Has He left His mark on you too?

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Living and working in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains definitely has its ups and downs (pun intended). I spend several hours a day driving over these large hills and they really feel like home to me. I love to visit flat land but when I travel back to the mountains I have a cozy feeling of the mountains around me. They somehow comfort me and make me feel protected from the chaotic world outside.

Springtime here is for sure one of the ups of Eastern Kentucky living. God paints the hillsides with all different shades of green. The trees start out turning green at the bottom of the mountains, along the rivers and then work their way up the hillsides. The Redbud Trees start blooming with their ironically purplish blooms. Then as true springtime approaches my family’s favorite trees bloom: Dogwoods. They salt the sides of the mountains with long hanging branches of white blooms. When they appear, it’s as if a relief fills the air that winter is finally gone. They usually magically appear also within days of Easter.

Our last home was pretty far out in the county with several acres of land. In the backyard was a small and scrawny dogwood tree. Several winters we would think that the tree would not make it. Year after year it would bloom even though it seemed there was no way. That tree became very important to our oldest daughter after I shared with her the legend of the Dogwood tree. My mom had shared it with me and I have read about it now in several different places. There is no Biblical backing to this legend but I would like to share it with you in case you are not familiar.

Here is my summarized version of the legend:

The legend states that the Dogwood was not always a slender tree with lots of branches and a skinny trunk. The Dogwood was a large and strong tree and was used to crucify Jesus. The Dogwood was saddened by this and Jesus decided to bless the tree to never be used to crucify anyone again. The flowers that bloomed would be shaped like a cross and have dents in the petals that look like a nail had been driven in. From the nail dents the flowers appear to be stained with the blood of Jesus. In the center is a “crown of thorns”. I will also add that the flowers are white which I believe represents the purity of Christ.

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Whether any of this legend is true there is no denying the similarities of the petals to what is described above. We do not know if the dogwood is the same type of tree that Jesus was crucified upon. It is extremely suspicious also that they bloom when we celebrate Easter.

The one thing that this legend reminds me the most of is it that Jesus has left His mark on these flowers. Maybe He has given us these flowers as a reminder each year of the true meaning of Easter.

This has made me think about my own outward appearance/actions to others. Is it evident that Jesus has left his mark on me? As a Christian do others sense this about me? I may not wear blood stained petals like the Dogwood Tree does, but do people realize that I believe in the power of His blood? I may not have nail dents, but do others fully know that I believe in His resurrection? I do not wear a crown of thorns in public like the Dogwood Tree, but do I present myself differently now that I am His?

I re-dedicated my life to Him several years ago. I have really had to work and continue to work on my relationship with Him. I hate to admit it, but when I first turned my life to Him I thought that was enough. I did the minimum amount of “Christian-like” things. I didn’t do this on purpose. I just thought that I didn’t need to put any work into being a Christian. Boy, was I wrong. These are things that the enemy wanted me to think. By God’s grace I made it through those years and finally decided to work at being a better Christian.

These blooms on the Dogwood have not only reminded me this year of what Jesus sacrificed for me but what I need to sacrifice to grow to be more like Him. The Dogwood naturally is a reminder to those around of His love. I need to continue to work on my own appearance/actions to show His love through me.

If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17

I hope that the next time you see a Dogwood you are reminded of Christ’s love and to show His love through you! Have a BLESSED day!

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Why is it we can judge others, but it’s so hard to judge ourselves?

Do you know the easiest form of judgement? The answer is really simple. I hope you are ready for the answer: It’s judging others. Whether we are five years old, nine, thirty-five or ninety-five we all can find the flaws of others and somehow not see our own flaws. Even if our own flaws/sins are what would be considered much worse by any standards.

Have you ever had that feeling of realization after you have said something really stupid? The feeling when you realize you have stuck your own foot so far in your mouth it can no longer see daylight? I know I sure have. Many, many times. That’s probably the feeling we should have when we have judged someone else. When we have judged someone else and we are committing sins that are so big they cast a dark shadow on their little sin. Why in the first place are we even judging their sins? Are we God? Are we a Saint? Are we Holy by any means? I can answer that for us all. No.

It’s all the same, no matter how young or innocent, this is part of being a human. This is where the five year old and the nine year old comes into the story. Our girls love to judge each other. They of course, usually, have no idea that is what they are even doing. If I am trying to correct one of their behaviors for good reason: safety or to not appear they have been raised in a barn; the other sister is the first to call them out on it. Sitting in a “feet on the floor” and “tail on the chair” position has been a recent struggle for our oldest daughter. M has developed this horrible habit where she cannot sit the correct way for any meal or even at school during her work. We have been trying to correct this for a while, especially when we are eating dinner as a family. I’m sure you will never guess who the strictest member of our family is on M? It’s little T! She worries about M’s posture and if her feet are on the floor much more than I could ever notice. It’s as if she watches her the whole meal until she slips up! She is so hard on her. The worst part is, T doesn’t always sit the correct way herself. This can happen to a thirty-five year old and ninety-five year old and any age in between. We just usually tend to judge in a different way.

In the first part of this series on judgment I wrote about judgements that come from more of a physical/lifestyle stand point. We are now talking about Christians judging other Christians. We are now talking about adults judging other adults for their character/spiritual flaws and sins.

Scriptures and specifically scriptures from Jesus himself guides us the best when it comes to matters of judging.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:1-6 NIV

Jesus was so wise, wasn’t He? We are so excited to see how wrong other people are living and how bad other people act. We forget that the only person that we are truly responsible for is – ourselves. I believe this is one of those subjects that we will work on until the day we go home to be with this wise man. The closer we grow in faith and in our knowledge of the Lord the more difficult it is to not find faults in others.

When little T is so quick to tattle-tale on her older sister, I am always quick to remind her that she needs to worry about herself, her own actions and not her sister’s. Do I practice what I preach to her? Sometimes, but I am no where close to perfect with this.

We can all use a big dose of self-evaluation. Myself included. I try to do this ever so often. Not as often as I should. After I really look deep down in myself I’m usually not that happy with the findings. After the feeling of my foot being shoved down my throat is over, I usually feel better. If we really take a good look at our own lives, our own flaws, our own sins, our own weaknesses in our faith, this is when we can find ways to free ourselves of this restraints.

Unless we make a very cognitive and prayerful effort this is something we all can struggle with. Imagine if we spend more time judging ourselves as opposed to our family, friends and colleagues how much more energy we would have to grow our relationship with God. Imagine how much more pleasing to the Lord we would be if our judgements are mostly reserved for ourselves in an attempt to be more like Him.

I’m going to leave you with the last verses in Matthew 7:6. This verse ends Jesus’ lesson on judging others. I wanted to share it with you because of the very creative metaphor that He uses. If it interests you, I encourage you to research the meaning.

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Matthew 7:6 NIV

I pray that you have found this useful in your own life. I pray that you will be slower to judge others and use that time to look deep within yourself. If you enjoyed this article please like, share and follow below to receive new articles when posted.

Have a BLESSED day.

We all make judgements. Can we find peace in making them?

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Why is it when we first see someone we instantly judge them? I know that we don’t mean to judge them. Our brain instantly analyzes the clothes they are wearing, their hairstyle, their face/attractiveness, if they look friendly, too much make-up or not enough, how they are standing, the words coming out of their mouth and so many other things depending on the situation. We take in all of this information to make an instant assumption about the individual.

It is a well known fact that when we see someone for the first time we make up our opinion of that person within seconds. I don’t know about you but this makes me wonder how people perceive me. It also makes me feel awful for some of the wrong judgements I have made about other people. I feel awful for some of the thoughts that have went through my head. They were things that I hate the Lord heard me think.

A few years ago I really struggled with these bad thoughts. I would see strangers out in public and immediately categorize them into not-so-nice stereotypes. Finally, one day I realized that I had a problem.

What did I do about it? I started praying.

I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

1 Timothy 2:1-6 KJV

I realized that our “enemy” had been encouraging me to have these thoughts. Before I realized it I was thinking thoughts that probably shaped my thoughts for the rest of that day. I prayed a lot. Then I prayed some more. Finally the bad thoughts turned to empathy and compassion for strangers. I found peace from this curse that the devil placed in my mind. I’m sure that he was devastated when I realized his plan, turned to prayer and God took the heavy judgment from me.

I no longer let my mind think bad thoughts about others, instead I felt love. I felt love, because they are also one of God’s creatures. I felt peace, because now I could see that deep down these people are like me. I felt grace, because I could be in that situation. It reminds me of how blessed I am to not be in their situation. I find myself praying for them now instead of making unfair judgements. When I am out in public now, my mind is filled with much more pleasant thoughts.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Philippians 4:8 KJV

Now, let’s turn the scales a little bit. Let’s think about what others opinions of us can do. Our impressions are so important for many different aspects of our lives. Our impressions with work situations can mean the difference between favor with our leadership, our colleagues, our customers, and the public. Our impressions with family, friends, and church members can mean the difference between relationships, event invites and so much more. Praying for the discernment of others can play a large hand in how others perceive us.

Let’s pray that when we meet someone our first impression leaves them knowing that:

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2 Corinthians 5:20 NIV

If we accomplish this then we know that they will trust us, feel our love for them, feel our empathy for others, know we are kind and above all else they will know we must be a Christian.

I hope that you enjoyed this post and that this inspires you to think differently when we see strangers or are meeting someone for the first time. If you are experiencing problems with judgement similar to what I had, I hope that you can turn to prayer instead of giving in to what the “enemy” would want you to think.

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Finding comfort in a name, or two

We all have one. We each have a unique name. Some names are passed down from generation to generation. Some names are chosen because they are very out-of-the-box. Some are common names but the spelling has a twist. Whatever your name is, or however it is spelled is a part of who you are.

When we first meet someone their name helps us make certain judgments, assumptions and predictions about who they are as a person. This really isn’t fair. We don’t choose our names or have much choice. Which we do know that our Heavenly Father knew our names even before our parents would. If the person shares a name with someone you already know, things can get weird sometimes. I will admit that I have met people with the same name as someone I already know and I feel like I already know them. Sometimes this is a good thing. Sometimes this is a really bad thing.

When my husband and I were choosing the names for our girls we put a lot of thought into their names. With our first daughter we picked a name that we liked and felt was not very common. Because we weren’t around a lot of young children at the time, we were wrong. Her name isn’t extremely common but let’s just say there are two other sweet young ladies at our church with the same name. She thinks that this is very cool and loves it.

Fast forward four years to our second daughter and we were a little more selective. Since we had attended tons of little kid birthday parties by then we knew much more which names were common. We also had to be careful because my husband is a high school teacher. This made things a little tricky as well. I would find names that I loved but he would have a strong opinion about the name. This was especially true if the name was associated with a student he had in the past. We chose a name for her that is a little different but now suits her personality better than we could have imagined. When people hear her name its usually the first time they have heard the name. I have grown to really like this because they get to know her first and then make the connection to her name. I will leave the story about her middle name for another day. It is an entire story on its own and a testimony in itself.

I had been praying that the Lord would give me a message for this post. Today, after I met someone with a very different name God almost immediately gave me this message:

What’s in a name?

Our Heavenly Father is known by many, many names in the Bible. He has so many names but the amazing thing is He is always the same. Even though these many different names are all translated to mean a variety of descriptions, He is the one and only God.

During different seasons of my life I have found it very comforting to find scriptures that speak to me. In these different scriptures God is usually described with words other than “God”. The Bible has an almost endless supply of names to call our precious God and Savior. Not only do I love finding these different names but I also love finding the original Hebrew names for God as well. One in particular has gotten us through many hard times in our little family. Once again, a story I will share another day.

Whatever season of your life you are in right now I encourage you to choose one or two of these names for God, use it to comfort you. Please use these names when you pray. Use these names you lay your shoulder on and let Him comfort you. That is what He wants us to do. He wants us to come to Him with all of our troubles. He is there to help us and guide us. No matter what name you decide to call Him during different seasons. He is the same yesterday, today and forever.

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

Hebrews 13:8 KJV

No matter what your name is. No matter how it is spelled or how common or rare it is. The only thing that matters is that you have chosen for your name to be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life because you have made Him your savior forever.

He is not only my God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. He is my: redeemer, prince of peace, supplier, refresher, friend of sinners, ruler, hope of glory, the Great I am, chosen, Jehovah-Jireh, overcomer, potter, bread of life, physician, unchangeable, unmovable, divine, Jesus, King of Kings, hope, power, foundation, all reigning, Eagle’s wing, messiah, truth teacher, authority, silent shield, sovereign, always there, alpha, only begotten, precious, merciful, son of man, debt payor and He is the name above all names.

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Have a BLESSED day!

if you get one, you have the right reaction, now what?

We have all been there. We have all had to do something out of our comfort zone. Take a moment to think of that feeling for just a few seconds. It makes my stomach feel queezy just at the thought. If you don’t feel a little weird, then maybe you haven’t experienced this in a while. Or, maybe you are much, much tougher than I am.

When I think back on my last few years of queezy moments they have mostly been when I have experienced these “whispers from the Holy Spirit”. Yes, of course I have experienced a few of these moments in regards to my career as well. Mostly when having to speak in front of my peers or in a stressful situation. But the ones that really stand out to me were when God told me to do something. In the first part of this segment I mentioned that I haven’t always quickly agreed with our amazing God when He has told me to do something. I would sometimes respond back to Him, to clarify I was understanding Him correctly. These have mostly been things that have pushed me to do something that was completely out of my safe and comfy place in life at the time.

Why is this usually the types of things that the Lord wants us to do?

First, I like to remind myself that it is an amazing honor for the spirit to speak to us. It is also amazing for us to hear Him and Listen. This is almost always where the feeling “queezy” comes in. If He told us to do something that we have done on our own anyways, then why would He need to tell us??? Sometimes, yes, we may be praying for guidance or discernment and need clarity. These whispers may not be so out of the box. That’s another topic for another day.

When the Lord brought this topic to my mind He kept returning my thoughts to one man.

NOAH

So, lets go way back to the book of Genesis for this story recap. This may be one of the most told stories from the Old Testament Bible in my opinion, especially for children. My girls love the story of Noah. This has always kind of surprised me. I remember being scared to death after learning the story of Noah as a young girl. I was afraid that there would be another flood. I dont think that I got the important and key parts of these amazing Biblical story. I dont think that I understood like my girls do, and I do now.

We know what happened. There was a great world flood. It rained for 40 days and 40 nights. Noah had built a huge ark that housed animals of all kinds. God had the animals enter the ark supernaturally.

Before all of this Noah was told to build the ark.

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

Genesis 6:9 KJV

If we are talking about doing things out of someone’s comfort zone, this was probaly literally as big as it can get. We can read the dimensions of the ark and it doesnt really make a lot of sense. We just know it was HUGE. Always before when I would read these verses my mind could not comprehend how large or even what the size would look like if built. All of this changed when our church youth group took a trip to the Ark Encounter a few weeks after it opened. If you have never been I highly recommend seeing it for yourself. This thing is larger than you can imagine. It’s one of those things that if you can see with your own eyes you feel like you are imaging it. When I first saw it from a distance I convinced myself it was a hologram. I’m not telling you this for any other reason than to explain what an undertaking this must have been for Noah and his family.

God gave Noah all of the dimensions and told him all that was going to happen to the earth. I’m sure this was extremely hard for Noah and his family. I’m sure that he had a very hard time proessing what he had been told. We know why Noah was chosen. The last verse at the end of the chapter simply says this:

“Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.”

Genesis 6:22 KJV

God just told a man to build a huge ark, that He would send pairs of animals to it, that the world would be flooded and that everyone except his family would die. And he listened. He did what he was commanded. As simple as that. That’s pretty incredible.

My husband and I purchased shirts when we visited the Ark Encounter that have really inspired me over the past couple of years. The front has a simple saying:

FAITH LIKE NOAH.

Even though Noah had no idea how everything would work out. Even though Noah was probably riduculed and laughed at while he was building the ark. Even though he probably doubted himself and his abilities. Even though he felt crazy sometimes. Even though he didn’t know God would put a rainbow in the sky. He did what God commanded. So let’s have faith like Noah when the Lord pushes us out of our comfy spot on the couch- to do something we could have never dreamed on our own.

When we are blessed like Noah for the Lord to speak to us lets remember some simple things as well:

We have found grace in the eyes of the Lord & we are walking with God.

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when we get one, how should we react?

Something that comes very natural to me is talking and connecting with others. Even my career is built around speaking to others all day long. And even though this is something that I probably have taken for granted I never once considered it a gift. I had never dreamed that the Lord would “call” me to use this in a different way. But that’s what is so amazing about our God. He knows us so well, of course He does.  He also knows the plans that He has for us long before we know.  It usually takes Him giving us a whisper from the Holy Spirit for us to realize His plans for us. 

Have you ever experienced this? Have you ever experienced a whisper from the alpha and the omega? If you have then you know exactly what I am talking about. It’s pretty cool. Especially when you stop and think about it afterwards. We study the Bible, we pray, we pray and sometimes we pray some more. Then like a small whisper you hear the answer. Its usually an answer that’s so clear, so distinct and nothing we could come up with on our own. It’s unmistakable. It’s God!! 

THE Holy Spirit speaks to us. In this world of over 6 billion people He speaks to us. If you have not had this happen, don’t give up hope or get frustrated. I am sure there has been many times that He has spoken to me that I did not hear Him. Probably more worse than not hearing Him is reacting badly. There have been times I have heard Him and have almost laughed out loud. I have had conversations back to Him and said, “God, I can’t do that right now.”  or “God, are you sure you are talking to the right person?”

When reading a children’s Bible last night to my two precious girls I started to have an epiphany. Ihaven’t been the best when God answers me. 

We started reading the New Testament in preparation for Easter. Our plan is to read this summarized children’s version leading up to Easter to help prepare our hearts. We planned on only reading one little chapter and of course my angels enjoyed it so much they wanted me to read more. ( I’m sure it had nothing to do with putting off bedtime! ) 

We read about Zacharias and Elizabeth. I know that there are a lot of men in the Bible with similar names so I will help refresh your memory. This was John the Baptist’s father. The angel Gabriel came to him and told him his wife  Elizabeth would have a baby.  Their prayers had been answered. Zacharias and Elizabeth were old at this time. Even though, evidently this was something the couple had prayed for a very long time, Zacharias questioned it. From the outside looking in, and from our point in time we know the end result. But, Zacharias was human. Zacharias made the mistake to question the answer to his prayers. 

The angel was not happy with Zacharias’ response. The prayer was still answered but Zacharias was not able to speak for the entirety of Elizabeth’s pregnancy. The girls and I discussed this. He was mute for around nine months. I bet that he wished he reacted differently. He was not able to speak until after the birth of his son, John. As we now know, John, prepared the way for our Savior.  The angel’s words did come true.  

This really made me think. This really made me feel guilty. Why have there been times that I have prayed and when God answered, I questioned it. Did I not get what I wanted? -I wanted  an answer. I wanted God to speak to me and give me guidance. Then, when He gave it to me, I doubted it?? What was I thinking. 

Now, let’s think about Mary. Within six months of Gabriel’s visit to Zacharius the angel visited Mary. Mary was also given news that was hard to swallow. Mary reacted very differently to the message than her cousin’s spouse. Mary did ask “How” it could be possible, but she did not ask “Could” it be possible. She accepted her calling from God and submitted to what God needed her to do. 

Let’s be more like Mary.

Let’s have faith that when we ask God for an answer- we don’t doubt, we don’t question, or we don’t take it for granted. Instead- we praise Him, we thank Him and we appreciate Him. 

Thank you. I hope that the next time you need guidance, discernment or answers that you are able to BE STILL and hear His answer. 

Have a BLESSED DAY

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