Listen

     

     I don't know about you, but I need a wisdom that doesn't come from me.  I need insight and discernment that can only come from God.  The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 2 that "...the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us."  I need understanding that can only come from the Spirit! 

     Sometimes this understanding and insight comes specifically through the scriptures, God's inspired word. Other times it comes through prayer and time spent alone in quiet with God.  And it even comes through the gentle admonishment from a friend or trusted loved one.  Over the years, I've noticed that for me personally, when God really wants to get my attention about something, a certain theme or word will come up continually, in all different areas of my life.  Over the past week or two, this has been happening.  A very specific word keeps coming up in my life.

For Freedom

     If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, then you might have seen my post yesterday about how these past couple of days of the IF:Equip I Believe study over on the IF:Gathering App and at www.ifequip.com are pivotal to my faith.  All that I believe when it comes to my faith rests on whether or not I believe that Jesus, who became God in the Flesh, came to earth, lived a sinless life among us, was crucified for my sins, died, was raised to life again on the third day, lives today, and is coming back one day! If I don't believe this core truth, then my faith is dead.  Pointless. Paul says it best in 1 Corinthians 15:17, "And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins." But thankfully, THANKFULLY!!!, Christ has indeed been raised from the dead.  I am eternally grateful! Literally!!

Thoughts on the Trinity

     I've been thinking about the Trinity -- God in the three Persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit -- and how my belief in this 3 in 1 God informs my faith and life.  In the Bible, God is always referred to as ONE God.  And I BELIEVE that He is the ONE, TRUE God.  Yet, He also shows himself to be three different, unique persons, each with certain characteristics and qualities. How do I begin to grasp this concept, to wrap my head around something -- Someone -- that I clearly do not fully understand?

The Week In Pictures - March 20th

     This week was spring break for us.  I was SO ready for it and had big plans for all of the things that I was going to accomplish.  And almost none of my 'list' got done. Looking back, I now realize that I had completely unrealistic expectations of how the week was going to go.  Ha. Funny how things work that way sometimes.  All in all, it was a good week, though. We stuck close to home and enjoyed time with friends and explored new places. 

     Spring has definitely sprung here in Oklahoma.  We enjoyed beautiful weather the first part of the week.  The cold has come back for a few days, though--seems like it happens this way EVERY year--and scarf weather is not quite past us!

With Great Expectation - Thoughts on IF:Gathering 2016

    I love orchids.  Years ago, when we lived in Florida, I had a dozen or two hanging in the oak tree in our backyard.  I just couldn't get enough of them!  I still can't.  But I now live in Oklahoma, and our weather isn't quite as conducive to leaving orchids outside year round.  So, I now have one orchid in my kitchen windowsill. One orchid that hasn't been in bloom for almost a year.  One orchid that is now putting on buds and will eventually bloom again soon!  And I CAN. NOT. WAIT. I wait in great expectation as day after day passes and it gets closer to that inevitable day!

     This is the SAME feeling I had leading up to the IF:Gathering.  I was so EXPECTANT.  So EXCITED.  So READY.  As the weekend grew closer, I saw the buds of excitement growing in other women.  And over the course of this past weekend, I saw the beginning of beautiful blooms.  Women chasing after God.  Women allowing the love of Jesus into their lives.  Women DECIDING to take that next step in their lives that would put them on the path to walking WITH GOD, not just living for God. And not to overuse the word...but IT WAS BEAUTIFUL!