Praise brings results. ;)

The past couple of days have been a whirlwind for me.  First, my computer exploded.  Like, literally exploded. The fan started making the horrific sound and BAM!  An explosion. (well, in all honesty it was a really loud boom - not like a BOOM but a boom.)  After that - nothing.

As someone who is a writer, it is imperative I have a computer (because we know pen and paper is sooo redundant.  just kidding!!).  So, I really didn't know what to think - I wanted to scream, to throw it in the yard but I didn't.  Instead, I laughed.  Really all the enemy wants from us is to throw us in the deep end - where we're struggling for air, grasping at the water in front of us wishing and willing ourselves to grab hold of something, - anything.  All he wants to do is shake us up because when we're shaken, we can't see straight.  We might start forgetting all the benefits the Lord grants us (Ps 103:2-5), and THAT is what he aims to do.

No, I didn't pitch a total fit.  I sat there on my bed with a booming computer and laughed - partly out of frustration but mostly because I knew it was the enemy trying to get a rise out of me.  I held my ground and laughed in his face.  I called him a loser and a punk.  I told him that this hindrance he was trying to cause was not in any way diminishing my faith in my Father.  I started praising the Lord, thanking Him for the brand new, even better, prettier version of my newly deceased laptop that I just knew He was planning to give me. :)

That happened on August 29th.  Today, September 6, I go to my door and what do I see??  I see the Fed-ex guy standing there with a box from Dell in his hands!!!  I.almost.died.

God is so good to me.  He gave me a brand new, PINK, Dell Inspiron 15R.  It's totally swanky and completely fast!  In fact, this very blog post is the first thing I'm using it for.  It manifested itself because of praise, the least I can do is have its first action be a praise report!  <woot, woot>

If you're praying for something, or praising God for something you're already believing, just hold on.  God is still in the GIVING business!  Don't lose hold of your faith - just keep believing and never stop praising.

Stay blessed!
{heather}


*edited to add:  I am so thankful for the people that God decides to use in all our daily lives.  The fact that God thinks enough about us to use regular ol' people to bless us is miraculous in itself!  I am grateful for the person God used to bless me with my snazzy new computer that I had to pay nothing for.  :)  I pray that I can 'pay it forward' so to speak.  I pray that I am able to hear the need in others and that I am a blessing to them.  That's my prayer for all of us.

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You are NOT Crushed!

Be encouraged as you are pressured from every side, I am using all things to draw you closer to Me. My Word will be accomplished, every prophetic Word will come to pass, as this age is drawing to a close. Be not weary in trusting in Me, I will uphold you and preserve you. Your forefathers and the saints of old, longed to see your day. This is the day that my glory will shine brightly, even more as darkness increases. This is the day of My greatness, when My anointing shall rest on all that will yield, the old and the young. Wait, write and be attentive. All things that I have spoken in My Word are accelerating to an end. Stay in a state of readiness. Awaken yourself to My Presence. Do not become overwhelmed by the pressures, you must overpower them by submerging yourself into communion with Me, says the Lord.  ~ Debra Lowe

What does God really see when He looks at us?

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked.  Who really knows how bad it is?"  Jeremiah 17:9

I believe this scripture to be one of the most 'taken out of context' scriptures in the Bible.  If you are a believer, a child of the Almighty God, then you're heart is NOT wicked, or deceitful.  Not anymore.

When reading scripture, it is so important that we remember the context in which His Word was written.  This verse goes along with the old covenant.  You, my friend, are living under the NEW covenant.

Reading the rest of Jeremiah in verse 31:33, God lets us in on the 'cure' for our wicked hearts.  He tells us what HE is going to do to heal us:  "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.  I will be their God, and they will be my people."  He will give us a new heart.  (I love that!)

So, what about our 'wickedness'?  Well, Psalm 103:12 tells us that God has tossed our sin 'as far as the east is from the west'.  Romans 8:1 says that God doesn't have one condemning thought towards us.  God does NOT see sin when He looks at us.  Period.  John 3:16 says that 'whosoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life".  If you believe in Him - believe what He did for you by sacrificing His Son Jesus to lay Himself bare before men, to die for your wickedness, to give Himself up for your judgement and rose three days later to sit at the right hand of the Father - if you believe in your heart, soul and spirit that Jesus Christ is the Holy Son of God - then Grace abounds to you.  Your sin has been taken care of.

We now have a new heart.  Look what God tells us in His Word: "I'll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I'll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that's God-willed, not self-willed. I'll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands. You'll once again live in the land I gave your ancestors. You'll be my people! I'll be your God!"  ~ Ezekial 36:26-27

When God sees you, He sees the you that He designed.  He sees the real you and He loves you.

be blessed,

{heather}

What We're Reading - Week of August 27th

Reading is one of my most favorite activities...I love it.  Curling up on the couch with a good book is as good as it gets for me.

I've traveled the globe with adventurers, I pioneered a lost planet with a race of ancient human beings, heck, I've even walked with Saul on the road to Damascus - and I did all with books.  When I'm not reading fantasies, I'm immersed in Biblical literature.

Here's a few I've read this week - be blessed and enjoy!


Elijah, Steps to a Life of Power by Bob Saffrin - FREE on Kindle.  

This book is a guide, tracking the life of the Old Testament prophet Elijah, to discover God’s plan for us, and learn how to receive his power to accomplish that plan.Each of our lives is a story with a sum total that adds up to something. What does your life add up to so far? What will people say about you when your story ends? Will you make a difference? When people talked about Elijah, they said that the purpose of his life was to turn the hearts of the people back to the worship of the one true God. They said that his mission was: “…to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” 
God has given you a purpose and a mission as well. God has a plan for every life. My hope for you as you read this book is that when you are done you will not be satisfied, but hungry, hungry to hear the infinite God of the universe speak to you as a lover speaks to his bride. I pray that you will finish, panting for more.



The Apostle: The Life of Paul by John Pollock

The Acclaimed, Authentic Biography of the Early Church's Greatest Evangelist--the Apostle Paul.  Master storyteller John Pollock makes Paul and his amazing story freshly alive, so that you can know the greatest apostle much as Luke and Timothy did as they traveled with him. As you turn the pages, you'll sense Paul's motives, his aims and priorities; what mattered to him; and what he was willing to die for.  



Light Of Eidon (Legends of the Guardian-King) by Karen Hancock

Light of Eidon is the first book in the Legends of the Guardian-King Series. It is set in a fictional land during a time similar to our middle ages. The protagonist is a prince who is the fifth-born son in his family with no shot at the throne. Feeling rejected by his brothers, and worst of all his father, he leaves the family and joins a religious order as a novitiate. The book begins as his 8-year novitiate term is over and he is about to take an oath to join the Brotherhood. It wouldn't be much of a story if everything went according to plan, now would it? Very quickly a mystery unfolds. The story accelerates to be a page-turner that makes it hard to put down. It is packed with adventure, action, conspiracy and mystery. There were several times where I thought I had the story "figured out" and knew where it was going, but I was wrong. I love it when I can be "gotten" like that!

Light of Eidon is also an allegory. It is quite possibly one of the best allegories that I have ever read. Since I love J.R.R. Tolkien, I tend to side with him slightly on his opinion of allegories...they can be problematic. Too bad Tolkien couldn't have met Karen Hancock. :) 

Since I just finished Light of Eidon, the story of the kings of Israel (1 and 2 Chronicles) has a pulse it never had before--it was like I added a little salt. I connected with Scriptures in a different way. On the other hand, having a good basis of Scripture--which I firmly believe is inerrant and factual--was a good rock to stand on while reading this fantasy novel. It's easy to get caught up in a good book, especially when that book is a good reflection of the One Good Story. 

Elise Fitzpatrick says in "Give Them Grace" that every story is a retelling of the One Good Story, just that some stories tell it more closely than others. Since I have read that bit, I have been filtering everything I read through this lens and it has been really interesting to perceive. Light of Eidon is a beautiful retelling of the Gospel and how it touches the lives of not only the protagonist, but of nations. This book is suitable for Christians, and especially for non-Christians--though some might react like the negative reviewer on Amazon, "I hate being tricked into reading about Jesus." Though that's not a bad thing. Seeds are still planted. This book focuses not on the coming of the Messiah. That has already happened long before we enter the story. It is set in a world that has many different religions. Which one is right? The religions presented in Light of Eidon have similarities to religions in our world today.

This book is not, however, appropriate for the younger crowd. There is a lot of fighting and blood. There are descriptions of decapitations, sores, descriptions of evil, etc. I know that readers will be limited by their own imaginations in "seeing" these things, but it's still words and it still reaches into the heart. There is also a thread of romance in the story. There is one scene that made me squirm in my seat, and before I knew where it was going I was worried it would ruin my ability to recommend this book. If stories of romance cause you to falter in purity, then you may want to pass this book up, or at least commit to skipping those pages (since it is not long). It didn't go where I thought it would go, and it was a lesson that is useful for teaching. But I still recommend it with reservations. I recommend it for mature teens and adults.

{daily} Psalm

The Orion Nebula, also known as Messier 42 or NGC 1976, is called a diffuse nebula. Being the closest one to Earth, it is about 24 light years in diameter and by the far the brightest from our vantage point.  Credit for the picture is to the Hubble Telescope.  

Enlarge Your Thinking!

I heard this story this morning.  I had heard it once before (not sure where) but it really stuck with me this time:

"Two fishermen were at a lake and one couldn't help but notice that the other guy had a 10" ruler and measured all the fish that he caught. Then, without fail, he always put the big fish back in but kept the little ones. This went on for several hours.
Curiosity got the better of the first fisherman and he just had to ask, “Say, I see that you keep putting the big fish back but keeping the small ones. Can I ask you why?"

“Oh, that’s easy to answer, I only have a 10 inch frying pan to cook them in. It’s been in our family for generations!!”

Have you ever limited yourself to a 10-inch pan mentality?  I have.  I still find myself wanting to 'go there' in my thoughts but I know the truth.  The truth is God wants to shower His children with a huge, record-breaking catch along with all the grills, pans, fire etc. we need to cook it on!!  God even goes a step further and says, "I'll cook it up for you and even serve it to you if you will only believe". 

Maybe you think that your not worthy to receive something bigger, that your only deserving of little fish but friend, that couldn't be further from the truth. Maybe, like the fisherman in this story, this way of thinking has been in your family for generations. It's time to toss out the 10-inch pan in your life and reach for one that is much bigger.

Too many times we are held back due to our own self-imposed limitations. We  challenge you today to not settle any longer for "just getting by" but to dream big and set your sights on bigger things! There is no limit to what you can do or what God is willing to give you if you enlarge your thinking.

Write this verse on a sticky note and put it where you will see it several times a day.  Speak it aloud, commit it to memory - I promise as you do, God will manifest it in your life, your heart and your thoughts.  You don't have to settle anymore.  :)  

"God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us."  Ephesians 3:20-21 

Be Blessed!
{heather}