Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Things Worth Remembering

These are things that I have found that are worth remembering:

“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray.
Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers,
letting God know your concerns.
Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness,
everything coming together for good,
will come and settle you down.
It’s wonderful what happens
when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
Summing it all up, friends,
I’d say you’ll do best by
filling your minds and meditating on things
true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—
the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly;
things to praise, not things to curse.”
Philippians 4:6-8, The Message

Excerpt taken from Stasi Eldredge’s Captivating, pgs 99-100
“You see, we all pretty much handle our brokenness in the same way- we mishandle it. It hurts too much to go there. So we shut the door to that room in our heart and throw away the key…But that does not bring healing. Not at all. It might bring relief- for a while. But never healing. Usually it orphans the little girl in that room, leaves her to fend for herself. The best thing we can do is to let Jesus come in, open the door and invite Him in to find us in those hurting places. It might come as a surprise that Christ asks our permission to come in and heal but He is kind and the door is shut from the inside, and healing never comes against our will. In order to experience His healing we must also give Him permission to come in to the places we have so long shut to anyone. Jesus asks, ‘will you let Me heal you?’”

From Beth Moore's Esther
“We [have] talked about how the enemy and our own self-destructive natures combine to taunt us with ‘what ifs.’ Once we are in Christ, Satan has no authority to destroy us, so he settles for the next best thing: threatening to destroy us. Based on our histories and behaviors he deduces what we ourselves are most convinced would raze us.
To the Devil, the irony is delicious. Our distrust of God tattles on us, telling our enemy exactly how to get to us. Many of us habilitually rehearse, ‘If ___ ever happens, then I’ll just ___.’ Our fears become like long, bony index fingers pointing at our vulnerabilities. Once Satan sees what we believe would be the end of us, he threatens and torments us with it.
Our natural human defense is to grovel before God and plead with Him not to let those things happen. Our conditional trust not only makes us an open target for enemy torment; it also positions us as negotiators and beggars before God instead of secure children who trust their lives to their faithful Father…
The most critical breakthrough of faith you and I could ever experience is to let God bring us to a place where we trust him–period. We don’t just trust Him to let us avoid what we fear most. We determine to trust Him no matter what, even if our worst nightmare befall us. We have no greater victory and can render Satan no harsher blow.”
A few Bible verses I am finding helpful to replace worries with truth in my mind:
  • “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1).
  • “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace” (Romans 8:5-6).
  • “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:6-8).
  • Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2).
  • “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7 KJV).

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Meal Plan Monday Week of March 19th

Monday: Chicken Tortilla Soup http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/01/chicken-tortilla-soup/
Tuesday- Biggest Loser Turkey Lettuce Wraps http://www.prevention.com/health/weight-loss/diets-getting-started/biggest-loser-recipes/article/59b46146ef026110VgnVCM20000012281eac____
Wednesday- grilled chicken and baked potatoes
Thursday- leftovers ( hubby is gone)
Friday- Amy's Tomato Soup ( best canned tomato soup) and cucumber salad
Saturday and Sunday- out to eat with family

Ava's Boren Idol at School


Ava was in a singing competition at her school. It was called Boren Idol. The students had to first try out in front of two classes during their music class. If they got a "golden ticket", they would come back Friday to perform in the gym in front of the whole second grade. Here are the videos. She sang, " Hold Me" by Jaime Grace. They were only aloud to sing the first verse and chorus. Here you go...
And the winner is...






Sunday, March 11, 2012

Breaking Free Week 3- The Obstacle of Pride

This was a deep day for me. After doing the homework for this day, I remembered the Beth Moore, So Long Insecurity Book. When we first think of pride, we think of arrogance, right? Of course, people who are prideful think they are better than everybody else. Well, that is not me... I am good on this pride thing. If I am being honest, I can tell you this has been one area where I have always thought... nope not me. I may struggle with stuff, but this isn't one of them. Let me just tell you... God has a way of humbling us doesn't he? And that is clearly what he did.
All my life, I have struggled with insecurity, feelings of rejection, and comparing myself and my talents to others. I have always been insecure about my weight, my looks, my talents, and my relationships. I am one of those approval addicts. If someone doesn't like me, I can obsess myself over the big WHY word. All along, I had no idea that I was really dealing with a bigger issue... pride. While reading her book ( if you haven't, get out there and get it... amazing!), Beth clearly shows that arrogance and insecurity share one common denominator... pride. When people are arrogant, you may hear: " I am wonderful", " I am amazing at this" , " Look at all I can do". When people are insecure, you may here..." I am lacking in this", " I can't seem to measure up" , " I am awful at this", " I hate my body, I hate my appearance". Both situations, one word seems to bring itself up and that is "I". The denominator is self absorbtion. That is what pride is. It is setting ourselves up on a throne where only God belongs. When I am worried about my appearance or my abilities, it usually is always because I crave affirmation or admiration... and that is just not who I want to be. Through out this study, I am constantly asking God to reveal places in my life where this is present. Ladies, this is the area where pride is present in me. If I truly look at this correctly, the one that needs esteeming is not me, I need to esteem my God and give him my affirmation and my admiration. Father, I need you to renew my mind. I found a poem today from Beth Moore that speaks on pride... and a song.

"My Name is Pride" by Beth Moore

My name is Pride. I am a cheater.
I cheat you of your God-given destiny…
because you demand your own way.
I cheat you of contentment…
because you “deserve better than this.”
I cheat you of knowledge…
because you already know it all.
I cheat you of healing…
because you are too full of you to forgive.
I cheat you of holiness…
because you refuse to admit when you are wrong.
I cheat you of vision…
because you’d rather look in the mirror than out a window.
I cheat you of genuine friendship…
because nobody’s going to know the real you.
I cheat you of love…
because real romance demands sacrifice.
I cheat you of greatness in heaven…
because you refuse to wash another’s feet on earth.
I cheat you of God’s glory…
because I convinced you to seek your own.
My name is Pride. I am a cheater.
You like me because you think I’m always looking out for you.
Untrue.
I’m looking to make a fool of you.
God has so much for you, I admit, but don’t worry…
If you stick with me you’ll never know.


Song:


Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Breaking Free Week 3- Day 1

Beth Moore, Week 3, Day 1: Unbelief

Currently, our bible study is working through Beth Moore's Breaking Free. I can't express how powerful, how deep, how vulnerable this bible study has been for me. For so many years, most of my life actually, I have had a few things I just can't let go of. I struggle with approval, I struggle with trust, I struggle with fear, and I struggle with letting go of past hurt. I can't tell you how many times I have told myself, " No more Andrea. You aren't going to think those things anymore, you aren't going to act that way, you are going to let that go", only to find myself the following day going back to the same thought patterns. I have always vowed that I don't want this to define me. I don't want to live as a person imprisoned by fear or doubt. I have committed my whole heart to this study, and really do BELIEVE that I will leave this study having "broke free" from these strongholds. This week, day 1 started with Unbelief... Do you really believe God is who He says He as and can DO what His Word says He can? Funny thing is, I can tell others all the time that is true. I can tell others to believe and to have hope, that God is more than we could ever dream He could be. In my own life and my own struggles, sometimes I do not live what I preach to others. I see God bringing confidence to a woman, helping her overcome bitterness or betrayal. I see marriages healed, I see children healed of illness, I see women made new... Sometimes, I find myself thinking... "I know you have helped them, I see what you have done in their life, Lord. But do you know how long I have struggled with this. Do you know how scared I am... do you know what that person did to me... I am a mess, can you really help me?" And you know... I know he can... but sometimes, that inner place in me that I don't want anyone to see, doubts. So I am on my knees, saying to you Father... I BELIEVE... LORD HELP MY UNBELIEF.  I found a prayer on http://www.heartlight.org/ that spoke to me and I would like to share...
O Abba Father, I believe, but please help my faith to grow stronger and to become more confident so that I can serve you in more powerful ways ... to your glory. In Jesus' name. Amen.


I also found a song that really said perfectly how I feel. After listening, I would love a discussion today. Do you struggle with unbelief? In what areas of your life do you fully believe God is who He says He is? In what areas of your life are you doubting? If you do not struggle with this, can you explain how you got to that place?
Song: Jenny Phillips, " Help my Unbelief"