Thankful Thursday

As I sit here typing this morning, there is a gentle rain falling outside.... it's all so calm and peaceful. So very different than when I was awakened around 5:30 this morning by loud thundering, lightening and much heavier rainfall. And, while that is not calm and peaceful, it does lend itself (at least for me) to snuggling down under the covers and sleeping well.

We've had rain off and on here for a little over a week now. Along with that has been temperatures that are cooler than usual. In our neck of the woods, we are usually consistently in triple digits in July and it is DRY! Not so this year and we are thoroughly enjoying it!

On a Sunday afternoon about two weeks ago, the kids and I were sitting outside on the back porch watching it rain. They ran around in the yard some and enjoyed "dancing in the rain" and we just sat and talked some, too. One of the things that Abby (who, by the way, is 5 years old today.. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ABBY!!) brought up was how God brings us the rain to help all the plants and the tress to grow. This led to a long list of all the benefits of rain... it helps the flowers grow, gives the animals water to drink, give US water to drink, makes the world beautiful, etc.

This has all got me to thinking about the many ways in which God provides for each and every one of us. Whether it be rain, or cooler temperatures, or if it is tough situations we face in life... God ALWAYS provides.


To join us in sharing our thanksgivings this week, visit Lynn at "Spiritually Unequal Marriage".

Don't Let Yourself Be Judged

Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days -- these are only the shadow of the things to come, but the reality is Christ! Let no one who delights in humility and the worship of angels pass judgment on you. That person goes on at great lengths about what he has supposedly seen, but he is puffed up with empty notions by his fleshly mind. He has not held fast to the head from whom the whole body, supported and knit together through its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God. If you have died with Christ to the elemental spirits of the world, why do you submit to them as though you lived in the world? "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!" These are all destined to perish with use, founded as they are on human commands and teachings. Even though they have the appearance of wisdom with their self-imposed worship and false humility achieved by an unsparing treatment of the body -- a wisdom with no true value -- they in reality result in fleshly indulgence. Colossians 2:16-23

At the time Paul wrote to the people of Colossae, the importance of following certain practices or customs was widely taught as being crucial in following Christ. There was Passover to be followed, the Feasts of the Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, the Day of Atonement, the Feast of Tabernacles. There were foods that were prohibited and burnt offerings to be offered to God, along with holidays that must be observed.

If you were not partaking in these you could be judged harshly by those that were partaking. Many were under the belief that if you didn't follow these practices that you could never be right with God.

This is what Paul is addressing when he tells us in verse 16, "... do not let anyone judge you...". If we look back to Colossians 2:15, Paul tells us of Jesus, "..triumphing over them by the cross." It is because of His sacrifice on the cross that we should not fear being judged by others. It is because Jesus fought the battle for us on the cross and victoriously won that we no longer must worry about the laws of the Old Testament.

Now we have a choice as to whether or not we follow those laws of the Old Testament. None of them should ever be considered "bad". They served a great purpose, but once Jesus came to this earth they were no longer necessary. He took the place of any need to follow the laws of the Old Testament. And, while there is nothing wrong with following any of these laws, there is NO NEED TO FOLLOW THESE LAWS.

Because of Jesus, ALL our days belong to God -- not just the certain holiday that once had to be observed. Because of Jesus, ALL foods are pure -- not just certain ones that have been deemed acceptable.

Because of Jesus, there is no need to worry about all the "do nots". As stated in the Enduring Word on-line commentary, "Christianity is a moral religion; it does have clear moral boundaries. But at its foundation, Christianity is a religion of positive action." Because of the cross, we don't have to worry about what we cannot do but rather what we can do.

Learning From Some Funky Monkeys

We had the opportunity this week to see Dennis Lee and The Funky Monkey Bunch. Our church hosted this very talented ventriloquist and pupper master Wednesday evening.

If you have never seen him before, you must check him out. Our kids laughed themselves silly and learned about how their lives are a special gift from God all at the same time. There were moments when I wasn’t sure who was funnier… Dennis Lee or my children enjoying themselves so much!

At a time when so many in our world do not see how valuable their lives are and what a gift God has given them, this was a very special message that I think all children should hear…. over and over and over again. Dennis Lee and his cast of characters spent about an hour sharing with the kids about the gift God has given us in our own life and how important it is that we treasure it and fully enjoy each and everyday. He stressed the importance of keeping our lives out of the garbage (bad TV shows, bad attitudes, etc) and putting them in the garden where they are cared for and nurtured and cleaned. A great message combined with great fun…who could ask for more?! :)

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Not much going on around here this weekend except fun and relaxation – and probably more laughter as the kids are already planning to spend some time watching the DVD we purchased Wednesday night at the show.

Have a great weekend!!

Thankful Thursday

Several days ago I was out driving after a particularly difficult morning at work. Nothing new (I have been working thru these same work-related difficulties for quite some time now)and certainly nothing that is huge in the grand scheme of life, but nevertheless, it had been difficult.

Both of my children have birthdays over the next few weeks, so I decided to get out during my lunch break and go shopping for birthday presents. I knew that would perk me up and put me in much better spirits for the afternoon back at the office.

As I was driving I was thinking thru all that had happened and was talking to God about it all. I was determined that I would place it all in God's hands... let Him handle it all and fully trust Him. It seems like I have just kept on placing these same frustrations in God's hands over and over and over again thru the course of the last year or so, but once again, here I was doing it again. I'm sure there is a lesson here for me.... maybe I keep taking it back and that is why I have to turn it over once again.... maybe there is a lesson here in perserverance for me..... maybe a lesson in patience. Or, more than likely, all of the above.

As I pulled into the Toys 'R Us parking lot it seemed as if these words just popped into my head out of nowhere,

"My God is so big,

so strong and so mighty,

there is nothing that my God can't do!"

Wow! What a great reminder was given to me in those moments... all in the words from a children's song. My God is big and he is strong and he is mighty and there is nothing in my life that He cannot or will not handle if I just place it in His hands. Whatever lesson there is for me to learn and wherever it is that He is leading, He can handle it and He can and will do it!

How thankful I am that my God is big and my God is strong and there is NOTHING that He cannot do!

To join us in sharing our thanksgivings this week, visit Lynn at "Spiritually Unequal Marriage".

Here's Something We Really Enjoyed....

Last week I mentioned we would be fixing some salmon around here over the weekend. I don't know why, but I always seem to have problems when it comes to cooking fish... it always comes out overcooked, undercooked, or in some other not-so-good form. However, I'm happy to report that this salmon came out just perfect. And, even better, we had a great time getting it that way. I must admit that cooking with a 7 year old and a 4 year old can be a bit chaotic, but all in all we had a good time doing it all together.

We enjoyed the finished product so much I decided I'd share the recipe with you. Several of you left comments about how much your family enjoys salmon... maybe you'll enjoy this recipe, too.

It is from an episode of the The Next Food Network Star and was published in a recent Good Housekeeping magazine. You can find it on Good Housekeeping's webiste here.

Here's a peek at what ours looked like.... YUMMY!

Have a great weekend!

Thankful Thursday

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

I don't think I can find the words to express how much this verse means to me. How blessed we are to be able to turn over anything and everything to God. And, to know that we can do so with thanksgiving in our hearts regardless of the circumstances just makes it that much better.

I have spent much time over the past few months focusing on all the blessings in my life. I have then tried to take time on top of that to make sure I express my thankfulness to God. The difference I have seen in my whole attitude and my whole outlook on life in general has been so great!

Paul tells us that when we come before God with our concerns and when we come with a heart of thanksgiving that ".... the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus". What a promise!

This promise is what I am most thankful for this week. As I've been on this "thankful journey" over the last few months I have seen these words from Paul play out in my life. It is so true that when we focus on the many blessings God has given us, when we express those thankgivings to Him, and when we remember them and praise God for them even in the toughest of moments, God WILL give us peace.


To join us in sharing our thanksgivings this week, visit Lynn at "Spiritually Unequal Marriage".

To Whom Do We Listen?

In him you also were circumcised -- not, however, with a circumcision performed by human hands, but by the removal of the fleshly body, that is, through the circumcision done by Christ. Having been buried with him in baptism, you also have been raised with him through your faith in the power of God who raised him from the dead. And even though you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he nevertheless made you alive with him, having forgiven all your transgressions. He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:11-15


One reason Paul wrote to the people of Colossae was to warn them of false teachings. Paul wanted them to know there was no reason to believe and rely on these teachings – they had the Lord and they had the gift He gave to us when He gave us his Son on the cross.

Due to these false teachings, the Colossians had many wrong ideas about Jesus and many wrong ideas about the customs and traditions of the time. One of these was in relation to circumcision. They were being taught they must be circumcised to be right with God. However, Paul makes it clear to them that this is not true. By placing our lives in the hands of God, by trusting Him and surrendering to Him, by putting off the sins of this world – that is how we are circumcised. It is not the physical act of circumcision that makes us right with God. It is the spiritual circumcision, the putting off of the sins of the world and discarding our old lives to be made new in Christ.

Because Jesus gave his life on the cross, there is no need for traditions and “acts” to find our way to God or to our eternal home in heaven. Thru Jesus we have all we will ever need – grace, mercy, forgiveness, a relationship with God.

While reading thru the commentary on this passage at Enduring Word, I found this –

“Paul wrote in another place that if the rulers of this age – by which he meant both the spiritual powers of darkness and their earthly representative – had known what would happen on the cross, they would have never crucified Jesus (1 Corinthians 2:8). They were defeating themselves and didn’t even know it.”


All those teaching falsely and insisting we must live by the “law” as opposed to God’s Word were intimidated by Jesus. He took away their perceived control and their power when he came to earth as a man. They began to feel insecure in their own teachings and in their position in the religious and political communities of the time. They felt the only way to change this was to “get rid of” Jesus. But, oh, how wrong they were. And, oh, how thankful I am!!

As I look around at the world today, I see some of the same things taking place -- people filled with insecurities and fears and placing the blame on God. It’s so much easier to place the blame on Him rather than to take responsibility ourselves and turn our lives over to God, isn’t it?

I suspect that someday these same people in our world today may feel similar to how those that persecuted Jesus might feel if they had lived to see and experience the outcome of their actions. They are trying to fight off God’s Word and diminish it and ultimately missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime – ETERNITY!

A Whole Lot of Random

How's summer going for you all? I hope you are having as much fun as we are! In fact, it's all going so well that I'm struggling to sit down and write out a blog post. I've about decided that, while I'm be around this summer, I may be around a little less than I am the rest of the year. This is just such a prime time of the year for all kinds of other things... and things that are really important (you know, like that family and all those friends!).

Anyhow, how about a little taste of what we've been doing lately? Our highlight so far this month was probably 4th of July weekend. We took several families we are friends with and headed up to my husband's family farm. Years ago when he was just a little kiddo his Dad purchased this piece of land and he grew up going out there, helping out, playing, fishing, etc. It's got a lake that is great for fishing and has great places for hanging out to grill up a great meal and maybe, just maybe shoot off way too many fireworks! Yes, we did all of that last weekend and had such a good time. We had three families together with a total of 8 kids between the ages of 16 and 4. I can't even begin to tell you how great it was so see all these big kids playing with the little kids -- hanging out with them, trying to teach them to fish, etc. Very cool!

We're also in the midst of swim lessons. Both Josh and Abby are taking their first swim lessons ever this summer. Josh loves water but, for some reason, has always been fearful of taking lessons (I think it has something to do with the big 'ole swimming pool as opposed to the backyard waterslide and other smaller versions of water fun). A few weeks ago, though, when we went swimming with all his cousins he started getting a little braver. He hasn't turned back since and both he and Abby are having a blast with these lessons. And, I must say, I'm having such fun watching!

Let's see... what else is going on? Oh, yes! Look over there to the right and you'll see I've put up a new poll for charities. Since I was able to send $25.00 (actually, I think it was $26.50 to be exact) to St. Jude Children's Hospital last week from the money raised by running the ads on my blog, I've now put up a new poll for who gets the next check. Place your vote now and we'll see where it will go. If you've got one that you love, but isn't on the list just leave it in the comments and I'll get it added.

In closing, I'd like to ask that you continue to pray for my aunt and uncle. As I shared with you several weeks ago, my uncle has recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I'd like to ask that you pray for his health. However, I'd also like to ask that you pray for both of them as they walk this road together. Please pray they would feel God's presence with them in a very real way and that they would be able to just turn it all over to God... that they would put their trust in Him and allow Him to guide them and comfort them during this time.

And, now I'm off to get the rest of the "weekday stuff" done so I can move on to the weekend. We've got plans for relaxing (hmmm... I've got that on my mind alot lately, huh?), date night for hubby and I, followed by church on Sunday with more of that relaxing thing going on.

Oh, and I almost forgot, I've got to figure out how to cook salmon, too! What, you say? Well, Josh has recently become a huge fan of The Food Network. Our standard Saturday morning lately is for the two of us to curl up on the sofa together and watch his favorite Food Network shows that we've recorded during the week. He particularly loves the ones that are a type of competition (Chopped, Iron Chef, The Next Food Network Star). A few weeks ago the weekly winner on The Next Food Network Star had her recipe published in Good Housekeeping. He would have nothing until we got that magazine so we could get her salmon recipe. I've never cooked salmon before, so we'll see how this goes.... should be fun! :)

Have a great weekend!!

Where is Your Focus?

Be careful not to allow anyone to captivate you through an empty, deceitful philosophy that is according to human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him all the fullness of deity lives in bodily form, and you have been filled in him, who is the head over every ruler and authority. " Colossians 2:8-10

As in other parts of Colossians, Paul begins this passage with a warning not to be taken in by other beliefs and traditions that are not of Christ. One of the key messages from Paul here is that we need to turn away from the beliefs of the world and turn to Christ.

The philosophies of this time were a mix of early Gnosticism, Greek philosophy, local mystery religions and Jewish mysticism. All of these presented great danger as any of it could easily sneak into their lives because it had a sound of great intelligence.

To get a bit more specific, here are a few of the beliefs the Paul was trying to warn of:

* Gnosticism taught that God could never be in direct contact with anything or anyone of this world. If this were true, God would not have created the world (Gnosticism taught that God worked through lesser spirits or angels to create the world), Jesus would never have walked this earth and we would have no personal relationship with God (Gnosticism taught that God deals with us through mediators/angelic beings).

* The Jewish influence emphasized dietary laws and specific days that must be observed.

* Both Gnosticism and the Jewish influence taught that traditions were very important, but Paul warned against the "tradition of men" and guided them the authority of the word of God.

* Both Gnosticism and the Jews also believed in "cause and effect". In other words, I did this bad thing so I deserve to have this other bad thing happen to me as punishment. Paul pointed out this behavior as being "grace-eliminating". God is a God full of grace and mercy not of "cause and effect".

As we follow God and His authority, we find there is no need for these philosophies and traditions. If we read verses 9 and 10 again, we see we are complete through our connection in Him. The gift Jesus gave to us on the cross takes care of everything. There is no need for anything else.

As I read thru the common beliefs held during the time Paul wrote to the Colossians, I was amazed at the similarities we see in our world today. We may not call them the same things, but they are there. How often do we hear people speak about "deserving what they get because of their behavior" or "if I'm a good person I'll go to heaven"? What about those beliefs that Jesus was just a prophet or a good person? Lines up a bit with believing the God could never have contact with this world, doesn't it? And, I could go on and on.

We encounter the same things today as the Colossians did so many years ago. The world has changed, but the same basic beliefs and principles still exist. We must still be careful today. It is just as important for us today to heed Paul's warnings as it was for the Colossians so many years ago.

Happy 4th of July!!

And the Donation Goes To......

You may remember way back last fall I wrote this post about using ads on my blog to raise money for charitable organizations. I’ve also had a post on my sidebar for awhile now asking you to vote for your favorite organization from a list of four.

Finally, after about 8 months there have been enough visits to my blog that I received a check in the mail for $25.06. This weekend I will be mailing a check to the winning organization in the poll. And, that organization is…… ST. JUDE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL in Memphis, TN. This is one of my favorites, as well. Anyplace that does so much for children is near and dear to my heart.

Thank you all for your visits! This is only possible because you take a few minutes out of your day to visit me here at my little “online home”.

I’ll have a new poll up soon with a few organizations from which to choose in voting. If you have any favorites you’d like to see included, just let me know.

Thankful Thursday

I have shared here many times how thankful I am for my family. The Lord has blessed me with a wonderful husband and terrific children. While I have expressed this same thanksgiving many times, I must express it again this week.

You see, I have been reminded me in a very real way how very fortuanate I am to have these three terrific people. And, not just that they have been a part of my life, but they are still with me in a physical sense.

Late Monday afternoon one of my co-workers received the type of call none of us ever wants to get. He works out of our California office and lives there with his family. On this afternoon his wife and two daughters, along other extended family members, had gone to the beach for the afternoon. As his youngest daughter was wading in very shallow waters, she was swept away in a riptide. His wife immediately went in to rescue her. Both were swept further out and did not live.

In the blink of an eye he lost both his wife and his youngest daughter. I cannot even begin to express to you my heartbreak for him and his surviving daughter. As I have prayed for them both this week, I have also realized once again how very fortunate I am to have my family close by my side each day.

As we go into a fun-filled holiday weekend, I plan to hold each member of my family a little closer, love them a little harder, and make sure each of them knows how dear they are to me. At the same time, I'll be praying many prayers of thankfulness for the gift God has given me.

To join us in sharing our thanksgivings this week, visit Lynn at "Spiritually Unequal Marriage".