Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” Ephesians 6:7

This scripture makes me look at my work as a mother in whole different light. Many times I do find myself working for people to make sure I have their approval or to appease them. I've asked myself, "Did I just do that because it was the righteous thing to do or did I just do that, so I can make others happy?" I then have to take a step back from the situation & reexamine my intentions. I've learned & have been reminded more times then I care to admit that trying to please others all the time is impossible. All I can do is my best & let God take care of the rest. I've reprimanded myself for all the effort that I use in trying to please others, when that same enthusiasm can used to please the One that matters the most, --->God.

Psalm 9:1-2 NLT
I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done. I will be filled with joy because of you...

One valuable thing about being a Christian women is looking for the good God makes out of every situation. God is always at work and has a greater purpose, even I fail to see it. Seeing God's blessings in tough situations leads to praise & gratitude. When I begin to look for God to show up in my life, he will be there doing marvelous things and I will be filled with joy

The Gift of Peace.

John 14:27 NLT
27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

The peace God has given us is a gift and it's up to us to receive it. The way I look at this verse is similar to when someone buys you a gift, you accept it, but you never open it. So, it stays there beautifully wrapped, but you'll never know what's inside. Many of us have accepted the peace of God, but have not experienced it or chose not to use it because we have retreated to our own methods of self peace. Don't let this gift stay on the shelves of your heart collecting worry, fear of the unknown, depression, etc. Open your heart to experience something the world can't give you, peace that passes all understanding.

F.R.O.G.

F.R.O.G.
~Forever relying on God~
Yesterday, I was doing the laundry & I found toy frogs in the drier. When I seen them I immediately thought of an acronym for the word frog ~Forever relying on God.~ We can learn a lesson from frogs. They don't worry about where they are going to get their next meal they simply rely on God to provide for them. The bible tells us 1 Peter 5:7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. When you & I are open to hear God's voice he'll use your kids toys to speak to you. And remind us of His promises.<3<3<3

Air hockey.

My son Judah has autism and many times kids with autism have a difficult time socializing and initiating play. This past Sunday we went to Chucky E.Cheese after church. Anyhow, Judah kept coming back & forth to get tokens from me because I'd only give him one at a time or else he'd put all his tokens in one game when it only required one token to play the game. Lol! One of the times he came back he went up to a lil boy who was just standing by the air hockey game and he put in his token & got the paddle & started to play with him. It was amazing! He independently initiated play with someone he never met!! Right before my eyes I witnessed God answer my prayer. Thank you, Jesus! You hear all my prayers including the ones that might be small to others, but none-the-less, still very important to me.

Psalm 116:1
I love the LORD because he hears & answers my prayers.

3 Tricks That Rob Victory

One of the many things I constantly battle with is insecurity! Sigh.:/ I wish I could naturally be this confident, strong women of God. Maybe I wouldn't appreciate it as much if I was.  The story of David & Goliath has helped me to see it doesn't matter if you're well built or not. If your trust isn't in God you won't experience God-confidence.

Lately, I've been reading the story of David & Goliath to my kids quite a lot. It's an amazing story! One of the things that stood out to me the most besides David & Goliath is Saul & the army men of Israel.

King Saul and his men were not scrooney men. It seems in order for David's 3 eldest brothers & the men of Israel to be a part of Saul's army they had to be pretty well built. (1Samuel 16:6-10), which they were because they were chosen in Saul's army. (1 Sam.17:13-14) One of the things I couldn't comprehend at first was if they had all the these strong men in Saul's army what was their problem?! They were more than equipped with God on their side to defeat the Philistines. So, now I was even more curious to know why they were so afraid. Then God gave me insight & I want to share it with you.

1 Samuel 17:8 says,"Goliath stood and shouted a taunt across to the Israelites. “Why are you all coming out to fight?” he called. “I am the Philistine champion, but you are only the servants of Saul."

The enemy loves to brag about how big & strong he is! His #1 trick is to make us feel small & insignificant: no matter how big our stature is or isn't. Goliath told the men of Israel that they were only servants of Saul. He made them feel insecure & made them doubt their own competence in God. He caused them to size up themselves to him. Once, he got the men of Israel to focus on their own weaknesses; they forget how powerful & strong God was compared to Goliath.

The enemy has 3 strategic plans to keep us from defeating the giants in our lives.

1. Insecurity
Once you begin to feel insecure in the abilities & talents God has given you, your insecurities will override God's track record of victory. Insecurities cause amnesia. The men of Israel forgot that their strength & abilities alone couldn't defeat this giant, but God was the one who'd fight their battles.

2. Comparing
The men compared themselves to this 9ft tall giant, so in their minds they looked like ants compared to Goliath. When you begin to compare yourself to others, it only leads to depression. Comparison makes us limit God's power & traps you into a mental pit of lies.

3. Fear
1 Samuel 17:25 NLT
“Have you seen the giant?” the men asked. “He comes out each day to defy Israel."

By the time David had reached the camp. Goliath's plan of instilling insecurity & comparison had  worked. The last step was fear. He had these men & Saul so terrified & deeply shaken! That their fear blinded them of faith to see God perform the miraculous through their impossible situation. These men we're so afraid they couldn't see past how big & scary Goliath was. Fear causes us to only see our weaknesses or problems, and not the promises of God.


So, I understand more now how the enemy works... Insecurity, comparing, & fear are all ways the enemy causes us to loose sight of God's plan for our lives. We must arm ourselves like David did with the Word of God. Before David went to fight Goliath, he went to a stream to get 5 smooth stones. I believe, David didn't just go there to get 5 stones, but to spend time alone with God. A stream in the bible symbolizes the Holy Spirit. John 7:38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within them. When you have God's Spirit dwelling within you it's refreshing, encouraging, strengthening, clarifying, & inspiring. Consistent time spent alone in God's presence is your opportunity to collect your stones (God's Word) to defeat the giants that come your way. 

It's amazing how simple and big a kids faith in God is. My son Micah (7yrs old) is losing another tooth he really wants it to come out bad, because the tooth angel (Grandma Dina) will give him $5 dollars. Today as he was doing his homework he showed me his loose tooth and the progress it's made in becoming more loose. I jokingly teased him "let me pull it out for you." "No way mom!" 'Let's pray & ask God to make it come out. He can make it come out & it won't hurt me." So, we prayed asked God to make his tooth come out, that way the tooth angel can give him $5 dollars.
His faith in God is so sure. He has no doubt that God will hear his prayer concerning the matter of his loose tooth. "Mom, I prayed and God heard me." What pure faith. Kids don't need a lot of evidence to believe. They're so confident in Him already.
They don't need a sermon, songs, spectacular program to pump them up into believing. Not that's their is anything wrong with that stuff. I just thinks it's wrong when we need that stuff to believe in the vision of our church.
They bypass all that and get straight to the point. Their purity & confidence in God allows them to receive their answer. They just believe. It's no wonder the bible says, "Truly I say to you, Unless You turn around and become as young children, you will by no means enter into the kingdom of the heaven." (Matthew 13:8)