He's Been Busy With Me

While I have been absent from my blog for a few months God has been hugely at work in me. I wanted to share with you what He has done. For many years I have struggled with hidden anger from past hurts. I have tried to hide it deep inside, but it always manages to rear its ugly head somehow to some unsuspecting person, usually a family member, but sometimes even a friend. I'm going to quote to you from my journal entry from September 15th:

Today is a new day for me! I have chosen to throw my suitcase of bitterness very far away and I am choosing not to be angry one more day. The bitterness I have been holding onto has gotten so bad it has reared its ugly head in so many small but big ways. Lord, you are so wonderful. Where would I be without you? Thank you for being faithful and answering my prayers to forgive. Thank you most of all for loving me through this. I'm letting it all go today. Please continue the work you began in me, now that I have submitted to you. Thank you for my "Calm My Anxious Heart" Bible Study and the ladies in my group. You have spoken and I have changed because of it. I'm quoting from the chapter I read last night on being content in relationships:

"As I look at His (Jesus) response to betrayal (Matt. 26:38-46 while in the garden of Gethsemane when He asked His friends to pray for Him and they fell asleep), I am convicted. I must be willing to overlook imperfection as Jesus did. If I insist on perfection or nothing, I'll end up with nothing. I must be willing to forgive. And if you long to be content, so must you. Unless we do our anxious hearts will not be calmed" (p. 75).

Forgiveness is not an option! "Failure to forgive not only wounds our savior but it destroys us. A lack of forgiveness causes the bitterness plant to take root in our hearts. A Christian is a candidate for confinement and unspeakable suffering until he or she fully and completely forgives others, even when others are wrong. Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. Forgiveness breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness. It is not a feeling but a secret choice of the heart. " (p. 77-79)

Lord, I know I cannot do this without you. Please help me to remember you and your word whenever bitterness starts to creep in. Please help me to choose to forgive and choose to look past others' faults. I feel the most free I have felt in years. Thank you. Thank you for forgiveness. Thank you for grace. And most of all, thank you for loving me through everything.

"So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe that God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it." Colossians 3:12-14 The Message

Loving Him victoriously with all my heart today,

~Mel

Thirsting for Him

One of my all-time favorite Psalms and I know I have already blogged about these verses, but they are so powerful and meaningful to me.

Psalm 63

A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.

 ¹ O God, you are my God, 
       earnestly I seek you; 
       my soul thirsts for you, 
       my body longs for you, 
       in a dry and weary land 
       where there is no water.

 ² I have seen you in the sanctuary 
       and beheld your power and your glory.

 ³ Because your love is better than life, 
       my lips will glorify you.

 ⁴ I will praise you as long as I live, 
       and in your name I will lift up my hands.

 ⁵ My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; 
       with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

 ⁶ On my bed I remember you; 
       I think of you through the watches of the night.

 ⁷ Because you are my help, 
       I sing in the shadow of your wings.

 ⁸ My soul clings to you; 
       your right hand upholds me.

 ⁹ They who seek my life will be destroyed; 
       they will go down to the depths of the earth.

 ¹⁰ They will be given over to the sword 
       and become food for jackals.

 ¹¹ But the king will rejoice in God; 
       all who swear by God's name will praise him, 
       while the mouths of liars will be silenced.

I love how The Mesage states verse 1, "God--you're my God. I can't get enough of you!" That is exactly the way I feel. I need Him so desperately in every area of my life. I am nothing without Him! 

I am so thankful for these promises today.

Loving Him,

~Mel

Abundant Living

"The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that you may have life, and have it to the full. " John 10:10

As Christians we have so much to look forward to in spending etrenity with Christ. But what is even better for me right now, is the life I can have with Him TODAY! The life He gives us is richer, fuller, more satisfying, gratifying, joy-filled, etc. becasue He gives us His love, guidance, mercy, forgiveness and even more blessings. In other words, eternal life starts immediately! This is so freeing to me and I have realized this more and more. My Bible commentary says it so well: "Life in Christ is lived on a higher plane becasue of His overflowing forgivness, love and guidance." It makes me think of the old hymn, "Higher Ground". Here are the words:

I'm pressing on the upward way,
New heights I'm gaining every day;
Still praying as I'm onward bound,
"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground."

Refrain

Lord, lift me up and let me stand,
By faith, on Heaven's table land,
A higher plane than I have found;
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

Verse Two
My heart has no desire to stay
Where doubts arise and fears dismay;
Though some may dwell where those abound,
My prayer, my aim, is higher ground.

Refrain

Verse Three
I want to live above the world,
Though Satan's darts at me are hurled;
For faith has caught the joyful sound,
The song of saints on higher ground.

Refrain

Verse Four
I want to scale the utmost height
And catch a gleam of glory bright;
But still I'll pray till Heav'n I've found,
"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground."

Refrain

Praying you find abundant life in Christ and experience that for yourself this day!

Loving Him,

Mel

Mother's Day

What a wonderful Mother's Day I had today! I am so blessed to be the Mom of two wonderful boys and an awesome husband. They made me a delicious breakfast this morning and presented me with cards and lots of hugs and kisses. During Sunday School their teachers had them write personal notes and gave them to me afterward. All throughout the day the boys kept wishing me Happy Mother's Day, then tonight we celebrated with dinner at a nice restaurant. Though life is sometimes difficult and my children are not always angels, I'm thankful for the family God has blessed me with and I count it a true blessing to be a wife and mom...it's all for HIM!

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8

Serving and Loving Him,

~Mel

Renewing My Quiet Time

I am studying a book about growing deeper with God and the first couple of chapters deal with intimacy with Him. One of the ways we get to know God and His heart is by spending time with Him in His word and in prayer. I have had some pretty dry times spiritually and it's usually because I am in a rut with my devotions--either because I'm not getting enough out of whatever book I'm using, or just plain not spending any time with the Lord. But this week as I was studying I came across these verses form the Psalms that I don't ever remember reading. It was so eye-opening to me-I have always believed that reading my Bible has great rewards, but these verses sure put it all into perspective.

Psalm 19:7-11 (New International Version)

7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.

8 The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.

9 The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
and altogether righteous.

10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.

11 By them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.

It has caused me to realize that I need to not spend as much time reading Christian books as I spend just reading the Word and praying about how I can apply it to my life. I am excited about what God is going to teach me through this new, renewed time with Him. I am also going to start memorizing scripture again- I have done this in the past too, and it has been so meaningful.

Blessings on you as you grow deeper in Him.

Thanks for stopping by!

Loving Him,
~Mel

The "Me Time" Myth

Here is an excellent article about the more time we spend away from our children, either being distracted or literally gone from the house, the MORE time we want to be away from them.

http://www.crosswalk.com/homeschool/11598542/

I could not have said it better!

Loving Him today,
Mel

Stepping Away

Facebook is a great thing! It has been so wonderful to connect with friends from the past that I thought I would never see again. It has also been great to keep in touch with friends who live far away or even those who live nearby- it's a way to stay in touch without being on the phone, which is something that is hard for a busy Mom with kids to do. But as with many things in my life, I have become undisciplined and allowed it to replace the more important things- like my devotions and time with the Lord, time with my family, being productive and getting things done around the house. Some days I literally go from FB to homeschooling, back to FB, back to schooling, checking one more time, back to school...school finally being done...back to FB, changing a load of laundry, FB, deciding what I should fix for dinner (finding a recipe on line), FB, ...you get the picture. And sometimes sweeping the floor, cleaning a bathroom, playing a game with the boys or vacuuming in between. It had begun to fill a void in my heart and brought instant gratification on those lonely days every homeschool Mom experiences.

A couple of weekends ago I finally, finally confessed to my husband that I was actually getting quite an addiction going with FB and spending way more time on it than I should be. He told me he could take care of it (wink, wink) and as a joke he set up a block (AKA parental control--hee hee). He made it so that I could only be on FB during the hours of midnight to 9AM (9AM is when we start school). That weekend was wonderful.... since I actually didn't even get up until 8 and then had to make coffee and check e-mails, etc., I only ended up on FB for maybe 10 min. The next day was the same, and the next. Pretty soon I was back to spending time with the Lord-- desiring it and not doing it out of duty-- and spending more time with my family. I even bought a cross stitch project and have been really enjoying it. The block is now off and I now have a new perspective. The addiction is gone!! I'm so much happier and my days are so much more productive.

It's funny because I had never thought of myself as lazy, but this was sure eye opening for me and a reminder of how easy it is to have something else take the place of God- He should fill those empty places in my heart. I need to go to Him when I'm feeling a little down or discouraged or lonely. Only He can fill the longing in my soul and make me truly happy.

Psalm 63 is one of my favorites:

1 O God, you are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you,
my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land
where there is no water.

2 I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.

3 Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.

4 I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.

5 My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

6 On my bed I remember you;
I think of you through the watches of the night.

7 Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.

8 My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.

9 They who seek my life will be destroyed;
they will go down to the depths of the earth.

10 They will be given over to the sword
and become food for jackals.

11 But the king will rejoice in God;
all who swear by God's name will praise him,
while the mouths of liars will be silenced.

Only He can fill the longing in my soul and make me truly happy. And that is the kind of joy that I want...the unspeakable, unstoppable, unexplainable joy of the Lord!