Big Guy in a Little Car

This big man in the back seat of my little Prius aka Betty White was HYSTERICAL!  This was last night after church and dinner with one of our littles.  Dennie somehow ended up in the back seat with her getting the front and I couldn't help but snap a picture of this debacle.  We were rolling!  

It made me think though of what we do to God sometimes...or better yet a lot of the time...we put Him the small spaces...we put Him in a nice pretty package on Sunday mornings or Wednesday evenings if we are doing real good...we put Him in the really great times when we are thanking Him for a very apparent blessing and we put Him in the spaces that we feel lost and want Him to "take over" because we don't know what else to do.  

God is too big and too passionate about us to be stuck in these small spaces.  He wants the front seat...actually He wants and we need to give him the drivers seat.  He is capable of more than we could ever ask or imagine.  He is capable and willing to be there in every space and when we open our spaces to that guidance and love the outcomes are far better than we could ever fathom.  

I have been claiming this year...and frankly the rest of the years that God fills my lungs with air...to be Ephesians 3:20 life giving years.  I have truly been "trying" to be less controlling of my circumstances and instead be prayerful.  The freedom this has brought...the peace in knowing that God has this, has been more glorious than I could have ever imagined.  God has and will continue to show up in BIG ways!  He knows my heart...He formed it...He knows what I need...and He knows the plans He has for me!  Open your hearts, minds, and lives to Him!  He is the best travel agent you'll ever find...he'll take you places for His glory you could never have imagined!

Just minding my own business...

Here I am minding my own business just doing the podcast notes for mine and Melissa's podcast that went out today when BOOM...God knocks me right on my butt.  I am talking a BIG swift kick right in the teeth. Okay so I am being dramatic...I know imagine that...but really it was the best kick in the teeth I have ever had.  
I haven't been very quiet that I feel big things coming from God this year.  Today was not the greatest day on the planet...not the worst by a long shot, but not the greatest either.  I was rushed this morning because I didn't sleep well last night and then overslept.  I wanted to meet Melissa to go over a few things before going to work.  Dennie forgot his lunch...I got a really upsetting phone call about a patient...it just was kind of suckish for lack of a better term.  I had to grocery shop this afternoon which is the bane of my existence, and Landry had gymnastics to get to.  I just felt like the day would never end.  I know I know...whaa whaa whaa...cry me a river!  Then I got a phone call and had to call Dennie so he could handle something for me, and the nerve of him...HE DIDN'T ANSWER!  Today was not the day to not answer, but I just said to myself I will take care of it when I get home.  
So I said in the beginning of this post I was minding my own business typing podcast notes when my phone rang again...it was Dennie.  I answered...slightly annoyed that he didn't answer the first time...to my defense he is REALLY bad about not answering his phone...and then God sucker punched me right in the teeth.  Do you know what that precious man of mine said...He said he was sorry he missed my call...he said he was in my war room PRAYING and had left his phone in the kitchen.   YES BACK UP EIGHT WORDS...HE.WAS.PRAYING!!!!  
Now people let me tell you something I love my husband...no big secret...he is clearly my favorite person on the planet.  He is a good, honest, hard working, wonderful father and husband.  He has made a huge difference in so many young lives through his work and his passion with sports.  I LOVE HIM.  All that being said I have been praying for him for the last seven months or so that he would learn how to turn things over to God and truly develop the intimate relationship that is so necessary for all we face on a daily basis.  Dennie has had some major changes in his professional career over the last year that have been good and hard and different all in the same breath.  We have struggled through sleepless nights, feelings of doubt, and the ups and downs that come with any big life change.  There have been moments when we both just stood and looked at each other not having a thing to say that would make what we were feeling any better.   I stopped a while back telling Dennie to pray about things.  I realized that I couldn't do that for him, but what I could do was pray for him...pray over him on those sleepless nights, and go to God and ask for intercession on his behalf.  I know that Dennie is His and He is called according to His purpose so I had full unwavering faith that things would work together for good even if we couldn't see it right now or in the midst of those sleepless nights.  
Well once again...and like EVERY time before God showed up!  My sweet Dennie went to Him...he asked me if he could hang something up on my prayer wall...He surrender the control to the one who already has it.  So as if I could have ever loved him more...well my cup is completely running over!   

Once upon a time...

Click here to watch our life in pictures...

Once upon a time in a land not so far away around the year 1994 there was a wrestling tournament where a girl met her prince.  He made her laugh and before long she was head over heals in love...regardless of what he looked like in that wrestling uniform.  He was handsome and funny and sweet and they were divinely meant for each other.  They were young when they married on January 9, 1999 and people said it wouldn't last, but seventeen years later here they are.  There have been way more good times than bad times.  There have been two incredibly beautiful and precious red headed girls given to them, and there has been a lot of love and laughter.  The hard times have been hard, and those times have pushed them to the point of breaking, but the bond that God put together no man will separate as long as God remains at the center.  It hasn't always been pretty, but boy has it been a fun and wild adventure.  I wouldn't trade this life for all the gold in the kingdom.  To my protector, my best friend, my one true love, my forever valentine...my soul mate...I love you with all that I am and these have been the most amazingly precious 17 years of my life.  Thank you for making a wife, a mother, and the center of your world.  Here's to as many more years as the good Lord will put in our lungs!  

God ALWAYS shows up!

You know the moment...you are standing there with this look on your face that is a mix between awe and when is Ashton Kutcher going to show up because surely I am being punked.  I have had many of those moments in my life and today was no different. Today God gave me a big ol' I told you so.  He has been yelling in my ear that I only had to do my part...which by the way should be really easy...and just.be.faithful and know that I have a sovereign God who is continually capable of WAY more than I can ask or imagine.  There is NO OTHER explanation for today....well really any day of the 37 years I have lived so far.  
     
A couple of months ago when Melissa and I started talking about doing this podcast we laughed at the audacity of it all.  Who wants to listen to us...besides us and the unfortunate people who don't have a choice because we cook their dinners and wipe their noses...okay well I don't cook the dinner, but you get my point.  We laughed and laughed until we looked at each other one day and said you know what let's do this.  Let's be audacious for God...let's believe Ephesians 3:20 with all of our hearts and know that He is capable of so much more than we could ever give Him credit for.  (Insert the point where I tell you that there was still a mountain of doubt and insecurity in my heart and mind.)  Fortunately God had been laying the groundwork to give us the confidence, not in ourselves, but in Him that He could do this!   And better yet He would use these two unlikely vessels to accomplish what He needed.  Today God showed up BIG and as of 24 hours on the SoundCloud platform we have had 127 people listen to these two small town Jesus loving girls talk and talk and talk and talk for upwards of 53 minutes all about our people, what rocks our world, and how God rocks our hearts.  Y'all have liked and encouraged us through social media.  You have emailed us and left reviews, and we will never be able to thank you enough.  God used you for the encouragement that He knew we needed to stay on this path He has set before us.  

Tonight in my war room...that's a whole other blog in itself...I thanked God for everything He had done and showed me today.  I asked Him to give me scripture to read and pray over to continue to light this path.  And this is what He gave me:

Joshua 6:2
Joshua didn't bring those Jericho walls down...God did!
*My Jericho walls are my anxiety, my fear, and the chance of failure...any mindset or attitude that keeps me out of my promised land.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4
The weapons of our warfare are mighty in God for pulling down any strongholds over us.

Esther 4:14
You were called for such a time as this!

Our God is ALWAYS bigger and He ALWAYS shows up.  The way He shows up might not always look like what we had in mind, but His plan is Divine.  We have to have faith and believe in Him for what He is...the creator of our world...the passionate lover of His children...and a God so full of wonder and grace that He loves and uses even an unworthy sinner like me.  There is nothing more powerful than that!

I Love You More

I have some pretty amazing people...people who love me for me...people who drag my butt out of bed when I say I want to have a healthier 2016...people who make me shirts that talk about my love of Jesus and my use of bad words...people that give me treasures that I adore...people who go to church with me on a Saturday night because I want to go even though they are sick.  These are my people.  I love my people.  

Today as I was putting up my Christmas decorations I was reminded of the abundant love I have in my life.  I had planned to be very productive on January 1st and do things like put away my Christmas decorations, but as with most grand plans it just didn't happen.  I did it today because I.did.nothing.yesterday and it was AMAZING.  Remember those people I talked about loving a minute ago, well one of them cooked an amazing dinner yesterday so technically I did do something...I ate.  Anyway I digress...as I was putting up those Christmas decorations I went to put up this sweet ornament from my Jena and it made me reflect on my people and their impact.  

God gives us our people for several reasons.  We are meant to live in community to love, challenge, and support one another.  "For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others." Romans 12:4-5  It is through this community that we gain perspective and a love that reflects Christ's love for us. I am so incredibly thankful for my people and how they sharpen me.  Each one of them impact my life differently.  They love me even when they may not like me very much...when I am not so easy to love.  They hold my hand and they hold me accountable.  They give me words of encouragement and words of counsel.  They speak words of truth over me that come straight from my sweet Savior and most importantly they pray intercession over me.   

One of my focuses for this year...note I didn't say resolutions...is to eagerly and earnestly seek God all throughout my life.  I 100% believe that He has put the people who are in my life right now there to walk with me as I strive for this reality.  People to do life with who will be there to help me back up when I fall on my face, and cheer with me when God's grace and glory are front and center.  

And so to all of my people...and you know who you are...may this Ephesians 3:20 year be a blessing to you as we walk through it together to glorify the one true God above all else!  Of all my #blessings, and there is a infinitely long list of them, I am truly so humbly thankful for you!  

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you." John 15:12

To resolute or not...

 

Every year it's the same thing...I am going to lose weight...I am going to spend more time with my family...I am going to be everything I am not...blah blah blah...and then it always ends the same with me disappointed in myself and feeling very unaccomplished.  So this year I am doing things a little different.   I am going to start embracing the enormous amount of grace God has for me and letting it extend through everything I do.  

I decided this year instead of resolutions I would simply start the year with a scripture and a concept.   I am claiming this as my Ephesians 3:20 year and living in a space that claims all the glory for what God can accomplish.  This year will not be about what I need to accomplish on my own.  My Savior is able to do immeasurably more than all I could ever ask or imagine so why wouldn't I make this year about leaning heavily on His abilities and not my own.  As the shirt above indicates I am flawed...I don't always make the right decisions...say the right thing...I am not always the best version of myself, but I do LOVE the Lord and want to have an open heart and mind for what He calls me to do.  This year will be about embracing those imperfections and how God can knit them together for His glory.  

By embracing this knowledge I am confident that God will continue to always show up.  He will continue to be my shield and protector.  He will continue to equip me to be the best me I can be...the best mom...the best wife...the best friend...the best nurse I can be...but none of these bests will be because of anything that I will do...it will all be through the grace and love of a Sovereign God, and boy is there a lot of freedom in that.  My job is to be prayerful, faithful, and have an open heart to being the hands and feet of Jesus.  

Dear Lord thank you for your patience with this Jesus loving sinner girl.  Thank you for allowing me the privilege of being your hands and feet.  Lord I pray that I will always show up with an open heart ripened for your work through time spent in your word and in relationship with you.  All that I do I pray that it is done to glorify you.  Thank you Lord and praises to your name!  AMEN!

Ephesians 3:20

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us