"You Raise Me Up"

I love Josh Groban's voice. I remember years ago when I first saw him on TV. I was instantly amazed by him. For being so young, he is soulful, soft, and yet has such a powerful voice. His singing is so heartfelt and passionate. It resonates in hearts and souls everywhere. 

Like so many of his others, the song, "You Raise me Up" is beautiful. The chorus of the song goes like this:

"You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be."

The whole song is here:  Josh Groban on You Tube

I am blessed to have several people in my life who "raise me up". My Mom has long encouraged me to do more with my music. God gave me the gift of writing, and I am ashamed to say that I have wasted it for many years. I actually did take some time out in 2005 and recorded a CD, but then that's as far as it went. I never sent it anywhere or did anything with it. A wasted opportunity. 

Jason is a great proponent of any and all of my whims and desires. He's a wonderful "Yes, Dear" kind of guy. ;o) If I want to try it, he's all over it. Pampered Chef? Did it. Avon? Did it. Another cat? Did it, three times. Rearrange the furniture for the umpteeth time? Did it. Jewelry business? Did it. Photography business? Doing it. Paint a room? Did it. New kitchen table? Did it. What's for dinner? He doesn't care, he'll eat it. Go back to school, if you want. Get a job, wherever you want. Be a stay-at-home-mom, if you want. He's awesome!

Then there are my friends. I have several "I'll pray for you" friends. I always appreciate prayers!! My best friend, Cindy, is SO in tune with me, I swear she KNOWS when I need her and she calls me! It's amazing. She is always there when I need her. Her advice is always introspective and right on target. She knows me ridiculously well. I have other friends who raise me up on a daily basis in many different ways. Sometimes they don't even know it. A hug, a smile, a "poke" on Facebook just to they just let me know they are thinking about me. Many others read this blog and send me little notes. I always enjoy the chuckles and comments. All the "little" things raise me up.  

I am still growing as a human being. I am trying to be a better person, more of who God desires me to be. My personal and professional goals have changed as I've gone through life, but my Spiritual goals remain the same. Sometimes I get off track, but I have been fortunate to have friends who keep me headed in the right direction, and I love them for it!

So, for all of you who love me unconditionally, support me and my goals, encourage my aspirations and push me to be a better person... thank you from the bottom of my grateful heart! You are the light that leads me through my dark times and the courage I need to continue my journey. I could not do it without you.

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. 
-1 Thessalonians 5:11

But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. -Hebrews 3:13

God Bless. 

Refrigerator Privileges

Last Sunday's sermon was a masterpiece! It really got me thinking about my own life, my currant situation and where I want to be in this world. So, I took a few key points from the sermon, and here we go:

Focus On Family
I have two younger brothers who I love very much. They are lucky enough to live in the same city and state as my parents (who I also love very much). Being military, we are not afforded that same luxury. My husband is the youngest of his siblings. He has three older sisters, a step-brother and step-sister. His parents live in different states. His family is very spread out, so it would be impossible to live close to all of them, and mine. Our combined family is huge!!

Family is very important to me. I work very hard to keep my family strong, and I am proud to say that there have been relationships in my family that I had a hand in strengthening. I firmly believe that NOTHING is more important than family! I have family members who I am not close with, and it really hurts me to know that they are out there and we don't speak more often. I recently got back in touch with one of my cousins on Facebook. I had not seen her in probably 20 years. It's heartbreaking how life goes by and we don't see each other, we only keep in touch through our parents, or not at all. My grandparents have all passed away. I often wonder about my cousins, aunts and uncles who are not a part of my life. There are a few others who I call from time to time to catch up. Others I "talk" to through the Internet.

My family, my blood, my desire to make sure they know Christ...

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. -Ephesians 2:10

Why You Don't Want To Be An Outcast
Are you an outcast among your family, your circle of friends (or lack thereof) or from the family of the body of Christ? During the sermon I started to answer a maybe/yes. I have so much family I don't know. Does that make me an outcast? I have a lot of "friends" (er, acquaintances) but I have reduced my circle of friends for various reasons. Even though it was my own choice, does that make me an outcast? I am a believer in Christ. I have asked Him into my life, into my heart, into my soul. I pray. I ask for forgiveness. I confess my sins. I go to church. How could I be an outcast from the body of Christ? I don't want to be an outcast! I know what I would be missing!

And just like that, I realized that I don't want to be an outcast, and why no one should want to be an outcast. We should desire to stand in community with our brothers and sisters in Christ and to worship with them. Yes, I am a Christian, even if I didn't go to church on Sunday, but to have that community connection, that communion with other Christians who will love and care about you, nurture your relationship with God and help you grow in your Faith... you're not going to get that by praying at home on the couch. As Christians we have a duty to serve our God and our church. We need to minister to others, to further the mission and continue to plant the seeds so faith and the knowledge of God's eternal love for us can grow in the hearts and souls of others!

What It Means To Be In Community With Christ
When we are in community with Christ, when we are a part of His family, we are "in"! We have full access to all the promises in the Bible, and all the promises of Heaven! We get refrigerator privileges! You're family now, go help yourself, make yourself at home!! BUT, we also have the obligation to uphold our promises to God, to be faithful to Him and live our lives for Him. As I said before, we also have a responsibility to care for the others in his flock.

Do we fully realize the amazing PRICE that was paid for us? Jesus suffered and DIED for our sins.

But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to Him through the blood of Christ. -Ephesians 2:13

Once we were far, but now we are near. God wants us to be close to Him, just as He wants us to be close to one another. We need to get reconnected to those who have become "lost", and we need to share what we know with others. 

And He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that HE is the ONE appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. -Acts 10:42

Proclaiming aloud Your praise and telling of all Your wonderful deeds. -Psalm 26:7

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. -Romans 10:17  So go tell someone!!


Open your heart, open your arms, and lift your eyes to the sky for surely God's overabundant love will be raining down upon you. God Bless!




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*The term "Refrigerator Privileges" came from our pastor, Brother Larry, in his sermon last Sunday. ;o) I wish I could take credit for that gem, but it's not mine! LOL

*Mommy Brag*

So the kids are back in school and things are going very well. Our oldest, J, has a FULL class load! In 10th grade he's already doing college prep work and hopefully he'll be setting himself up for some scholarships! He's a smart young man, and headed in the right direction!! We've had some unexpected bumps along the way, but he's definitely back on track now!! We are very proud of all his hard work and strong determination.

Our youngest, B, is settling in to 2nd grade and making new friends. Unfortunately none of his classmates from last year are in his class this year, but he does know some of his classmates from around the school so he wasn't completely "new". B is a wonderful, friendly, outgoing child with a heart of gold. He showed it again this morning while we were getting ready for school. I was packing his snack and he told me about a classmate who didn't have a snack the first day. He asked her if she forgot it but she didn't answer him. He said, "I thought she was just shy." On the second day of school she didn't have snack again. When they went to wash their hands she told him that she was hungry. He asked if she brought a snack today. She said no, her mother didn't have any. He told me that he felt so sad and that he had shared his snack with her. While they were talking over snacks, she told him that her mother didn't have any money to buy snacks. My heart broke. So as I was packing his snack this morning he asked me to pack extra for her, so he could share again. :o) He is just the sweetest, kindest child I have ever met. He loves and cares about people in the most amazing, unassuming ways.

We did pack extra snack today, another bag of Cheese Nips and another juice box. The smile on his face was amazing, just knowing that he was caring for someone else, and he was so happy to do it. God has truly blessed us in SO many ways, and we are so lucky to be able to share our blessings with the world. I've said it many times, but I wouldn't be at ALL surprised if B grew up to be a pastor. Our kids are our biggest blessings, and they continue to pass it on. That's the best gift of all.

Friendship, Or Is It?

“The friendship that can cease has never been real.”  ~ Saint Jerome

I’m going to have to disagree on this one. During my life, I’ve had many relationships that have come and gone. Just because they changed over time doesn’t mean they were never “real” when they were alive and well. 

You’ll have to give me a little room for this next one. OK, a lot of room… If we followed that logic in other areas, believing that anything, if changed, was never real in the first place, the world would be in a heap of trouble! What about the caterpillars that changed into butterflies? Were they never “real” caterpillars to begin with? Grapes made into wine were never grapes? So where did we get the butterfly, the wine, the raisin and a host of other turned-into creations if the things that created them were never “real”? Ridiculous, right? My point exactly. 

Every end is another beginning. People come in and out of our lives all the time. We never know how long we have them. We move away, relationships change, God has other plans for us… the whole reason/season thing. Let’s face it, we forget about people! Do you remember all of your “friends” from high school? Middle school? Elementary school? Even marriages end, the most sacred of all relationships, but it was still a marriage. However unhealthy, strained or whatever lead to their demise, it was still a “real” marriage at some point. Chances are they really loved each other when they got married. Yes, there are those exceptions, but for the sake of this argument we’re looking at the majority here. 

The same goes for a friendship. They can also become unhealthy or strained, and be forced to end. Most often it’s ugly, painful and loud. Hurt usually leads to the most intense anger and the biggest blowouts. If nobody cared, they wouldn’t fight. There would be nothing to fight over and they would simply walk away. The passionate fight comes from the emotion within, the feeling one has about the relationship, the situation, the other person, etc.  At some point, there is a change, and the friendship may cease, often out of self-preservation of one of the parties. 

Taking care of yourself is necessary. You know when you get on an airplane, and they give the safety speech and they tell you to put your own mask on before helping your children or others? The first time I heard that I was appalled! I thought, “Who would put on their own mask before helping their kid?” Then I realized that if you’re unconscious, you’re not much good to those around you, so if you don’t put your mask on first you probably won’t be helping too many other people. (Kid wisdom is fantastic, but slow.)   ;o)

The idea that a broken friendship was never a real one is just ludicrous to me. I’m sure there are arguments to the contrary, such as “a real friend would never leave, never let us fall apart, would work to save the friendship” but sometimes it just can’t be saved. 

I have learned that it’s OK to walk away from a bad situation, a bad friendship and even a bad marriage. In some cases, it’s even necessary to run.