Lift Me Up....

This is Lex ready for me to get him out of his crib:) So cute right? As I was lifting him up out of his crib, I had a thought.

Sometimes we are in a place where we are waiting, with our arms stretched high, for our Lord to come and pick us up. To lift us up out of something.

I'm not always able to get Lex right at the minute that he wants out, usually because I am preparing something. Dinner, a bath, coffee...to name a few.

Sometimes the Lord doesn't lift us up out of our situation right away, because He is preparing something.

And His somethings are always worth the wait.

I want to encourage you to stay standing, stay reaching towards Him, because at the right and perfect time, He is going to come and scoop you up and out, and then set your feet on solid ground!

Psalm 40:1-2
"I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand."

Here is a great song to go along with this....

Ever Present.

Today while I was driving home with my little Lexon when I noticed that he was beginning to fall asleep, but would then startle awake as the van jostled and turned. I awkwardly reached back to where he was and let my hand rest on the inside of his carseat. It didn't take much time for his little head and hand to find mine. He cozied up to my hand, with his little fingers intertwined with mine and fell asleep. And so did my whole arm. But I just couldn't bring myself to move it. Then I had the sweetest of thoughts. I get to call myself daughter, to the Father that is our ever present help in time of need. Lexon needed just that little extra assurance of my presence to drift off into a peaceful sleep, and sometimes we need that extra assurance of His presence to continue down whatever path He is calling us down. Luckily for all of us, His arm will never fall asleep as He reaches to hold our hand in our sometimes awkwardly positioned situations and circumstances. He knows exactly what you need to fall into that peaceful place. Allow yourself to find rest while you hold onto His hand through whatever precarious place you find yourself in today.
Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."

What I'll Remember...

The other day the boys and I were getting ready to head out of the house, which is always an adventure...to say the least.  I walked into our mudroom to see all the shoes spilled out of the shoe rack and all over the floor.  I was ready to place blame to the baby when I saw my oldest son Bowden, covering his head.

Dead giveaway that I had found the shoe scattering culprit.

I asked Bowden if he has taken all the shoes out. Simple question right? But, oh the hemming and hawing that followed! At this point my focus was no longer on the shoes, but on desperately willing my son to tell me the truth.

Have you ever had that moment? You can see the fight, the fork in the road that is in front of your child and you desperately want them to choose the right thing? I did what I think most parents would do and I reassured him that I wasn't going to get mad, but I just wanted to know the truth.

More hemming and hawing...

But then...

He copped to it. Told me the whole story and then paused to see what my reaction was going to be. I paused and prayed quickly, Lord how do I encourage him to keep telling the truth? Where do I bring the focus? Here is what He told me to do...

Tell Bowden what you are going to remember from this.

So I leaned over to Bowden and I told him, "Buddy, when I think about what just happened here, you want to know what I'm going to remember? I am NOT going to remember that you messed up all the shoes, I am going to remember that you chose to tell mommy the truth. And I am so pleased with you, and so proud of you."

God is pleased with you, and proud of you too.

Whatever it is that you find yourself hemming and hawing about in your mind, in your conversations with Him, hear Him saying this to you today...

"Beloved (cause you are more precious to Him that anything), when I think about what you just told Me, I am not going to remember what you messed up, what wrong choice you may have made, no, I won't remember that. I am going to remember that you trusted Me enough, you believed in my unfailing love for you enough, that you came to Me. That is what I will remember from this."

It's not that He forgets our sin, it's that He chooses to remember our growth. That is so powerful.

My prayer for you today is to let that truth wash over any pain, any hurt, any shame that you have. Go to Him in confidence knowing that His never ending grace, mercy, and compassion will be powerful and transformational in your life today.

Hebrews 8:12 (AMP)
“For I will be merciful and gracious toward their wickedness,
And I will remember their sins no more.”

Isaiah 43:25 (The Message)

“But I, yes I, am the one

    who takes care of your sins—that’s what I do.

    I don’t keep a list of your sins."

Psalm 103:8-12 (NIV)

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

    slow to anger, abounding in love.

He will not always accuse,

    nor will he harbor his anger forever;

he does not treat us as our sins deserve

    or repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

    so great is his love for those who fear him;

 as far as the east is from the west,

    so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

I am a planner. I like to know what is happening next and when it is happening. Insert 3 kiddos and you can guess that I don't always have my planning needs met. 

I didn't plan on having to sweep up a box of cheerios right after I had mopped the floor. 

I didn't plan on someone desperately needing to use the bathroom after I had just put the car in reverse to head to the store (come on Nate, I told you to go before you buckled up;)

These unexpected things that pop up in my life can stress me out to the max. I wish I could say that each time they happen,  I gracefully and patiently respond and readjust. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don't.

I am an imperfect human being who is not constant. Unexpected things throw me off, steal my joy, and inconvenience me to the point of utter annoyance.

But you know what? We serve a God who is not thrown off by the unexpected. We serve a God who knows the plans that He has for us, and He is never surprised. He is constant. I don't know about you, but this is a truth that I need to heavily rely on.

There are decisions, diagnosis', and detours (to name a few) that come up in our lives that we were not planning on. They throw us off track and threaten our sense of normalcy. We have to recover, re-coup and then inevitably ask the looming question..."what now?"

When life takes an unexpected turn, here is something we need to remember. We are not walking on our own. We are securely nestled between our Heavenly Daddy's shoulders. It's the ultimate piggyback ride experience.  It's His job and His joy to navigate the path that He has marked out for us. He knows it well. 

We just have to allow ourselves to let go of our plans, our expectations, and give in fully to trusting the One who is always faithful, always good, and always right on time. Not always as easy as it sounds, but always worth it. 

So dear friend, whatever it is that has happened that is unplanned or unexpected, know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He has you, and He is not surprised. He is already working it out for your good, and the best is yet to come...

Deuteronomy 33:12
“May the beloved of the Lord dwell in safety by Him;
He shields and covers him all the day long,
And he dwells between His shoulders.”

1 Peter 5:7
"Casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] 
on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully]."

Before You.

The other day, at Nate's parents house, Caven needed to get downstairs. Since his little brother is not quite stair climbing qualified, there was a baby gate blocking the top of the stairs. I didn't feel like taking the gate down so I stood behind Caven and was going to lift him up over the gate.

He FREAKED out.

I quickly problem solved and went over the gate first, stood on the top stair, and then lifted him over. He looked up at me and said, "Oh, now I understand, that was much better Mommy." His little self thought that I was going to just toss him over the gate and leave him on the other side of the stairs all by himself. Alone. Scared.

That moment when Caven looked at me as I was holding him tight on the other side of the gate, my Heavenly Father spoke straight to my heart.

He reminded me that He is the God that goes before us. We do not have to be afraid of moving through uncertain circumstances, because He is already there. He has already made a way where there seemes to be no way.

My prayer for you this beautiful morning, is that you hang on tight to Him as He lifts you up and out of your circumstance and places you on solid ground. Trust in Him, because He is the God who will never lead you down a path that isn't good, and He will never leave you or forsake you.

Having faith and trust can be overwhelming at times, but instead of being overwhelmed with fear, let yourself be overwhelmed by His love for you and His protection over you!

Psalm 91:9-16
"If you make the Lord your refuge,
if you make the Most High your shelter,
no evil will conquer you;
No plague will come near your home.
For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go.
They will hold you up with their hands so you won't even hurt your foot on a stone.
You will trample upon lions and Cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!
The Lord says, "I will rescue those who love me.
I will protect those who trust in my name.
When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble.
I will rescue and honor them.
I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation."

Psalm 125:1
"Thos who trust in and rely on the Lord (with confident expectation). Are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but remains forever."

Romans 15:13
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Psalm 40:2
"He brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock, steadying my footsteps and establishing my path."

This song is amazing and I hope it encourages you today!

Fix Your Eyes.

Caven got a cut on his finger a while back. It was a pretty good cut and didn't look very pretty. I brought him into the bathroom to begin fixing his owie. He was a mess, sobbing his little heart out. Every time he would look at his finger, his sobs would escalate. I kept telling him, "Look at mommy, don't look at your finger. Mommy can fix this, don't worry! Just keep looking at me." 

As he would look away from his finger and fix his eyes on me and not on his owie, he would calm down.

Is there a wound in your life right now? Something that keeps beckoning for your focus and attention? Something that is so painful that your eyes are fixed on it and you keep wondering how you will get past or through this?

I think sometimes, unintentionally, we get so focused on wanting to fix the pain that we feel, that we forget to fix our eyes on the One who can soothe, relieve, and bring purpose from our pain. Just like little Caven, we stare at a wound and become a mess because we don't know how to fix it. 

But we serve a powerful God who knows exactly what to do.

He can fix whatever it is you are going through, if you will fix your eyes on Him. 

He is the Author and Perfecter of your faith. He is the anchor that will keep you steady and stable as the waves and winds of life rock you. Let His loving kindness give you the strength to look away from your situation and fix your eyes on Him. Place your trust in Him, even when all around you seems to be in chaos, be assured that He is the one who will calm the storm. Every time. 

Psalm 18:33-36 (AMP)

"He makes my feet like [a]hinds’ feet [able to stand firmly and tread safely on paths of testing and trouble]; 
He sets me [securely] upon my high places.
He trains my hands for war,
So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You have also given me the shield of Your salvation,
And Your right hand upholds and sustains me;
Your gentleness [Your gracious response when I pray] makes me great.
You enlarge the path beneath me and make my steps secure,
So that my feet will not slip."

The Pacifier.

Lexon is always learning, but there is one thing that he has not figured out quite yet. Many times, when I go to feed Lexon he will have a pacifier in his mouth. I can sit there with a spoon loaded up with nummy baby food, but he just stares at me, sucking away on his pacifier. 

Like this...

He hasn't figured out yet, that in order to get the food he wants and needs, he has to let go of what he currently has. His pacifier. 

You see, there is a time and a place for Lexons pacifier. It helps transition him from a state of worry and agitation, to peace and comfort.  But, just like there is a time and a place for him to benefit from his pacifier, there is also a time and place where it gets in the way, and is not needed anymore. 

Don't we have pacifiers in our lives too? Things that the Lord has provided for us during a difficult transition or season, that brought us much needed peace, comfort, and provision. Those pacifiers are beautiful things when used during their season. But, seasons change. There will come a time when the Lord will be sitting in front of you with a spoonful of a new thing, a new source, a new season, but we are hesitant to let go of what we currently have. 

It can be so scary to let go of something, not knowing for certain what will take its place. 

But when we know the heart of our Father, it gives us the courage to let go of those things that He is gently speaking to us about. He is so tender and gentle. He walks with us as we process through the fear and apprehension. He is patient with us as we start letting go of something, and then pause for a time because fear crept in again. 

Don't lose heart through the letting go process. As you hand things over to Him, it creates space in your heart and life to receive even more from the Father who knows perfectly what supply you need to accomplish the purpose He has set before you. He has such a calling on your life. Don't be afraid, because He is with you and He is for you. His perfect love casts out all fear. Rest in knowing that He has everything that you need, and His joy is to supply all that you need. 

Philippians 4:19  "And my God shall supply all of your needs, according to His riches in Glory. "

Ecclesiastes 3:1 "To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven..."

1 John 4:18  "There is no fear in love [dread does not exist]. But perfect (complete, full-grown) love drives out fear, because fear involves [the expectation of divine] punishment, so the one who is afraid [of God’s judgment] is not perfected in love [has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God’s love]."