Pride Stinketh :)

If ever in life we have the notion to consider ourselves better than others, we need to take a step back. (Me included!) Paul says it best in 2 Corinthians 10: 7, 18 "You are looking only on the surface of things. If anyone is confident that he belongs to Christ, he should consider again that we belong to Christ just as much as he. For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends." Although at times we may like to commend ourselves in our own minds and puff ourselves up above others, really we must remember that if we belong to the Lord, we belong to Him equally as His children. We are a family of believers after all. We may be growing in Him at different speeds but this doesn't mean any person has the right to consider himself better than another. That's pride...and it stinketh. :)

God Moved My Mountain

God Moved My Mountain: "For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith." (Mark 11:23 KJV) We often tend to talk more about how big the mountains in our lives are as opposed to talking to o ur mountains, but it is possible to see those mountains move by God"s power. Let me tell you about one God moved for us just last year. For months, Jim and I had our eye on a beautiful foreclosure home in our ideal community. We finally gave up on it, having our offers rejected by the bank twice and our third offer never getting a response. We ended up house searching some more and finally (after not being able to find anymore homes in our favorite community within our price range) made an offer on a home in a different community. It was a nice home and nice community but just not the first choice we would have wanted in both. The morning our paperwork was to be submitted to the owners, though, I began to be reminded of the first home that we loved and I had felt a solid peace about. And as I was getting ready in my bathroom, I felt directed to start speaking to my mountain! Really. (And some of you already know the story.) It was as if God allowed faith to rise up in me, and I started confessing out loud in my bathroom (of all places) that the house we really wanted at first would open up and the bank would accept our offer. I headed out, and a little later that day Jim called me. He told me that a line in the paperwork from our current offer was missing one of our signatures, so it couldn't be submitted yet. (Once an offer is submitted, you can't put an offer on another home. So this was crucial to what would happen next.) Then, a little while later Jim called me again. This time, he told me that our realtor (who was not the main listing agent for the foreclosure house we really wanted) just learned that the bank had dropped the price on the house we really wanted. They had never seen our third offer (possibly due to the main listing agent wanting the full commission on the house). And now, our third offer (which the bank had never seen) was $1,000 more than the current asking price. Needless to say, we got our dream house! (And some of you have had your picture taken in it in front of my "famous" guest welcoming chalkboard. :) In the Bible, God tells us to share what He has done for us with others, the reason being that it helps to increase our faith. If you have any mountains in your life, be sure that God is much bigger than them... I can certainly attest to that. :)

Nothing Is Too Big or Too Small for the Lord

God wants to help us with our daily tasks and obstacles, but we need to ask Him for help. I remember when Jim and I first moved into our miracle house, I was so looking forward to getting to decorate. However, once we moved in and I had the freedom to unleash "my" creativity, I started becoming frustrated because there were so many directions I could go with my purchases. I knew I liked the Pottery Barn look, but I wasn't so sure how to accomplish that (and I had a budget). For some reason, I was always drawn to purchasing mirrors and candle stands.... yet we all know that there are many other purchases needed when decorating and furnishing a home besides mirrors and candle holders. :) One day after feeling frustrated, I remember sitting in my bathroom and just telling God how frustrated I was and that I needed His help. And that is what I should have been doing all along, because my level of decorating "know how" and ideas only went so far...despite all of the books at Barnes and Noble I looked through, no matter how many times I visited Pottery Barn, and no matter how much I admired Candace Olson. (Her book is still in my collection of decorating books.) What I really needed was God's help. And it was not long after that, that the ideas started coming, and the layouts became more than I ever thought possible. I realized then and have learned many other times (including my wedding planning) that just as my mother in law, Nancy, learned from God: "Nothing is too small for Him to help us with." We often only think we need to call on Him for major troubles (and, yes, we do need Him then too), but He so wants to be a part of our everyday lives if we'll just ask Him. I certainly found decorating less frustrating after that. I learned then and continue to that having God's help in the details really improves the situation tremendously. Will my house necessarily look like one of those "Million Dollar Spaces" on HGTV? (Who knows?! Maybe, one day I'll have one of those. Lol.) But better yet, whether my home is large or small, I'd rather have one that is filled with God's peace and His love, and where He is welcome to use it to bring joy and refreshment to others....Oh, and one where He is welcome to intervene in the decorating. :) "...Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." (Zechariah 4:6 KJV)