Something on my mind today>.....

I went back today and read some of the older devotions that I had wrote over the last year....wow at the time of writing these I never knew what was headed my way.

We all go through trials and temptations the important thing to remember is when going through these times is that we always keep our eyes upon the Lord. My life has changed so much over the last few months. I have had ups and downs just like everyone else in life. There is some things that I have went through that the Lord has taught me many lessons. One of my biggest lessons I guess that I have learned is to always keep my eyes turned toward the Lord never let anything weather it be a person, a lifestyle, or anything that you can think of get your eyes off of the Lord. If we take our eyes off of Him and try to make things work without His approval we are headed for a road of destruction, and I hate to say this but I was headed in that direction. I thought I was doing everything right not knowing that I was fixing to make the biggest mistake of my life. I tried to lie to myself and make myself believe that I was the happiest woman around knowing deep in my heart that I was not happy at all I was just tired of being in the place that I was and was trying to make myself have a "normal" life as I had always put it. I begin to pray Lord help me feel happy if the decisions I have made are not right send something my way to let me know before it is to late and wow the Lord did just that and my eyes were opened widely.

I thank the Lord for never giving up on me even when at times I may give up on myself. I am thankful that he never says I am tired of messing with you I don't want to go through this today. If He did that I along with all of us would be in a big mess! I am thankful for the saints of God that the Lord has placed in my life to pray for me. My eyes were opened and my life has changed although the circumstances have changed there is still alot of things that the Lord is working out in my life there is a lot of hurt, there is a lot of understanding that needs to be understood but I know that the Lord will give me all the answers and heal the hurts and carry me through the storm.

I heard this song yesterday and it has stuck with me and explains my life as of now....maybe it can help someone else as well......Name of it is The Unexpected Storm....

anymore It seems my whole world has fell apart and right now you're wondering does the master even see does he know where I'm standing has he forgotten about me. Well the unexpected storm it hasn't caught me by surprise for right now he is watching you and thou he will see you through safe on the other side you don't have to be afraid through the thunder and the rain in the shelter of his arms he'll keep you safe from harm through the unexpected storm. Every storm has a reason though it's hard to understand every trial has a purpose for its all just a part of his plan through all of your questions he would never leave your side oh but he'll be your refuge until your storm passes by.

Everyone be blessed........

My baby turned 15!!! On February 6th!

Well since the last post my daughter Audrey has turned 15!! Whew where has the time gone!!! It seem just like yesterday I was bringing her home from the hospital and now we are preparing her to get her driver's license....I am so thankful that the Lord has allowed me to be her mom..she has taught me so much. I know we teach our children every day but Audrey has really taught me alot over the last 15 years. I thank the Lord for allowing me to have the opportunity to be her MOM! So proud to see her let the Lord use her! She is a very anointed young lady loves to sing and play the drums!!

Happy "Late" Birthday Audrey!!! Love you!

Little late in posting...but ZOIE is here!!!!

Baby Zoie is here she decided to make her appearace a little early she was born on February 3, 2012 she decided she wanted to come about 5 weeks early:) She weighed 5lbs 13 ounces and is beautiful!!!

Congratulations Gary, Heather and Big Sister Rachel!!!!

Heavens Point of View

Someone needs to hear this lyrics to this song today.......Be blessed and stay encouraged!

HEAVENS POINT OF VIEW

Today I face the mountains
That I have no strength to climb
And the struggle of these journeys left me weak
Both in body and in mind

Where I standing through the peak
Is a distance on my own I cannot reach
So this journey of a thousand steps begins
Right here on my knees

Soon I sour like an eagle
High on wings of praise
Far in through the heavens
Where I can almost see Gods face

Rise in His splendor
To heights I never knew
What was look like a mountain?
Just a hill heavens point of view

I may face things tomorrow
I can’t comprehend today
Circumstances so uncertain make it hard
To find a strength to pray

But I’m leaving in the promise
I’ll never leave you I will always see you through
So what’s this mountain to an eagle flying high
From heavens point of view

Encouragement.....

Bro. Phillips has started teaching on Wednesday night on Encouragement and it has encouraged me. It made me want to start studying more on it, because if there is anything in this world we need to do that is to encourage one another in the Lord.

What is encouragement?

• To encourage someone is to comfort them with the Word of God in such a way that the person is motivated to lead the Christian life and continue in the Lord's service.
  
• To encourage is to be an instrument of grace. It works out of compassion and love and care for the other person, not judgment and condemnation and accusation.

I have thought about this and thought about my own life and of someone encouraging me. My personal testimony is due to encouragement. When I started the job I work at now North American Adjusters, Inc. I became encouraged in the Lord and through that encouragement there was a friendship that was built that is just everlasting.

Who has been an encouragement in your life?-Or this is how my friend was an encouragement to me in my life at the time I needed it the most.

• She really listened and didn't immediately tell me I was wrong.
  
• She understood how I felt.
• In this relationship I felt like a winner. I think she felt that I was special.(that is how I felt)
  
• I could be honest with her and wouldn't have to be phony and didn't fear the results.
  
• I could disagree with her and wasn't afraid of getting her angry.
• She always had time for me.
• I felt like I was safe in talking to her.
  
• She always saw hope for me no matter how bad things seemed to be.
  
• She respected me for myself.
  

I learned it is not always just about saying the right things -although-

Think about this.....Who has been a discouragement in your life?

• This person never listened to me when I needed to talk and was always to busy.
  
• Nothing I could do was right, no matter how hard I might try.
  
• I felt constantly put down
• The person only noticed my bad points.
  
• This person is unpredictable never know what is next.

In the bible their was encouragers......

• Barabus - "Son of Encouragement" Acts 11:19-26 He was a person sensitive to others needs, he was Generous (Acts 4:36-37) and he was willing to stand beside others.He was not envious at the success of others, he encouraged others to get involved, he had patience, he was content to work behind the scenes.

• Moses - He was willing to let Joshua have something he did not get (Det. 3:26-29)
• God - Ps. 138:1-3
  

1 Thess 5:11 - Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do

As Bro Phillips has been teaching encouragement is a gift....

• It is FREE - It may cost you time of creativity, and thoughtfulness-but that is what make encouragement so appreciated. It requires something from you, not just something from your wallet. You do not have to go to a department store, or anywhere to get encouragement it is a gift that can be delivered from anywhere. Just writing a simple letter, email, or text can make someones day alot brighter and encourage them to keep on keeping on. Encouragement is one of the most beautiful gifts that you can give. A little word can make a difference whether it is a child, or an adult the results of encouragement can be life changing.
  

If there is nothing else in my life that I can give I want to be able to give encouragement! Be blessed!

Chrismas is over.....2012 is near...does it even seem possible.?????

Audrey Christmas Morning.....

Audrey Christmas Eve Night.....She always opens up pj's on Christmas Eve

Are you winterized?

Today I was going through some things and I don't think that I have ever shared this devotion that I wrote back last year here on my blog but thought it would be good to share again even if I did.....

….in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengthened me. Philippians 4:11-13

Over the course of last week I realized what the true meaning of winter was…watching on TV at the news at the states in the North and seeing all the snow they had gotten I just couldn’t imagine being out in it as we were here. I realized that if it helps to wear layer of clothes and get all bundled up before going out in the snow to keep warm. I am just thankful that our six inches of snow only comes as often as it does. To a lot of people in the North it is normal to wear several layers of clothing on any given day to just stay warm. It is normal to them to have to shovel the snow out of their driveway in order to get out, scrape ice off of their windows each time they get in the car, and all the other things that go along with snow, ice, and winter.

In our spiritual lives, we all have "winters" too and we have to winterize for them in order to face them. When winter comes it is a time of bleak and dark dreary days. We must face the fact that winter can be hard and trials are hard. Just like the season of winter, our spiritual "winters" can leave us discouraged, lonely, and depressed.

There are some things that can make the cold of our winter very intense. We need to winterize and guard against them.

· When we are going through trials and hardships, we sometimes tend to let our guard down and it's so easy for worldly influences to take over in our lives. It seeps through the cracks around the doors and windows just like the winter air. It may be the influence of friends, music, or just worldly thinking. It all can work overtime on us as we face trials in our lives. We've got to dig out the caulk and weather stripping and block those cracks and holes. Using God's Word is the best way to do this. If we have it in our hearts, it can help stop the winter air of the world from seeping into our lives. Psalm 119:16 I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.

· During the winter it is easy to develop a bad attitude. It doesn't take much at all for some of us. In comes the dreary days, the cold and chill, and drip...drip...we have formed those icicle attitudes. We become cranky and out of sorts with our family and anyone who we come in contact with. We also tend to complain more about anyone and anything.
When we are in the midst of a trial we sometimes automatically go into icicle attitude mode. We don't have any fellowship with anyone to help encourage us through our trial because who wants to be around us? We have to remember that no one else can fix our bad attitudes. Only we can do that. It's not easy either to adjust your attitude during a "winter" because the weight of that ice is bearing down on us. I've found that the simplest way to start working on adjusting a bad attitude is to take a step back and just remember who God is and who we are not."Be still, and know that I am God:" Psalm 46:10

· Winter can bring so many things along with it. Blizzards being one of the worst as the effects it leaves is so devastating. Circumstances in our lives can also be devastating. Bills mount up. Family members get sick or some might even die. Relationships get sour, and many other circumstances weigh down on us until we think we can't go on because we can't see what's down the road. I think that during these times we need to remember that God sees the outcome. He's our Potter and we are the clay.
But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold Job 23:10

· Better bundle up because if you are going through a trial, then depression is going to come nipping at your heels sooner or later. Just like the dark and bleak days of winter have a depressing effect on us; trials seem to frost our lives with depression. The problem is that when we are in the midst of a "winter", it is so easy to just let it nip away at us. There's no easy way out of depression but keeping our lives in tune with God can help guard against it. Regular personal devotions and a time with God each day can go a long way in dealing with it. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. Psalm 55:17

Prepare Your Winter Emergency Kit

I am sure the people living in the North have to prepare for winter, the severe cold; in order to prepare there are things needed to endure the winter. As Christians, when our "winters" and trials come into our lives we must learn to prepare for them as well. Here are a few basic things we should have on hand.

· Non Perishable Food—Scripture –Memorized scripture can help more than anything.

· Extra blankets and warm clothing – Fellowship – Having fellowship with other believers strengthen us. We need their love, support, and prayers.

· Drinking water – Christ- The Living Water – Bottle water in a winter emergency is a must. We need it to survive. We need Christ and His Word to live. Relying on Him will keep us from a parched existence. Drink in His love, His promises, His blessings, and His strength. Looking to Him in the face of our trials and circumstances will help see us through our "winter".

· Emergency Candles, or Flashlights – God’s Guidance- The electricity may go out because of the weight of snow and ice on the power lines so we always need a light source to have on hand. God's guidance is our light source. We can't get through our daily lives, let alone our "winters" without following God's direction and leading. Staying sensitive to God's leading will keep us going in the right direction and will help us to see a little more clearly.

We will all have "winters" in our lives, but choosing how we deal and prepare for them can make all the difference in the world.

Audrey- 14 yrs old - New Pictures!

Prayer!

Today as I was coming back from lunch I was listening to the radio and not even sure what channel it was on but the topic was prayer. How much do you pray? That sentence was kind of convicting. The man said you know we all say that we pray and we may do it going along about our day. Some are sitting at desk working and some are in a bucket 100 ft in the air doing their job but they can still pray he said but I don't mean this as a simple question. How much do you really pray? I know you may be thinking well my prayer goes through weather I am up in a bucket 100 ft in the air or weather I am sitting at a desk it makes no difference, those prayers can be powerful but I do believe when the scripture in 2 Chronicles 7:14 states If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. The man on the radio said this scripture to me means..do you seek him? do you get on your face? do you praise him even when things might not be just going the exact way you want them to?

When I heard this it became a little convicting to me. There have been times I have spent hours on my face before the Lord and I can look back and those were times I was seeing things happen that I was asking God to do. I really begin to think about Prayer meetings...a few years back my friend was choir director at a church we were attending at the time she called prayer meeting on Monday Nights there was probably 20-25 people in the choir and out of that many people there was only about 4 counting myself and my friend that was truly faithful in coming every Monday Night to pray. This wasn't a 5 or 10 minute prayer there were some nights we were there 2, 3, and even sometimes 4 hours praying God came down and we seen results from those prayer meetings. It seems now everyone has got to busy in life to worry about prayer. If we get 10 minutes in a day before we start the day or before we end the day we think that we have done a great job. Where as the concern gone for the lost people in this world? are we to worried bout self to worry about those that are hurting, or dying and going to hell.

You know sometimes I suspect that people believe in prayer, they know the promises God has made, they have even read and heard stories about answered prayers, but they still use prayer sparingly. In my own opinion I believe that most of the time the reason this happens is that many doesn't understand how prayer works, and may believe that it doesn't matter weather they pray or not. They either believe that God's gonna do, what God's gonna to do anyway so why waste their time? or they take prayer as their last resort and after everything else has failed, they'll pray a little bit, but in their hearts they don't view prayer as making an impact on the decisions they make everyday.

In the book of Daniel we can read Daniel didn't pray that way. He prayed three times a day, he prayed in his room, in the lion's den, he prayed for wisdom, guidance, and he prayed that God would forgive the sins of His people of Israel and return them to their homes. Then if you read on in Daniel you will find him struggling in prayer for 21 days because he is troubled by a dream that he has had. Would Christians today have a hard time praying for 21 days straight? It is something to think about. We ought to always pray and not give up. In Daniel 10:12 it reads.....Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.

When you pray you turn loose the very powers of heaven, you have the power to battle the very forces of the darkness, and angels are willing to fight to answer your prayers.

Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? Hebrews 14:1 - when you pray angels are at your beck and call.

Why should we pray and not give up? so many times we pray for our loved ones and we think that it is doing no good at all and we begin to think well why should I continue to pray....
We should always pray and not give up, not because God is hard of hearing, or not because he need to be pestered into answering our request, and not because he doesn't want to answer our request. He teaches us to always pray and not give up because when we pray, our prayers carry weight. Every time we pray we unleash more and more power from the throne of God. Every time we pray for that loved one to get saved it puts more and more pressure on them to listen to God. Sometimes we may pray for our friends that are going through struggles, every prayer we pray imparts them more and more power from God.
Prayer is not a passive act on our part it is an aggressive, active ministry.
We may have all heard the phrase PUSH Pray until something happens and sometimes if we can just remember this simple phrase it will be a reminder to us to pray more.

Just a little of what is on my heart today...Pray it is a blessing to someone be blessed!!!!

Heaven sounding sweeter everyday!

This week has been a challenging week for me.....Audrey went in on Tuesday morning and had two of her wisdom teeth cut out, and it has been a difficult week for her of pain. As a mom you hate to see your child in pain and not be able to do anything for them.
There have been a couple of deaths connected to the church family this week as well and it is just sad makes you realize how much sweeter that heaven sounds everyday....

Sunday Gary sang a song "What a Day that will be" along with the choir and that song has been on my heart all week just because of the different things that have went on in my life this week....Here is a just a little bit of the lyrics.....
There will be no sorrows there and no more burdens to bear, no more sickness, no more pain, no more parting over there, and forever I will be with the one who died for me what a day glorious that will be. What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see, when I look upon his face the one who saved me by his grace, and when he takes me by the hand and leads me through the promised land what a day glorious day that will be.

This morning as i got up and to start my day there was a scripture that was on my heart....it was Ps. 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod, and your staff they comfort me.
After reading this verse this morning I sit and just started thinking about different things in my life.....there are some things that we can learn from this verse alone. Accept the reality of the valley.....There will be valleys in life. Days when the sun doesn't shine as bright, when things can only look gloomy or sad to us. We all wish to have that mountain top feeling everyday but that just isn't even real to think it could happen. There are several things that could get us down in a days time, but don't be surprised by them valley's are inevitable. there are a few things that we need to make sure we don't go into one of those is self-pity, don't tell yourself that you are the only one suffering so much, everyone else is happy and I am going through a tough time. I have learned in these times that I catch myself feeling this way to snap out of it and realize there is someone in life that has things a whole lot worse than I do. ....Don't fall into the trap. There will be persecutions and problems in life. Everyone goes through them one time or another. Some more. Some less. Some deeper, other not so deep. Some long, some shorter but we all face them. Life can't always be smooth, and we can't always have that mountain-top happy feeling. God is not to blame he is with us through it all even in the valley. So we need to stay strong and walk on. There will be difficult days and difficult times but we just have to accept the reality of being in the valley. John 16:33 - These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. We need to watch how we respond in the valley. It will either make you or break you. Don't focus on the valley but focus on the one that is with you. I have learned that in these times that prayer is what gets me through. Just as in this verse it says 'I am not afraid, because you are with me". We are to keep on walking even though it is difficult.
Sometimes when we are going through diffcult times we ask "Where is God?" and really we know that answer he is right there with us through it all....We can go back to the story of the footprints and remember that he is carrying us through.
Pray this can be a blessing to someone!
Everyone have a blessed weekend!

Missing my Dad today......Wanted to just post pictures of my Dad some days it just seems like he has been gone overnight and some days it seems like it has been forever since I got to see him....November 13, 2011 will be three years since my Dad moved to Heaven.

My Mom and Dad's Wedding 1973

Hudson Family 1975

Family Picture 1977

Me, Jamie, Tab with Dad and our fish in 1978

Dad

Family Picture 1979

Family Picture with MaMaw & PaPaw McKinley and Tammy 1979

Family Picture 1985

Tab, Joni, Me, Jamie and Dad with our fish in 1986

Dad - 1990

Family at Old fashion Day at church 1990

Tab, Mom, Dad and Me at our High School Graduation 1993

Tabitha's Wedding Family Picture 1993

Jamie's Wedding Family Picture 1995

Dad and Audrey 1997

Mom, Dad, and Audrey 1997

Audrey, Kristian, Mom, Dad, Taylor, and Josh - 1999

Mom Dad and the grandkids 2002

Mom and Dad 2002

Dad playing with one of the girls dolls 2005

Dad and Audrey 2006

Mom and Dad 2007

Dad and Hannah asleep 2007

Mom and Dad 2006

Dad and the grandkids Sept 12, 2008

Missing my Dad today......Wanted to just post pictures of my Dad some days it just seems like he has been gone overnight and some days it seems like it has been forever since I got to see him....November 13, 2011 will be three years since my Dad moved to Heaven.

I may lean but I will not fall!

I haven't wrote a blog in a while but the Lord has really been working in my life in many things...been so busy with church activities, work, and just things that I haven't taken the time to share what I feel like I need to share this has been on my heart today and pray that it blesses someone.....

Sometimes in life it takes your world getting darker and darker before you can see who the day star in your life is, he is the only one that can bring you out of the wilderness that you are in.
I once heard a story of a man that had an old barn on his property the barn had been there since he was a small child and the man wasn't very young at all. He had always admired the barn, and one day as he was walking around he noticed that the old barn was leaning he stopped and thought about how old the barn was, it had stood through many storms in life, it had been through the bitter cold in the winter, to the hottest days of summer. It had been through tornadoes, and even hurricanes but it was still standing just leaning a little. He took some strong pine lumber and propped the barn up on its leaning side so it would not fall. As the man begin to leave the barn he stopped one more time to take a look and was reminded of his own life and how through many times in his life he had been on an emotional hurricane, how storms had come and gone in his life, how many times he had leaned toward quitting, giving up, going back to the life he once lived but was reminded through those times the Lord propped him up on his leaning side.
I believe God puts people in each others lives to prop us up at times just as he did in the bible for example God put Moses in Aaron life to prop him up....Aaron had a leaning problem..Just when he would start leaning Moses would remind him that he was a chosen one of God.
Then in Ex 17 Moses had his hands up it was almost like a funnel. As long as Moses held his hands up Israel would not be defeated but as soon as he would let his hands down they would be defeated. As long as his hands were up the battle was being won. When his hands got tired Aaron and Hur one on one side and the other on the other side and they held his hands in the air for him (Ex 17:12But Moses hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.) If you think about this it could come to realization that some of the people that you are propping up today are going to be propping you up tomorrow. This was the case with Moses and Aaron.
God put Jonathan in the life of David to prop him up to keep him in line. We need friends in our life that can sense when we are in trouble or making the wrong decisions that will stand up and tell us that we need to be doing differently. I am thankful that the Lord has given me a friend in my life that does that to me. When we go through our weak times we have someone to encourage us to stand up, keep going, do not fall, do not turn back to the things of the world. We need good friends that are willing to prop us up on our leaning side.
Just when you think I cant take it anymore, I am going to lose it, I am going to fall Jesus knows and the Holy Ghost will prop us up on our leaning side.
God knows what you are facing, he know what you are fighting, he knows when we are fearful, he knows when we are falling and he will prop you up on your leaning side during these times.
You may lean but you will not fall.
If you lean on Jesus no matter what you are going through, no matter what you are facing, no matter how bad you might think that you feel He will prop you up on your leaning side.
You dont have to throw in the towel, you don't have to quit, you don't have to give up. Maybe all hope is gone in some situation in your life could even be your marriage, and you are leaning toward the negative things in life, or maybe just having a weak season that we all have from time to time. he will come running to prop you up on your leaning side during this time.
Just remember what he said in his word I will never leave you nor forsake you!