my hero

Esther is my girl.  She got it.  I hope to master it in every area of my life.  It's good to have goals at least, right? If there is one thing, and one thing only, I want my life legacy to be it would be this:

To only desire what the King desires.

I don’t just want to talk about it.  I don’t just want to desire it.  I want to live that way.

This takes practice……

I have begun evaluating my most cherished prayer requests and consciously starting out with one phrase that changes the whole moment.  Esther said it well, “If I have found favor in the King’s eyes, and if it pleases the King to give me what I ask of him.”

I think I finally figured out that this kind of prayer always wins.  If God delights in my request He grants it to me.  If God has a better plan, I win by being spared circumstances that weren’t for my good. 

Our lives don’t belong to us if we have surrendered our heart to God.  True surrender shows by your requests.  Are they driven by selfish motives?  Mine sure have been.  True surrender shows by your reaction when God gives you the answer you might not like.  I’d like to say I’ve always reacted perfectly.  I’d be lying.  You’d quit following my blog.  (or at least you should)

Psalms 37:4 Says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”  God isn’t a genie.  You don’t rub a magic lamp, God pops out, you make a wish and it comes true.  Why do we treat this verse this way?  I believe a person truly delighting themselves in the Lord has the desires of their heart planted in them by God.  The last handful of years I have tried so hard to just focus on the first part of this verse. 

We were bought with a price.  Blood.  It can’t be undone.  It’s forever.  My desires sacrificed are so mild in comparison. 


♪♫♪ "Teach me to love like You.  Break my heart for what breaks Yours"  -Hosanna by Hillsong United ♪♫♪

Proverbs 3:5-10 (MSG)

Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
   don't try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
   He's the one who will keep you on track.
Don't assume that you know it all.
   Run to God! Run from evil!
Your body will glow with health,
   your very bones will vibrate with life!
Honor God with everything you own;
   give Him the first and the best.
Your barns will burst,
   your wine vats will brim over.

The above verse I know to be true.  No one could convince me otherwise.  I challenge you to experience the same.  It’s worth it. More than you can imagine.

Just ask Esther.  She went from an unknown orphan to a famous queen in history. 

lessons from singleness

I’m not an expert and in the grand scheme of life I haven’t really been single that long.  Seven years and counting.  It’s a miracle I can even write that because some days, it feels like forever.  Good thing emotions aren’t true reality.  Thankfully circumstances are temporary.  Here’s some random lessons I’ve learned.  However, I’ll start with the most important of all.

1.)  God is enough.

He HAS to be.  A husband and a baby or kids aren’t everything. You see I was lost in my identity in being a wife and mom.  I was consumed.  From a little girl it was all I wanted to be when I grew up.  It was an idol.  I have a purpose greater than those two titles in the world.  To further the kingdom of God!  However He sees best for me to do that I faithfully need to do.

2.)   Alone time is priceless; it’s productive; it’s necessary.

Do you hear that?  It’s quiet.  I’ve grown to LOVE it.  It’s one of those things that I would redo if I could.  Get more alone time.  My personality is a sanguine (outgoing and social).  Man do I love hosting people over, attending a party or just hanging out with family or a girlfriend.  I book up quick!  The younger me was never alone.  I was afraid to be alone.  The new me has gone to a movie alone & enjoyed it.  Not because no one was available but because I wanted to.  I’ve stayed in a hotel room away just for me.  I’d say I’ve made progress. 

3.)   I don’t need a husband, but I would like one.

I have an amazing church, job, house, land, car, scrapbook room……you fill in the blank.  I am extremely blessed.  I can make it on my own.  To be honest from the material things perspective I’ve done better single than when I was married.  The only debt I have is my mortgage.  I’m in the biggest house I’ve ever lived in. ETC ETC.  I would gladly give it all up tomorrow if saying “I do” required it.  However, Mr. Right is going to be worth it.  I bring a lot to the table. This brings me to the next point.

4.) Know your value

I know my worth.  I’ve worked hard at it. I don’t mean in a conceded or prideful way.  Please don’t take it this way.  I just mean don’t settle for just a man (or woman) just to be blessed married.  It’s not worth it.  I’ll stay single until God calls me home or comes back Himself.  Marriage is tons of work and I’ve said all along, the man I marry will be worth all that work.  Instead of making a mile long list of what he should have, I’ve put more energy into what I should bring.  It’s more rewarding that way. 

5.) Don’t wait around until “then”

Check things off your “bucket list” now.  Don’t sit around for him/her.  Buy that house.  Go on that vacation.  My next to do item is a missionary trip with my teenager.   Those plans are in the works.  Find your individual purpose.  I promise you it’s not just being a wife/husband and/or a parent.  I can’t tell you how many times I have said to my girlfriend or have thought to myself, when would I have time to date?  Time flies when you’re having fun.  Don’t waste today dreaming for “when.”

Being single has been worth every minute.  I’m convinced I could have never grown any other way.  God is good like that.  He knows just what we need to go through.  Trust Him, right where you are at.  Right down the path you are on.  Trust me, there’s a bend or a new road soon.  For me, as long as I’m not going backwards then things are looking up.

……….to be continued.

no vacancy

Boundaries are healthy.  Boundaries are necessary.  Boundaries are no good unless you enforce them.

Once upon a time there was this girl.  She wasn’t liked by a certain few and their mission in life seemed to be to make her life miserable.  What a sad state of purpose for someone’s day.  They said cruel things behind her back.  They said cruel things to her face.  They purposefully thought of ways to make her day hard.  Words hurt more than sticks and stones.  She took a lot of verbal abuse. 

One of my all time favorite movies is Pretty Woman.  I could probably recite a great deal of the movie if I really wanted to.  It’s the ultimate story of girl gets rescued by a boy and her life is truly changed.  Why I like it so much is that the underdog wins.

One of my favorite scenes in the movie is when Richard Gere is telling Julia Roberts that she is very bright and very special. She is says, “People put you down enough, you start to believe it. The bad stuff is easier to believe. You ever notice that?” 

Satan is the perfect liar.  He’s determined to convince you to believe the “bad” stuff about you.  If you listen long enough and entertain him, you’ll start to believe it. 

Healthy boundaries are life changing.

The girl in my story got some very sound advice and someone asked her why she rented space in her brain to those mean girls.  That is pure wisdom right there!

Don’t give in!  

Satan is out to kill, steal and destroy.  Don’t rent any space to him.  Don’t even entertain the thoughts he throws at you and dwell on them.  Go to the Word, see what God says about you and remind Satan what your creator said about you. 

God designed you, He knows the real you.  See what He sees in His love letter to you.

If you don’t know your value, you’ll believe anything.

Remind yourself that you were His idea……..