Blessings

Today is Friday. I woke up early this morning with the word luck on my mind. I used to say that word alot.

We should feel lucky that you have a job right now. or

We're so lucky that our children are healthy.

I learned a long time ago that luck doesn't have anything to do with it. Now I replace that word with the word blessed. I often still write the word luck and then go back and put blessed in it's place.

It's a reminder from God that he's in control of everything.

I know I'm blessed. I think about it everyday...but today I feel it in my bones.

Here is a picture of some of what God has blessed me with. But, beyond the edges of this picture there is so much more. Thank you God for all that I have.

You can't ever get them all to look at the camera and smile at the same time, can you? :)

How much more?

As I sat and watched this video I couldn't help but think of the love this father must have for his child. He apparently would do anything for him. I thought about all the pain he must have went through, both physically and mentally. It made me think of this:

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him. So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you. Matthew 7:11-12

So here is the story behind the video:

A son asked his father, 'Dad, will you take part in a marathon with me?' The father who, despite having a heart condition, says 'Yes'. They went on to complete the marathon together.Father and son went on to join other marathons, the father always saying 'Yes' to his son's request of going through the race together. One day, the son asked his father, 'Dad, let's join the Ironman together.'

To which, his father said 'Yes' to. For those who didn't know, Ironman is the toughest triathlon ever. The race encompasses three endurance events of a 2.4 mile(3.86 kilometer) ocean swim, followed by a 112 mile (180.2kilometer) bike ride, and ending with a 26.2 mile (42.195kilometer) marathon along the coast of the Big Island .

Father and son went on to complete the race together.



How much more would our Father in heaven give us if we would only ask??!!

Not paying attention

So, this is what happens when you let your 2 year old watch you paint his sisters toenails and then take said sister to a school function while leaving him at home with his daddy and older brother-who are playing a video game!

Ya'll, this was not found out until we walked back in the door. I guess when they heard the garage door open "the boys" decided to get up and see where my baby was. He greeted us all at the steps looking like this.

All I could do was look at my husband and say... nice. Then, I venture off to find what he had gotten into. Fingernail polish! On his eyes!! He must have watched me put eyeshadow on before and even his eyelashes were pink. He did try doing his toenails too but I couldn't get a shot that wasn't real blurry, so you only get his face painting.

Funny thing is he found this polish in a different place than where he saw me put mine away.

The good Lord was looking out for my hubby though...there wasn't a speck of fingernail polish anywhere else but on my baby. Oh yes ya'll, the sweet Lord was DEFINITELY looking out for my hubby!!! :)

Gone...forever

I got a call the other night from a good friend. She told me someone we had gone to high school with had just killed himself.

My heart is so heavy.

I see his face. Young. Cheerful. Happy. I have no idea the road life has taken him down all these years. I wonder, how alone do you have to feel to do something like that? As tears fall down my cheeks I think, " What if?"... If I had only known, but there was no way for me to know.

This is not the first time someone I have known has chosen this road.

I am so scared of what lies ahead for my children. What choices will they make when encountered by the things of this world.

The world has gone crazy. Drugs, alcohol, murder, suicide. Can life really get that bad?

I just keep seeing his face. I wish I could reach out and help him, but he's gone. Forever.

What did he say to himself before he did something so final? My heart aches for how alone he must have felt. Caught up in a world that offers nothing.

My dear Christian friends, the time to speak is now. Don't hide the hope inside any longer. We have to share it with the world. There may never be another chance.

We walk passed them on the street. It's that single mom struggling to make it. They sit next to us in church. I'm urging all of us to not sit idle...let's go find them. There may never be another chance.





If anyone out there is as alone as he was and you are reading this, I want you to know there is hope and it lies in the name of Jesus. He will always be there to help you. If you want to know how to find that hope, email me at kcnace@kc.rr.com and I will listen. I will share with you the everlasting love of Jesus.

Oh, God please hear me. There are so many lonely people who are going to do the same thing. God please help me find them so I can share your love with them. So I can tell them they are never alone. That you will be right by their side if they would only accept you. God help them. Forgive them for they no not what they do. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

You saved me

I'm not sure why the Lord is leading me to share this today. It has been written for some time now- saved away for a better time. I have been scared to share it. Afraid of what friends might think if they knew the person I was or the things I used to do. But God has a plan and today is the day.

I was at a Christian women's conference in 1999. My mother-in-law, Cheryl, had invited me to go. She wasn't my mother-in-law at the time but I am now blessed to be able to call her that.

I sat at the conference all day listening to people's testimonies. I cried a lot listening to all their stories, which weren't so different than mine. At the end of the conference they had a time for you to come forward if you wanted to ask Jesus into your heart. I wasn't sure what had came over me, but there I was walking down the LONG isle to the front. I wanted to ask Jesus into my heart. I wanted forgiveness for all my sins. I wanted peace in my heart. I know now that it was the Holy Spirit that walked me down the isle because I am certain it was not me moving my legs. Thank you God! Oh, how I needed your help!

After the conference was over we headed back to Cheryl's house. I had planned on leaving from there right away to make the hour long drive to my house. I had plans with a couple of friends that night. We were going to be drinking and most likely, partaking in some sort of illegal drug. I was never an addict, but if God had not intervened when he did, I very well could have been.

But, what I hadn't planned on was asking Jesus into my heart earlier that day. I knew there was no way I could go home that night- so I asked Gary and Cheryl if I could stay at their house for the night. Of course, they said yes.

I didn't get much sleep that night. I was awake crying in the room. It was just me and God. I felt in my heart that I needed to confess every sin I could remember ever committing. I hungered for that forgiveness. I wanted peace in my heart.

The next morning I felt so good- though my eyes were almost swollen shut from all the tears. I ate breakfast and headed home. I went straight to my friends' house. The ones I was supposed to go partying with the night before. I sat on their front porch with them and told them that I had gotten saved last night. They looked at me like I was crazy. They said, " What does that mean?" I shared that I had asked Jesus into my heart as Lord and Savior of my life and that he had died on the cross as payment for all the things I had done wrong and that I was forgiven for all of it. They still thought I was crazy. They didn't understand what I was saying because they didn't have Jesus living in their hearts.

I went home and fell on the couch in despair. My friends thought I was crazy. I felt dejected and my joy for the Lord felt far away, as if it had left as quickly as it came. I remember sitting there on the couch with my arms folded and my head hung. I felt so alone.

Then, I tilted my head up and there on the wall was the shadow of a cross that was filtering in from a nearby window. I knew God had placed it there at that exact moment. My heart welled up with love for my God once again and my joy was brought back. In that very moment I knew that My God would never leave me. My God would never forsake me. He had seen what I had shared with my friends and wanted me to know that he was there, regardless of what they thought of me.

God can give you this same peace. All you have to do is accept his grace and love. Just believe in your heart that he died on the cross so that your sins would be remembered no more, and on the third day he rose from the grave and now sits at the right hand of the Father in heaven. He has risen to prepare a place for you and if he has risen to prepare a place for you then He will come back so that you may be where He is. If you feel Him tugging at your heart-- then don't waste another second. Just take that first step, believe in your heart and let the Lord do the rest.


Here is a song I found the other day. It speaks of a message very dear to my heart.
If you get nothing else from this-please get this...God can change people. I can testify to it. No matter the past- PEOPLE CAN CHANGE! Don't judge - just pray.

If there's someone out there ready to ask Jesus into their heart but you don't know how or what to do, email me at kcnace@kc.rr.com and I will do my best to help you. If there is some one who needs prayer, if there is someone who needs to talk- I am here and more willing than you know.

PEOPLE CAN CHANGE!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLXrGPES554

Go see Amy for more beautiful songs, or also here for more stories of signs, miracles, and wonders!

Midweek Motivation

I'm over here today!

No Emergencies

Okay, this weekend my house was full. There were 12 of us. Six children(5 of which are under the age of 7) and then 6 adults.

We managed to escape the weekend with only 2 scrapped elbows, a nice concrete burn along the spine, and a seriously bruised hip! But, no emergency room visits. This is truly amazing my friends, considering grown men and 1 woman decided to ride children's scooters( with a weight limit that was far exceeded) down a hill at high rates of speed.

Um, HELLO- DANGER! DANGER!

Thank you, Lord for looking out for us. It was truly a great weekend and a wonderful Mother's Day!

It's all about the hike

Since we're on the subject of dogs, I'll share a cute story with you.

It was Justin's turn to take Ralphie, our dog, out for a walk. He came back in overjoyed, saying "He's a real dog now!!"

" What do you mean?" asked Dallas, our daughter. Justin replied, " He hiked his leg for the first time when he went to the bathroom!"

My son had some how associated the hiking of a leg to becoming a "real dog." I started thinking about how Ralphie's actions had proven to my son that he is what he is--a dog. What Ralphie had done is what dogs are "supposed to do."

Makes you think about how people are watching us as Christians. Do our actions tell them who or what we are? Are we acting like we are Christians? Are we showing others that we walk the walk and not just talk the talk?

Funny what can bring God to mind...

...and the dog got a haircut...

I used to be a clean freak. Some of those who know me well still think I am, but that I have chilled out a little. I can honestly say there wouldn't have been a time when you could drop by and my house didn't smell like it had just been mopped.

Some say that might be a good thing. I say it took away time from my kids. It also didn't allow my kids to be kids because I couldn't let their toys lie around for too long.

I thought this was how I was supposed to run my house, that if I was a stay at home mom then my house had to be pristine. Over the last couple of years God had laid it on my heart that I wasn't letting my kids be kids. I was always hollering to pick this up or don't do that.

Now, you will find crumbs under my kitchen table- if the dog hasn't been under there to lap them up. Yes, I did just say dog. I have NEVER been a pet person- the smell, the hair! But, we got one for the kids this past Christmas. And that, has taken some time to get used to. For me it's like standing at the open door of the airplane at 15,000 feet waiting for someone to push you out the door. One of those things you have to force yourself to do.

But again, God has been faithful in getting me through this one too. He is my parachute. When I feel like taking the dog to the pound(which is at least once a day), I hear him say, "He won't be a puppy forever." That and the fact that I just got this dog's hair buzzed to 1/4 of an inch is helping me a great deal!

In the meantime, I pray that my house doesn't smell like a dog and that no one finds a hair in their food!

Here's Ralphie- before and after the buzz!!

Really...it's best for all involved!

:o)