My Great God

Wednesday night, I told everyone at our Bible Study what a blessing it is to yourself and others when you share how God speaks to you. Well, I must say that it is also a blessing to share how God works in your life. So, I'm going to brag on my God for a bit. Many of you know how difficult this year has been for us financially. Work has been too slow and, when you own your own business, that means you starve (in a way). Well, this is our slow season, work has been almost nonexistent and our savings have dried up. But we have been trusting God.

It hasn't been easy trusting God. But we have decided this winter that, come what may, we would we would enjoy life, have faith that God will provide, and not let our situation prevent us from doing the things we should be doing. Did I say enjoy life? I mean it. That is what is different this winter. We had a choice; we could be broke and miserable or we could be broke and happy. We have chosen "happy."

So, last week in church, I told God that I would not let anything prevent me from doing what He wanted me to do (meaning I would not allow myself to get depressed and shut down). That night, Austin busted his head. It wasn't a big deal because, as any mother of young boys knows, these things happen. But when I took him to the ER, thinking I had LACHIP (Louisiana's Children's insurance program), I had the unpleasant experience of learning that it had expired regardless of the fact that it was issued January 28, 2008. Now, we didn't qualify this past year because our income was too high, even though we could not afford health insurance. So, the very same day I make a commitment not to get too upset, we get a brand new ER bill... and those aren't cheap. But I wasn't too worried about it. I am hoping that when I do our taxes, we will qualify again this year and they will pay us back for this trip.

But all this information was to set the backdrop for what happened yesterday. Now, God has never let us down. We have been broke and had a few bills bounce, but we have never missed a meal, and still own our house and business. Nevertheless, going into February, we don't yet have the money to pay our house note and I'm not sure we will be able to cover the bills which are automatically withdrawn from our accounts. As of today, it will take all that we have in our accounts not to lose our business insurance and hopefully not to bounce anything this week coming. I tell you this to say that we have nothing available for emergencies or extras and will be eating what's in our cabinet until a few of our clients pay us. So Wednesday night, when Seth sounded hoarse and had some chest congestion, I prayed a little prayer to keep him healthy enough not to have breathing problems. He's been on breathing treatments before and I really didn't want to face the situation of choosing whether to keep him home and take our chances when I knew he should go to the doctor or borrowing money I would have little chance of being able to pay back anytime soon.

Seth slept well Wednesday night, but Thursday morning when he coughed, he undeniably had the croup. Croup gets significantly worse at night and nothing is scarier than a little one who can't breathe. I knew we had to do something before nighttime came or we might be looking at another trip to the ER. We searched for croup medecine (a steroid is the only thing that helps with croup) and found some, but it expired in February 2007. I couldn't take the chance. At that moment, I knew we had to see the doctor... and I knew we couldn't pay for it. I sat down at the desk and stared at the phone, desperately searching for a way, and knowing there wasn't one. I had done so well trusting God through all the troubles we had faced this winter, but at this one, I stumbled. I cannot tell you what it's like to have a child sick with a potentially life-threatening illness and no money for a doctor. It is the most heart sickening feeling I have felt. I knew it would work out somehow, we would certainly borrow money before we would let our children suffer, but facing that decision alone is crushing. And I felt crushed.

But our God is the God who provides. He is the one who performs miracles. He fed 5 thousand with 5 loaves, he paid taxes with a coin from a fish's mouth, and he gave a widow an endless supply of oil from one little oil jug. He did miracles then and He does miracles now. My mom went outside to put mail in the mailbox, picked up the newspaper and saw something lying in the street by the golf course. She went to investigate it and brought to me a $100 bill. I took that $100 bill and Seth to the doctor's office. The doctor charged us $20 for the visit and gave us his medecine from samples she had. We now have $80 overflowing. What a mighty God we serve.

Do you not know my God? This might look to you like a coincidence, but I ask you how many coincidences would it take to convince you that this was no coincidence? I have seen so many. My life is full of these "coincidences." They do not always involve money, but they always involve meeting needs, mine or those I love. He says, "When you search for me with all your heart, you will find me." (In the book of Jeremiah, chapter 29) This the work of my God; and I just had to brag on Him.

Milk and Honey Spa Notes

Why Milk and Honey?

God calls Israel the “land flowing with milk and honey” 16 times

God specifically chose MILK and HONEY

Flowing with Milk
•Well-fed, multiplying livestock
• New life
• Nurturing, safety
• Nourishing
• Prosperity for the livestock owner

Flowing with Honey
• Beautiful flowers
• Sweet fruit trees
• Fertile grasslands
• Desserts and delicacies

Science is teaching us more about the beneficial properties of milk and honey
• Throughout Genesis 1, God declared what he made good
• Renewed interest in natural healing and beauty products

What we see is a shadow of spiritual reality
Each of these substances also has spiritual significance

Olive oil

Beneficial Qualities
• Absorbs UV radiation
• Efficient in lowering the metabolism rate of body cells
• High in antioxidants, including vitamin E
• Helps relieve itch, stings and bites
• Heals dry brittle nails and softens cuticles
• Conditions and adds shine to hair
• Great make-up remover

Spiritual significance
• An ingredient in the sacred anointing oil (Exodus 30:22-33)
• Anointing oil foreshadowed the coming anointing of the Holy Spirit
• Saul (1 Samuel 10) and David (1 Samuel 16:12-14)
• The lampstand – olive oil (Leviticus 24:1-4)
• We are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14 – compare with John 8:12; 9:5)

Honey

Beneficial Qualities
• Honey is a humectant
• An anti-irritant
• Has anti-bacterial and healing properties
• Has sun-blocking properties

Spiritual significance
• The Word of the Lord
• Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3:3) and John (Revelation 10:10) ate the scroll
• David called the word “sweeter than honey” in Ps. 119:103
• How sweet are Your words to my taste Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Milk

Beneficial Qualities
• contains Vitamins A and D, which helps to make your skin soft, yet strong
• lactic acid in milk has natural beta hydroxy acids which not only exfoliate your skin, but soothe it
• adds essential moisture to your skin
• it seals up the small scales on your hair follicles that can cause hair to look dull

Spiritual significance
• The Word of the Lord
• 1 Peter 2:2 “Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.”

Salts

Spiritual significance
• The Covenant of God and Israel
• Leviticus 2:13 “Every grain offering of yours, moreover, you shall season with salt, so that the salt of the covenant of your God shall not be lacking from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt.”
• 2 Chronicles 13:5 “Do you not know that the LORD God of Israel gave the rule over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?”
• Jesus says, “You are the salt of the earth” and “Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another.

Holy Blue

How important is color to God? If you have done Beth Moore's "Believing God" Bible Study, then you already know that He values blue... you wore it for 12 weeks on your wrist in response to Numbers 15:37-41, "to look at, so that you will remember all the LORD's commands and obey them." But why blue? I would like to share with you what I learned today.

The history program I am doing with the kids, Tapestry of Grace, lists internet links for the time periods, people, and topics we study. Today, we were studying the Phoenicians and I saw a link called Fringes and Snails. I had to check it out, curious as to how it related to the Phoenicians. For once, I am going to give you the highlights and refer you to the site itself for more information.

Apparently, the Phoenicians were traders in blue dye derived from, what else, sea snails. These same snails also produced the royal purple dye worn by kings and noblemen. Because the process to extract the dye from the (small) snails was difficult and time-consuming, the dye was very expensive and this was a very lucrative trade. Very few people could afford this dye. Yet, God commanded the Israelites to weave this very rich cloth into their tassles.

Before I give you more information on the dye itself, which is fascinating and exciting, I would like to tell you what I learned about the significance of the tassles. Let me make it clear that I am taking my information from the Fringes and Snails website. That being said... here is the breakdown.

Ancient fringes represented the status, or position in society, of the man wearing the fringe. A number of Bible verses reference the hem or fringe of the a man's garment as being significant: from David cutting off the hem of Saul's robe (as a sign of David replacing Saul's place in society) to Jesus saying that the Pharisees lengthened their tassles (as a sign of hypocrisy). And while we have the ancient example of Ruth asking Boaz to cover her with his cloak, we have the modern example of the Jewish bridegroom covering his bride with his prayer shawl.

When God commanded the Jews to weave this special blue cloth into their tassels, he was ordaining a visual sign of the special status that the Jew has with God.

Now, of course, me being the skeptic that I am, I know nothing about the author of Fringes and Snails
and I decided to do some further searches, until I came to a website called "The Association for the Promotion and Distribution of Tekhelet" Tekhelet is the name of the color produced from the special dye. Apparently, the art of making this dye was lost a few hundred years after the birth of Christ, when the Roman emperor made it illegal for anyone but royalty to wear the color. Since the 1800's, the Jews have been trying to identify the animal that produced the dye and recreate the cloth, which they have not worn in over a thousand years because they would not wear a substitute blue. About 20 years ago, they successfully reproduced the dye and have begun creating and distributing Tekhelet yarn and tassles. This is significant for them because many Jews believe that the revival of the Tekhelet yard is a sign that the Messiah is coming (not to mention that there EXISTS a national Israel).

They have produced a video showing how they make the yarn. They do it the ancient way because they want the yarn to be pure and holy, so they shear the sheep, dye the wool, and spin the yarn by hand. The videos are fascinating to watch.

But before I show you the videos, I would like to address what this means to us, the Christian. Obviously, we anxiously wait for the Messiah and anything that restores into practice something God commanded His people to do is exciting for us, as well as for the Jews. But there is a lesson for us here, as well. In the first video, a gentleman says that, for the Jews, wearing the tassle with the royal heavenly blue (the blue was the color of the heavens), reminded them that they were not poor. That whatever their physical status was, they were priests and kings... every single one of them. 1 Peter 2:9 says that, "you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession." We now carry that banner.

Imagine... when the woman with the issue of blood strained only to touch Jesus' tassle, it was woven with blue, signifying His priestly kingship... and she knew that. Now, we continue the work the Son of God began.

Enjoy the videos...

The Mystery of Tekhelet, Part 1 of 3:


The Mystery of Tekhelet, Part 2 of 3:


The Mystery of Tekhelet, Part 3 of 3:

Small Bodies...

SMALL BODIES, GREAT HEARTS

An early Puritan writer once said about children, "though their bodies be small, yet their hearts are great." He was speaking about a child's tendency toward mischief. As the mother of 4 young sons, I am reminded of this statement often and I figure it's time to throw my two cents in.

When a child is born, the infant appears so delicate and pure that we parents cannot imagine the trouble brewing within. But before long, the tiny little creature, helpless to overpower the adults in charge of him, identifies the fatal weaknesses in the parental armor and begins to exploit them. With my first son, I was completely uneducated on the tactical manoeuvers of infant warfare. My little angel quickly conquered us and proceeded to rule with an iron fist. But I know that I will one day escape filial domination and, in the meantime, I dedicate myself to educating potential parents everywhere about the reality of parental bondage.

It begins with sleep deprivation. Children do not hesitate to use torture to advance their agenda. Once a parent is sufficiently worn down, the child can then then begin to exercise domination.

Let me give you an example.

A master strategist at an early age, Stephen understood that just as a horseman maintains control by guiding the horse, if he wanted to be the Master, he would have to control our travel patterns. Within a short period of time, he trained us to pay close attention to his driving instructions. We quickly learned his preferred method of travel; accelerate to speeds over 70 mph and maintain high speeds. If we slowed down, he would scream. If we stopped for a red light or a stop sign, he would scream. If we drove on city streets which would not allow sufficiently high speeds, he would scream. He had complete control and successfully discouraged us from any unnecessary driving, completely eliminating any attempt on our part to trick him into sleep by taking "a ride in the car."

By the time I realized that I had been enslaved, we had already had more children. Yes, we are slow learners. I now have 4 masters who are expert at identiifying their own particular strengths. Perhaps you may recognize the following techniques:

Seth, the 2 year old has "the scream". Can you picture the painting by the same name? I firmly believe the artist also had a 2 year old, because the painting accurately depicts what happens to the parental psyche when "the scream" is unleashed. The tormented parent will then do whatever it takes to make it go away. Seth typically uses "the scream" to direct parental fury onto one of his brothers. Usually, the offending brother has intentionally irritated Seth. But sometimes Seth just wants what the brother has. We don't care. We just want it to end. Seth wins.

Elijah, the 4 year old is more complex. His particular strength is breaking people down. From a tender age, he has been able to reduce his older brothers into defeated, crying children; particularly his next older brother Austin. But his powers extend beyond other children, to the adults in his life as well. He is the strongest willed member of the family, and he's not afraid to use it. His battle of choice is dinner. His technique is superb. His earlier attempts to win the dinner war were crude, like making himself throw up the very food he was expected to eat. But his new strategy is flawless. While we happily eat, he manages to stay under the radar until we are almost done. At that point, he complains that his food is cold, prompting us to warm it for him. He then informs us how much better warm food tastes, tricking us into thinking he has actually tasted it. But we "quickly" realize the truth, and begin the battle of threats and tears which drives us to distraction. However, it is time to pick up from dinner and draw baths. Parents drop like flies and Elijah begins to ask for someone to feed him. Now, Elijah does not really want to be fed. He knows that if he asks to be fed, we get irritated and disappear, leaving him free to leave the plate of food he did not want to eat in the first place. Elijah takes his bath, has a snack with his brothers, goes to bed, and we find the abandoned plate of food later that night. Flawless.

Austin the 6 year old is the smoothest of the tormenters; you don't even know you've been bamboozled until he's gone. The child can lie with the face of an angel. Austin has learned the truth behind the old adage, "you catch more flies with honey..." The command, "Austin, put away your clothes" is met with a polite "Yes, Ma'am." Only much later do you find them shoved under the bed. Of course, this is the child who replied, "Why, did you see me?" to the question, "Austin, what did you just do?" But really, if you must be held captive, isn't it better when they're friendly?

Stephen, the original, is now 8 years old. The near future is not looking good for us. Last night, he was pondering how nice life might be if we were eliminated. I think my chances are better than my husband, but the grandparents render us both disposable. In the meantime, he's using his mind control prowess to keep us in check. Two nights ago, he was watching me play a computer game, when his Nana commanded him into his bedroom. I, hearing her tone, and wanting the best for my son, recommended that he go quickly. He then comforted me and proceeded to explain to me that, "I've got her all figured out." Apparently, as long as he obeys before she exhibits a very specific behavior, he will escape punishment. Being the subversive, unappreciative servant that I am, I told her... We need to stick together.

Well friends, I truly hope this helps some one or other of you. After all, they are merciless and they never quit. And they work together to keep us down. I've never done anything harder in my life than be a parent. I now know my limits. By the way, if you are like I was, you might be thinking that you should be able to out-think a child. Funny how it never occurred to me that my own children might be as smart as I am... After all, "though their bodies be small..."

Stephen's Haiku

Stephen wrote this haiku for school (and yes, I'm a proud mama).

In Years of Folly
Christmas Time is Jollier
Sleds Sleighing in Snow

Stephen (age 8)

Thank you Hobby Lobby

Hobby Lobby placed this ad in the newspaper today... amazing!

A Light Shining in a Dark Place

I will never forget the pain caused by Hurricane Katrina. I personally suffered very little. Losing my grandparents' homes and my extended family's relocation, the removal of my childhood sources of stability, has cost me the most. But my losses are small compared to many others. Many people in this area lost their homes, their family members, their marriages and other valuable relationships, their jobs, and, for many, their mental health.

Although some of the effects of Katrina's damage continue to affect this area, we have largely picked up the pieces and reestablished routines. But hard times are coming and have come. Companies are laying off employees or cutting back hours. Many have lost large sums of retirement and investments. The housing market is down and good jobs are scarce. All indicators suggest that life will get significantly worse before it gets better.

In a short time, some of the pain and suffering we experienced following Katrina will reappear in Louisiana and across America, if not the entire world. In anticipation of this, I am issuing a call to all who know Christ to get ready. We have been entrusted with a message of hope and peace for our generation, "You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." If you have been riding the fence, if you have been waiting until a later time or not really sure you wanted to jump in with both feet, your time has now come to choose. When the people around you are in need, will you be ready?


I heard the story yesterday of a young single mother who spent her days trying to look happy so that no one would thwart her plan to kill herself. What had she done wrong? Why was she intent on committing suicide? She felt she had failed herself and disappointed those around her. Oh, how I longed to share with her the hope that I have because I know where she's been. But it's not Christ that has kept her alive, it was a realization that her children need her more than she realized. I wonder, what will she do when she fails again? She now has a reason to live, but no reason to have peace and joy, and nothing but necessity to get her through the hard times that will surely come.

Life doesn't have to be this way.

What do we, as Christians, have to offer? What is the good news we have for a suffering person? First and foremost, it is forgiveness. This young woman's value doesn't simply lie in what she has or hasn't done. When you can accept the forgiveness that Jesus offers for all your past actions and you can give forgiveness to all who have wronged you in the past, then your life starts anew and your value lies in who you are as a child of God and the love you bring into this world as a representative of God. Second, when you accept God's offer of forgiveness through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, then you enter into a new relationship with the God who created the universe. You are never alone. Even in the darkest hour, the Spirit of God "remains with you and will be in you." Third, the God of Heaven will guide and protect you; "For I know the plans I have for you - this is the Lord's declaration - plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."

In April/May, I wrote about Jesus in the storm in three separate parts. As our country goes deeper into this financial storm, I return to the peace that Jesus offers us in this story. In short, Jesus sleeps while a storm whips up and rages around him. The disciples fear for their lives and wake him up, wondering how he can sleep when all of their lives are in danger. With a word, he calms the storm and chides them for their lack of faith.

In the past, I looked at why Jesus might have been sleeping and discussed the fact that God never sleeps. But I am amazed today that he was able to sleep and I believe that it illustrates the kind of peace he offers us. When the storm blew up, Jesus and the disciples faced a multisensory attack. The floor heaved up and down under their feet, causing them to lose their balance. The wind and waves knocked them around and stung their faces. The water rose over the boat and soaked their clothes, leaving them battered and wet. And the wind howled, the thunder roared, and perhaps lightening even struck, assaulting their ears and striking fear into their hearts. And Jesus slept.

Certainly, Jesus was on the boat and experienced all these things himself. Yet, while the disciples struggled, fought, feared, and yelled, Jesus was at peace. What was the difference between them? Jesus trusted that God was in control and the disciples did not. Their fear was caused by uncertainty. They didn't believe that God would take care of them. Jesus, on the other hand, understood that if God had other plans for him, God would take him through the storm safely, and if not, he would go home to his father. Christians have this same assurance and God offers it to everyone who will trust in him. As the Bible says, "We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God."

So, ladies and gentlemen, sisters and brothers, "set apart the Messiah as Lord in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you." Many in America are living in darkness and we have a source of light in the world, "the prophetic word strongly confirmed. You will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dismal place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts." We who know Jesus, "the light of men," are " the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." And when you see your fellow man or woman hurting in the troubled times to come, take hold of the promises that your Father has given you and commit to being a blessing to the world by sharing the love that God has given you and his message of peace and restoration.

Bible Verses in this blog: 1 Peter 2:9, John 14:17, Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28, 1 Peter 3:15, 2 Peter 1:19, John 1:4, Matthew 5:14-16