Do you Know Jesus?

I have battled writing this blog all day. I told myself that I would not write about my nephew Hamp today, but I have an overwhelming need to share Jesus with each of you. You see, Eight years ago today, my nephew was killed in a car wreck. I had always heard that "life is short", and that "you are not promised tomorrow." However, it wasn't until Valentine's Day 2003 that I understood the full extent of those statements.

Before the wreck, I found it so easy to fall into the belief that those type of things happen, but never to me, never to my family. Now I know better. Though I do not understand why it happened, I do know without a doubt that Hamp is in heaven. I also know without a doubt that one day I too will be in heaven. Do you know where you will be when you die? Do you have any doubts? Let me tell you how you can know for sure...

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

This verse tells us that God, the ONE true God, sent His son, that son is Jesus. Jesus came so that anyone who believes in him will not perish in hell, but will have eternal life.

All we need to do to have that eternal life is to believe that Jesus is the son of God, that he died, and that he rose again. He did all this for us so that we will be saved. There is nothing we can do or not do that can save us.

In John 14:6, Jesus tells us, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Jesus is the only way. If you have never made the decision to accept Christ as your Lord and Savior, I urge you do it now. Pray and ask God to forgive you of your sins. Jesus paid the price on the cross, so that you don't have to. Confess that you believe that Jesus is who he says he is. You can do it by yourself or call a friend who is a believer. After you do this, tell others about it. Let them know your decision. And please, let me know, I will love rejoicing with you.

Believe me when I say that you are not promised tomorrow here on this earth, but you are promised eternity. Where will you spend it?

Do you Know that God Loves You?

Just a few minutes ago, I said to my daughter, "Do you know that I love you?" Without hesitation, she said, "Yes, I know because I know you." Then she went on to say, "You show me everyday." That struck me as a really profound truth coming from a 5 year old.

Then I thought, how many of us really know that God loves us? Could it be we doubt His love because we don't really know Him? Do we not recognize the ways in which he shows His love to us everyday?

God loves us even more than we as parents love our children. How do we know this? His word tells us so. In order to know God, we must read His word. The more you dig into the word of God, the closer you become to Him. The closer you get to Him, the more you will recognize all the things He does for you daily. The more you see what He does for you, the more you know how much He loves you.

It is an amazing cycle... I encourage you to try it and see for yourself just how much God loves you!

His Love Never Quits

When you were growing up, if your mom told you something once, you may or may not listen. If she told you twice, you would probably consider what she is saying. If she tells you more than twice, you had BETTER take notice. In Psalm 136 God repeats Himself 26 times!!!! I think we better take notice.

I have read this Psalm before, but a few weeks ago I was reading it from the Message. The repeated phrase jumped off the page at me. In the Message it says, “His love never quits.” I love this!
Anytime a verse jumps off the page to me, I always compare what it says in other versions.
King James says, “His mercy endureth forever.”
New International Version says “His love endures forever.”
Amplified says, “for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever.”
New American Standard says, “For His loving kindness is everlasting.”

As I was thinking of these, I wondered why some versions say mercy, some say love, and some say both. Although I believe that God does indeed love us, and show us mercy, they are not words that are interchangeable. So, I decided to check how it was written in the original text. I just love technology… you no longer have to be a Bible Scholar in order to discover the original Hebrew text.

In the original text the word is Hesed. This refers to the mutual relationship between man and God. The best translation is loyalty. The word mercy comes from the influence of the Greek translation of the original Hebrew.

So why is He so loyal to us? He loves us unconditionally.

In Psalm 136 the writer describes when God loved us. In verses 1 – 9, He loved us before we were born. In verses 10 – 24, He loves us during hardships. In verse 25 – 26, He loves us when everything is going well.

I want to share with you 4 specific times when God’s Love Never Quits.
1.His love never quits, when we make wrong choices.


2.His love never quits, when someone else causes us harm.

3. His love never quits, when there is no explanation for the events happening.

4. His love never quits, when everything is going great.

So, let me wrap up by encouraging you to remember that no matter what you are going through, no matter what you have done, no matter what someone else has done. God’s love for you NEVER QUITS!

Silver Lining of Victory

I received a phone call of encouragement this morning. During the conversation, she reminded me of an event that I didn't even know she knew about. I want to share that with you.

Several years ago, I was in the midst of the consequences of my poor decisions. I was a newly wed, and therefore the consequences were not only affecting me, they were affecting my husband. I think this may have been the first time that truly understood that my actions and consequences were not limited to me alone.

One morning, after several weeks (maybe months) of wallowing in self-pity and despair, Jason and I were driving to work, and I noticed the clouds. They were large, fluffy, white, and beautiful. As I gazed over all the clouds, my eyes stopped on one. This was the most beautiful cloud in the sky, and it was surrounded by a silver lining.

I knew and received immediately the promise God was showing me in that cloud. He was telling me that all was going to be okay. He was telling me that I was victorious. I still had consequences to live, but I knew that God had not given up on me. I knew that God has plans for me.

Jason and I both walked away from that event in our lives stronger, closer to each other, and closer to God. We are living victorious!

No matter what circumstance you are going through, whether caused by you or other events, God has a plan for you. Trust Him, and through Him you are Victorious!

Are you Ready for a Remodel?

If there is one thing I have learned from owning a remodeling company, it is that you never know for sure what you will find when you start making improvements on an old house.... Even when it is your own house.

We live in a house that was built in 1952. We love this house, and if you look at the superficial, it looks great! However, there are things that have to be improved in order to make living in it more comfortable. Things such as adding storm windows, beefing up the insulation, upgrading the heating/AC unit, all things that will make the house more cost efficient... not to mention warmer or cooler. This is the process we are in now.

Our house has a fireplace. It was originally built to be wood burning, but someone through the years converted it to gas logs. This was decorative only. Since Jason and I both enjoy a warm fireplace, we had it converted back to wood burning when we first moved in. However, it did not heat the house like we wanted, so we decided to add an insert.

This brings me to the surprise we discovered yesterday. As the man was installing the insert for us, he noticed a hole in the chimney. The hole was in the attic area. When I heard this, I immediately thanked God that we had not had a fire break out in our attic. As the man ivestigated further, he realized that it wasn't a hole, but rather our heating and air ducts had been vented through the chimney, and not through the roof. Once again... Thank you Lord that we have not had a fire. So now, we have to move the duct vent.

As I thought about this, I realized that just like remodeling a house may hold unexpected changes, remodeling our lives holds unexpected changes. When we turn our life over to Christ, we know that a change takes place. However, we do not always know the full extent of the changes that need to be made. As we allow God to remodel our life, we discover other areas that need attention as well. It doesn't matter how long you have been a Christian, we all have areas in our life that we need to allow the Master to work on. The question is, are you willing to allow God to make the changes? Are you Ready for a Remodel?

Confession of a Christian Music Snob

Growing up, I listened to country music. That is what my mom listened to. As a teenager of the 80's, I listened to rock... yes, including heavy metal. After all, I had the big hair for it. In my early married life, I listened to country once again. All of my life, I have enjoyed jazz. However, as an adult, I became a Christian music snob. I felt to be a good Christian, I could only listen to Christian music.

Last summer, God really convicted me about that. It started on the trips for Ethan's golf tournaments. As we were driving through Texas, I would lose the radio signal for the Christian station I was listening to. I would hit seek, and see what came on. There are a lot of country stations in Texas, so it was mostly country that came on. Most of the songs, I knew and could sing along. This amazed Ethan. He was in shock that his mom knew the words to a non-Christian song.

When it really hit home, was after the funeral of my aunt. The family was gathered at my sister's house. As with any extended family, we are an eclectic group. We have one cousin who sings and plays in a bluegrass/hillbilly band. That afternoon, several of us gathered in the living room with a karaoke machine. We had the most fun singing and laughing to a large range of music. Later, this cousin commented that he knew several of us sang in church, but he was amazed that something he did in a smokey barroom, and we did in church could meet in a south Arkansas living room. We had touched this man, and probably a few others in the room. This is when I realized, that by being open to listening to other types of music, I can relate to non-Christians in a non-threatening way.

Now please keep in mind, that there is music out there that is NOT appropriate to listen to. There are songs in every genre of music that are NOT appropriate to listen to. As a mom, I have to pay attention to what the kids and I listen to. Some songs that I loved as a child, I now realize that I do not want my kids to hear. I am cautious of what stations I will listen to, because some are just trashier than others. My son is a great filter as well. He is quick to decide whether or not a song has a good message. This is nice, because sometimes I just tune out music as background noise only. When this happens, it opens up opportunities to discuss what may be approved by the world, and why we don't approve of such behavior.

Finally, I realize that some of you reading this will be offended. I am just sharing what God laid on my heart. People know I am a Christian because of the way I act, not because I only listen to Christian music. Now, I still listen to Christian music, however if I can use secular music to open a door for someone to see Christ, I will listen to that as well. And yes, I enjoy it.

A Moment to Refresh

A few evenings ago, I went into the laundry room to check on a load of jeans in the dryer. They still had about 15 minutes left, so I decided to sit on the dryer and wait for them. Supper was done, the kitchen clean, the kids playing, and Jason was busy, so I figured no one would miss me for a few minutes. Jason did come check on me. When I told him I was just waiting on the jeans, he said to enjoy a few minutes of quiet. I did.

I had my phone in my pocket, so I pulled it out and opened one of the Bible apps. I spent the next 25 minutes (yes, I added a little time to the dryer) laying on the warm dryer, listening to the hum, reading God's word. I wasn't rushing to get the next task done. The kids or Jason weren't demanding my time. I was resting with God.

When I walked out of the laundry room, I was refreshed. It gave me a new perspective resting with God. I was not studying to learn something. I was not seeking answers for anything. I was simply enjoying time with God.

I start each morning in God's word and prayer, but now I am going to make a point just to rest with Him also. I may not always be able to lay on the dryer for 25 minutes, but I am going to purposefully seek opportunities just to enjoy being in God's presence.

When was the last time you rested with the Lord?

Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Psalm 62:5