Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

Well, I made it to about 3:40 before I totally lost it. I call that progress.

"You are everything you've promised....Alleluia"

True and Better

Sometimes, playing the comparison game is a good idea. Here's just such a time.

True & Better from Peter Artemenko on Vimeo.

The Impossiblity of it All

It is no mistake that you are a mom. And it is no surprise to hear that Motherhood is a hard job. And yes, there will be days where the task seems more daunting than you bargained.

But here’s the thing: the perfect place from which to parent is that place where you are at your lowest, crying out to the Lord, saying, “I can’t do this today. Will you be my strength and do it for me? I don’t know how to do this. Will you be my wisdom?”

His answer will be yes. And his solution will be immeasurably better than your attempt.

Don’t be ashamed to admit weakness in your parenting. There is a huge upside to being weak.


Continue reading my latest post for Heart of the Matter Online here.

Wow-ful Women Wednesday

Have you ever asked the question "Why do bad things happen to me? I'm a good person. What is the point of this trial?"

My pastor has answered that question for our congregation by saying, "It is happening to refine you and make you more like Christ. It is happening to teach you to know how to comfort someone else who will go through a similar pain. And it is happening for a thousand other reasons that you may never know."

I've always loved that. There is a great comfort in knowing that there are bigger things at work than my puny life. There is a great comfort in knowing that my pain isn't being wasted.

Sara Groves wrote about this other brilliant female songwriter today. Christa Wells is a new name to me, but I am glad to have found her. And this song in particular.

A thousand things are happening in this one thing, she says. What will be the fruit of the experiences of your life? You may never know. But praise Him through it, and trust Him to use it.

Christa Wells -- A Thousand Things



And then go and read this blog post by Christa Wells. Just tripped across it. Love it.

Battling Depression Part Four

This article is overdue. It was supposed to be submitted to the editor six days ago. And here is why it is late: I’m terrified to write it.

These last three posts have been significantly harder to write than I expected. What I’m finding is that in order to write convincingly and honestly, I have to relive a bit of what I felt in those dark days. I fully expected that it would be a theoretical reliving. What I found was that the darkness loomed much too close for comfort, crossing over from past memory to present threat. This, clearly, was not okay with me.

And so, with one final article to write for Heart of the Matter, and with a book in the wings on which I am working, I am finding the fear of what might be lurking around the corner to be a significant deterrent to getting the job done. I would love to be able to say to you, “I am willing to find myself back in the pit of Despair in order to write this book so long as even one person is helped by it.” But that would be a total lie. There is no part of me that wants to experience that pain again. Not for a moment. Not for you. Not for myself. Not for the sake of my family. Not at all. Period.

Please read my latest Heart of the Matter Online Article here.

Happily See-Through

We teach our kids about the omniscience and omnipresence of our God. That is, we let them know that God knows everything, sees everything, is everywhere, and so on. We can't hide from him. He is always by our side. He is always aware of what is going on with us. And this is a comfort.

That's what we tell them.

That's what I believe.

But since we're all about honesty and fuel for thought around here I figure I better 'fess up a bit about something. There is a verse that we have taught our kids which is meant to be a comfort when they are comparing themselves to others: Man looks at outward appearances but the Lord examines the heart.

So don't worry if kids laugh at what you look like, it is what is on the inside that counts. Don't worry if what you tried to do failed on the outside, the Lord knows what good intentions you had in your heart.

But....

I have always quaked with fear about that. I mean, really, isn't it often so much easier to look good on the outside? To fake a happy heart when inside your heart is throwing a selfish hissy fit? (Someone say amen, please. Don't leave me hanging)

I don't want to be a hypocrite. I don't want to be a "white-washed tomb" looking nice on the outside, but actually being cold, hard and dead on the inside. I want to not shake in my boots when I think about the Lord examining my heart.

And here is the good news: I don't have to quake. I don't have to be afraid of what he'll find. Because when I follow Christ, when I acknowledge his lordship over my life, then it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.

Charles Spurgeon said: "Rejoice then, believer, in this: thou art accepted "in the beloved." Thou lookest within, and thou sayest, "There is nothing acceptable here!" But look at Christ, and see if there is not everything acceptable there. Thy sins trouble thee; but God has cast thy sins behind his back, and thou art accepted in the Righteous One."

When God the Father, the holy judge, looks in at my heart he no longer sees my sin and my selfishness, but rather sees the righteousness, the goodness, the perfection, of his Son poured out over me and in me and through me.

Transparency has never felt so good.

Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

"He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out in to a broad place, he rescued me, because he delighted in me."

"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave himself up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?"



(Ps.18:16-19, Rom.8:31-32)

You Are For Me

Verse 1
So faithful
So constant
So loving and so true
So powerful in all You do
You fill me
You see me
You know my ev'ry move
You love for me to sing to You

Chorus 1
I know that You are for me
I know that You are for me
I know that You will never forsake me in my weakness
And I know that You have come now
Even if to write upon my heart
To remind me who you are

Verse 2
So patient
So gracious
So merciful and true
So wonderful in all You do
You fill me
You see me
You know my ev'ry move
And You love for me to sing to You Lord

CCLI Song No. 5265457
© 2008 Gateway Create Publishing (Admin. by Integrity's Praise! Music)
Kari Jobe
For use solely with the SongSelect Terms of Use. All rights Reserved. www.ccli.com
CCLI License No. 164330

Impressing God

How long have I sat thinking about this post? How long have I had a weight on my heart about this post? *sigh*

My first stirrings and musings on this matter came some 6 years ago when I read "An Unstoppable Force" by Erwin McManus. The whole book kind of got under my skin. And if I'm being honest, I felt sort of annoyed by the premise and presumption in the book. I don't own a copy of the book, so forgive me as I paraphrase, as best as I can, a recurring theme in his writing that got my goat. He would talk about how praying for our children to be safe was a poor thing to pray for. That our goal for ourselves and our children and our churches should be to live dangerous lives for Christ. God wasn't calling us to lives of safety, but to lives of danger, and risk, and doing big things for God.

Now, I agree that the Word promises that we will have trial. We will have tribulations. There is no denying that saints throughout history, and even to today, are suffering for the dangerous righteousness they are living out. And there is no denying that Christ himself did not choose an easy life of safety during his time on earth.

I agree that we need to live lives that are full of action. James says, "Faith without works is dead" and "Be not merely hearers of the word but doers also". We need to act. Jesus acted. I get that. I know the Parable of the Talents. I know how displeased the Manager was with the worker who merely buried his talents, folding his hands and twiddling his thumbs in safety and ease. And I know how pleased he was with the workers who used and developed and risked the talents for a greater reward. I know these truths.

And don't get me wrong: I know myself well enough to know that at heart I am lazy and selfish, and prone to justify my laziness and selfishness under the guise of "being cautious" or "being reasonable". I am also prone to worry, and so the easy thing for me would be to bubble wrap my children and say it was "just being a good steward of the gifts God has given to me".

And also don't get me wrong: The last thing I want is for the church to be a bunch of complacent, comfortable, casserole-loving, isolated, irrelevant, nice guys.

So I struggle with this. I don't want to live a meaningless life of ease and inactivity. I don't want to displease God by wasting the days he has given to me. And yet I look at the life he has given me and wonder how a mom of 7 is supposed to "go and do some big thing to impress God"? I mean, after all, I'm *just* a stay at home mom.

And then I see a video like this...



...and I don't disagree. I think he's right. On many, many levels, he is absolutely right.

But...

Will someone say that being a mom *is* doing a big thing for God?

Will someone please say that choosing to quit your job, live on one income, and stay home and homeschool is living a scary, crazy, unsafe life for some of us?

Will someone please say that being a mom or a dad who works all day, shining the light of Christ to his or her co-workers, and then coming home and making supper, reading stories, praying with the kids, and selflessly spending even more weary hours shining the light at home, and ushering your children into the kingdom of Christ through faith *is* doing a 'big thing for God'?

Will someone please say that working joyfully day in and day out on the factory assembly line,

and honouring your parents,

and loving the saints,

and serving in the local church,

and tithing,

and living your whole life--every second of every day--as a living sacrifice of worship to Christ is just as much a "big thing for God" as anything else you can dream up?

For some wholehearted Christ-seekers, the call will, in fact, be to pick up and spread the gospel to the far-reaching, life-threatening corners of the globe, and to them I say, "Thank you for going, and thank you for making those sacrifices, and thank you for being faithful. May the Lord bless you for your courage and faithful obedience." Truly.

But for the rest of us wholehearted Christ-seekers, who, for the time at least, are being called to stay home and just shine for Christ here, let me say to you, "Thank you for staying, and thank you for making these sacrifices, and thank you for being faithful. May the Lord bless you for your courage and faithful obedience, too."

We need to remember, *I* need to remember, that God is self-sufficient. He doesn't need me or you to dream up something wonderful to do. He doesn't need our service, he doesn't need our "staying" or our "going". However, He does invite us. And when and where and how he invites us better stir our hearts to specific obedience, no matter how different our invitation looks from that of the person next to us.

"One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much." "Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand more." (Luke 16:10, Luke 12:48)

Lord, you have entrusted me with much here. Let me be faithful in this before I venture off to do anything else. Help me to hear your voice, and your call on my life so I can obey the things you've called me to do, and not try to respond to someone else's call. Help me to remain content in this big thing you've called me to instead of longingly looking for some other way to "impress" you. Thank you for this call, and for this mission. I pray that you will find me to be a faithful servant. And I do pray that you will embolden your church to do the things that please you, starting with the small acts of obedience and faithfulness right in front of our faces.

Wow-ful Women Wednesday

Speechless...

Kari Jobe -- Healer



You hold my every moment
You calm my raging seas
You walk with me through fire
And heal all my disease

I trust in You
I trust in You

I believe You're my healer
I believe You are all I need
I believe You're my portion
I believe You're more than enough for me
Jesus You're all I need

Nothing is impossible for You
Nothing is impossible
Nothing is impossible for You
You hold my life in Your hands

Uphill Both Ways

As Christians, we aren’t supposed to like what has come to be called “the Valley experience”. Am I right? We are supposed to be striving for the mountain-top moments where we shine like a light for Christ, joyful, productive, happy, and showing the world how great our lives are. Right?

Well I agree. There is certainly nothing wrong with loving those parts of life. Certainly nothing wrong with celebrating the Lord’s goodness and providence in those moments where, even if everything is NOT right with the world, we are at least resting, trusting, and glorifying God with our lives, actions and attitudes.

But here is the thing: I think the valley is easier.

“What? No, it isn’t,” you say. “The valley hurts, the valley is dark and sad, and lonely, and sometimes it is the valley of the shadow of death. I don’t want that. I want to say, like Psalm 40, ‘He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay; And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.’ That’s what I want: not the valley”.


Please read the rest of my latest article for Heart of the Matter Online.

A Needful Word

I have had a "thought" niggling away at me for some time now. Sort of inocuously for a good long time, but fairly potently unhealthy of late. My pride prohibits me from flat out telling you what this ridiculous fear/worry/thought was, but suffice it to say that it was a radical waste of time and energy. Truly an irrational fear.

So this morning, as I've been knowing I need to somehow uproot this thought from the dirt of my mind, I read Psalm 147: 10-11...

"His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love."
Now what you need to know, is that that verse speaks in a very specific way to this weed of a thought my brain was tending. If you know me in real life, you could ask me what that is specifically and I might get brave enough to tell you.

But here is what I want to tell you today, and what I hope you will have the faith to experience: The Bible speaks on every subject, touches on every worry, explains every quandry, and answers every question that you may be mulling over. Sometimes in ridiculously clear ways. Sometimes you'll say "well, that's ironic" or "I didn't see that coming" or "has this verse always been here? I've never noticed it before."

Ask the Lord to speak to you through his word. Trust him to do it. You'll be amazed at what the Word actually says about all of today's present concerns. This is not an outdated book. This is a guideline and a help for your immediate circumstance. He will speak to you. Will you listen?

Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

I have in the last week been told to listen to this song 3 times. How I have missed it I don't know! Actually, yes I do. My radio reception in the house is lousy and in the car I have been obsessively listening to my Christmas Eve Choir Practice CD. Haven't really heard a lot of radio Christmas tunes this year yet.

And so I have missed this stellar song. I know, I know. There are some songs that you hear at Christmas that are pretty kitchy, and maybe you find them corny. Oh I really really hope that this song doesn't become one of those. I still get choked up every time I hear "Mary, Did You Know?" when he says "When you kiss your little baby, you kiss the face of God"....doesn't matter how many times I hear it in any given December. It messes me up in the middle of [insert name of crazy busy store full of last minute shoppers] every time.

This song might be like that too. I really like Faith Hill. The little bit of celebrity gossip I've heard about her (not that I listen to gossip *ahem*) has been pretty impressive, actually, and she has a gorgeous voice. When it first started, and tonight was my first listen to it, I thought, "yup. This is pretty." But she had me struggling to swallow by the end of the video. That lump in my throat...I'd better see someone about it. The last few lines will be my undoing....every time. This song is a keeper, and a fabulous addition to our Wow-ful Women Wednesday Christmas Countdown.

Irrational Fears 101

Let me tell you, if the Lord handed out extra jewels for our eternal crowns based on number of and sheer irrationality of one’s, well, irrational fears, my crown would be so sparkly and bejeweled that you would need to wear sunglasses to look upon me, and so heavy that I would need a brace to support my neck in order for me to lift my head.

Allow me to list a few of my irrational fears to prove that, in this area of life at the least, I excel.

I am afraid that...


Please read the rest of my latest article for Heart of the Matter Online here.

Talking to Myself

Three of my daughters apparently take after their mother in the most unfortunate of ways.

Our family had the neat opportunity to attend a neighbourhood 3 on 3 basketball tourney today. What was truly remarkable was the vast array of different responses to this invitation.

My first born was ready to play. She figured out which of her brand new friends would join a team with her, they picked a name for their team, made a logo and matching t-shirts, taught the younger sisters some cheers to do on the side lines and then waited to go stomp the competition. She was not detered in the least by the reality that she didn't actually know the rules to basketball. "I can learn. We'll figure it out. I bet we can still really do well."

That's one response.

Then there was daughter 2. "I'm not playing. I don't think anyone will want to be on a team with me. I'll just cheer. If they don't mind me doing that."

Wow.

Then there was daughter 3. "I can't wait to be a cheerleader! I'm so excited! I'll practice and get it memorized and do it the whole time they are playing." Except then today while the games are going on, despite her mastery and excellence in these cheers, she dissolves into tears of fear because "There are alot of people here I don't know and if I do the cheers now, what if someone sees me and laughs at me. I want to be a cheerleader but I'm just so scared."

Hmmmm.

Then there was daughter 4. She was too busy being the adorable cheerleader doing all the actions, all the routines, while flashing her brilliant smile to care if anyone was watching her or not.

Better.

Then there was daughter 5. She found the chip bowls and stayed there for a couple hours.

Ah yes.

So out of my 5 lovely daughters, can you guess which ones were like me? And which ones were not like me?

Oh yes, I recognized my mother's voice speaking to a 9 year old me when I was telling daughter #2 "Of course they want you to be here. You are an amazing girl. Just have fun and hang out with them. Of course they want to be your friend."

And yes, I felt the stab of irony when I was telling daughter #3 "You don't need to be afraid. Go out there and give it your best. Do the cheers. No one will laugh at you. And who cares if they do? You'll know that I'm proud of you and that you've done your best. No one is even watching you. It is a little self-centered to think the whole neighbourhood will be watching you and you only in the middle of a basketball game. Just go for it. Have fun trying to be brave."

And yes, I sucked my gut in a little tighter when I was telling daughter #5 to use a little more self-control at the snack table.

Some day I'll get it. Some day I will bust out of all the lies and elementary school insecurities that cling on. I seem to recall telling my friends Kate T. and Catherine earlier this year that this would be the year for challenging my self and being brave to do the things the Lord is calling me too. And yet, here I am, kind of still not really pushing myself too hard. I want to be the girl willing to jump in with great enthusiasm and zeal to try the new thing and push my comfort limits a bit. And I want to be the girl who does what she knows she can do full out, regardless of what people might think or say.

I don't want to be a fool, jumping into arenas where I don't belong. And I don't want to be so 'care less' about people's opinions that I stop listening to wise counsel. But I do want, first and foremost, to listen to the Lord, and to do His will, unfettered by fear of man, and unenslaved to weak masters.

But now that I've put this down on virtual paper, and now that you've read it, I'm kind of committed to being brave and trying to obey the Lord in those potentially embarassing areas no matter what.

So, my prayer for this week -- a real small first step: Lord, show me one thing to do that would typically scare me silly that you want me to do for your glory. Then give me the strength to do it. And if we could start with a small thing, I'd be very grateful.

Loving the Little Things

In our previous house, there were several flowers in my garden that I did not plant that I really loved. When we were preparing to move, I considered digging up a bunch of them. But seriously. Did not have time. One of my lovely neighbours actually dug up 3 of my mostest favourites, but there were still others.

That little green one with the little white flowers whose name I never discovered.

The False Solomon's Seal that I loved watching slowly take over a larger part of the garden.

Then there were the ferns I always saw at DeGroot's and always wanted to buy but never did, leaving a space where they were "supposed" to go.

And of course I had always wanted to have something in the garden with a really deep burgandy leaf. A shade plant that would just pop in the indirect light.

Of course, I had also wanted to try out some big ornamental grasses, but we just could never find the place to put them.

Oh, and then the bunnies. Now, clearly not a plant, the bunnies were part of our garden, and our backyard. Especially the days just before we moved. There were 4 little bunnies who had a daily game of tag that carried on all through our backyard and then would spill onto the neighbours' yards.

As we were pulling out of the driveway for the last time, we all sighed a bit at the beginning of a garden we had going, the plants we were leaving behind, and the bunnies that we would surely never have in the middle of the city.

Well, imagine my surprise. As I finally walked around the exterior of my new house tonight, wasn't I shocked to find the little green plant with white flowers, the painted fern I always wanted, some burgandy leafy thing that just "pops", true Solomon Seal, a row of ornamental grasses reaching half way up our back fence, and a momma rabbit, with 5 bunnies, nesting in our little garden.

I know, I know, when I go to plant lettuce I'll rue those little bunnies, but for now, right this moment, they are all reminders to me that the Lord knows how to encourage me with even the littlest of things. Things easily overlooked by others because it just isn't what they need at that moment. But tonight, He knew that I really needed it. And I'm loving it.

Embracing Accusation

The lies of satan are so effect in crippling us simply due to the fact that what he says to us is partial truth. The part that he shares with us are the parts that condemn. The unspoken part is the truth that sets us free. Shane and Shane capture that powerfully in this song:

Really really delayed gratification

I may have stumbled upon a wee bit of a breakthrough for myself. (Brace yourself: this is likely not earth shattering. I just tend to be a bit of a slow study.)

Matthew 6:1-6 is no fun to read. It just isn't. Do you know what it says? Not off hand? Okay, I'll copy it here for you.


Mat 6:1 "Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
Mat 6:2 "Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
Mat 6:3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
Mat 6:4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Mat 6:5 "And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
Mat 6:6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.


See, I bold-ed all the bits that apply to my "revelation" this week. (I'm getting *so* good with my computer skills).

I am realizing that I don't want to wait for the Heavenly reward. I don't want to have delayed gratification of that extent.

Some Sundays I feel like I've really done my best to be hearing the Lord and serving Him in song with His strength and for His glory and I don't hear any feedback. No big deal. I'm working on having faith that so long as no one has kicked me off the team or written to the elders about me that I'm probably okay. I can wait for my 'reward of affirmation' until I see my name on the rotation again next time. I can wait three weeks for that reward.

And sure I may not get a lot of thank you's from my kids some days, but in 15 years when they are having their own kids I know they will come to me with a "Wow Mom. You were amazing to me growing up. I see that now." Okay. I can wait 15 years for that reward.

But there are myriad times that I am doing something, saying something, trying something, that I think deserves a reward RIGHT NOW and I get a big fat nothing. Now see technically I should be okay with that. I should say "That's okay. The Lord who sees in secret will reward me. If I had a reward now, I would have my reward in full and I want the Heavenly blessing more than the temporal blessing so PLEASE DON'T NOTICE ME!!! Just ignore this martyr of a woman here, serving in silence. Don't even toss a grin of acknowledgement my way because I want the reward in Heaven."

But I don't say that. I also don't say "Hey look at me! I'm AWESOME! Somebody pat me on the back!"

Nope. I reward myself.

With a new magazine.

With a cup of tea on the couch.

With another 30 minutes in front of the computer.

With a chocolate bar at the grocery store.

With any food, really, that looks even remotely appealing in my pantry.

With any little 'extra' that I think I deserve to make up for my "great sacrifice".


How disgusting! Really. How pathetic and useless. I'm no better than the fool Esau trading in his birthright for a stinkin' bowl of soup! I am trading in the reward my Father wants to give me for some secret, stolen Snickers bar. Am I that Stupid? How will I feel on that day when I stand before my God and He shows me the treasure I might have found in Him, in this world and the next, had I not thrown my self into these trifling pleasures?

Oh Lord, I cannot see my screen for the tears in my eyes. Don't let me waste this life! Don't let me waste this good work I am actually doing by tainting it with this self-indulgent, "you owe me", "aren't you impressed with me" attitude. This is no sacrifice of praise. This is no offering of true worship. This is self worship.

I can only imagine that my ability to serve You, and joy in serving You, will increase as this rotten motivation decreases. Help me to focus on Your reward for me, and Your joy in me. Give me a heart to legitimately serve You without "trumpets".

Forgive me Lord. May this be a day of new beginnings. I want to wait for Your reward. I want to not reward myself. I will wait. I will wait. I will wait. And in the waiting is part of the reward, yes? Finding the ability to wait, (joyfully, patiently) is part of the reward.

So back to you: How do you reward yourself? What do you choose as a reward over what the Lord is holding out to You? What are you willing to trade your Birthright for? Surely I'm not the only one....will you join me in learning to work without reward in the short term? Will you learn to love really, really delayed gratification with me?

What I learned from my housekeeping abilities (or lack thereof)

There is A LOT to be done in order to achieve excellence in homekeeping. The deficit in cleanliness and orderliness is staggering. I could work all day, everyday, never taking a rest (or at least very rarely) and the work is still never done.

Never. Never. Never.

Not one day in my life have I gone to bed thinking "Well, there you go. I have completed all the work that needs to be done in my home and in my family." There is always an extra project to work on, a gift to make, a meal to prepare in advance, a school unit to write, a report to correct, a shirt to mend....it is never finished.

Never. Never. Ne.ver...

I want desperately for my efforts to be good enough. I want to know that the work I did was sufficient for the job ahead of me.

It isn't. It hasn't been. It won't be.

Ah yes. And now it sinks in.

I will never be good enough for Jesus either.

I cannot work, serve, give, love, believe, hope, try, want, obey, or think enough to be good enough or to pay off the sin deficit that I have, that I contribute to each and every second of my life. No matter how hard I try I will never say "Ha, there we go. I got it all done today. I bet God is really impressed with my effort on this one."

Only, only, only, ONLY through Christ's sacrifice can I be saved. I'm still not good enough. Still can't be. But His blood over me hides all my sin and washes it away.

And you know what? It makes me cry (with Joy? With Relief? With Incomprehension?)when I read that Christ said "It is finished". At least one part of my life is done. Completed. Accomplished.

Sola Fide. Sola Gratia.

Lord let me remember every day that I work in what seems like futility that I cannot do it all. And that is exactly the point. I Can't. But You Have. Thank you.

Now back to my vacuuming...

Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

How,you may be asking, HOW has Barbara got this many weeks into Wow-ful Women Wednesdays without posting her favourite woman of all time, Sara Groves?

Well, wait no longer. Today is the day. This video that I picked shows what I think is truly brilliant about Sara Groves. Yes, she has an unbeliveable voice, and yes she is an outrageously gifted lyricist, but she is primarily a woman of the Word. She loves her God and that is so beautifully illustrated here. (not to mention the fact that she sounds just as good singing off the cuff here as she does fully mastered in studio).

Enjoy. (and yes this one makes me cry too).

Fuel for Thought

A few weeks ago my pastor spoke on Jesus being tempted in the wilderness. He made a comment that was excellently profound to me. He said "The devil always promises things he cannot make good on. He cannot fulfill his promises." In context he was talking about Satan offering Jesus the world if only He would worship him. The point was that Satan will tempt us with good things he is actually unable to give us. Those good things are not his to give. Very helpful to remember.

However, what really struck me was that same truth on the flip side of the coin: The horrible things that Satan promises to do to us he cannot do either. He cannot make good on his promise to shame, kill, destroy, defame, devalue, or snatch away from the Lord. Those wounds which he promises to inflict are only his to do as the Lord sees fit. It is not in his power to do anything to me that my loving, heavenly, sovereign Father has not willed.

Thank you for that Lord. Keeping that in mind gives me the confidence to resist Satan and to flee from him. No matter what he threatens me with, You are still in control and nothing that is not for my good can befall me.

Listen to the sermon here. Or, if I'm technologically hindered here and that link didn't work try going here and scroll down to the August 31st sermon. And then, because my readers are so keen, I know you will want to go back and listen to the first two sermons in that trilogy.