we started on this different road. God has blessed us like crazy. I'm so thankful. 

 And here's a recent one of our precious family of 5!

Hillsong Live- His Glory Appears 

Thank you to our friends and family for encouraging and loving us when we needed it most. You are a blessing.