Archive for July, 2009
God is so gracious! I found Courtney’s site, which led me to see I needed to give my blog to the Lord, and pray over it. Then He led me to Christie Ingram’s site, Work at Home Mom Hacks, where she is giving a free ebook away that she just wrote on achieving goals for work at home moms. A coincidence? I think NOT!
With the help of the Goal Achievement Workbook Christie wrote, I have realized that the visions of what my ministry will look like are not goals. It may seem elementary to you that they are not the same, but for some reason I had them confused. I was so overwhelmed in how I can make the visions come about, that I couldn’t focus on the goal for my ministry – to encourage others.
I devoured the 26 page book first, reading every word as if I was a famished lion, tearing at it’s prey. Today I have been going through the simple exercises she has to help us focus on our goals. One thing she does is help us understand what makes us tick a bit better. I had no idea that I was SUCH a people pleaser, till I did one of her exercises.
I know the Lord put her ebook in my path when it would do the most good in my life! Thank you, Christie, for your hard work and devotion to help us work at home moms work smarter and not harder!
In His Love,
Cee
Life tends to happen. For me, that means I get wayyy off track from the goals and tasks at hand. Anyone who really knows me can attest to this “ADD” characteristic in my personality. I tease, saying ADD doesn’t spell dad – but the truth is, if I’m going to minister to you, my dear, cherished reader, I’m going to have to get my act together!
I found a wonderful website in my surfing for answers. It’s Courtney Chowning,Christian Entrepreneur. She has helped me realize that I need to give this blog to the Lord. I have never officially done that. Also, she says it’s important to pray over and for the blog.
Thank you Courtney, for your wise words and inspiration when I needed it most!
Heavenly Father, please forgive me for leaving You out of my blog, even though I am doing it for You. I pray now, that You take control over it, and take it where You want it to go. Help me remember to pray over every single reader, comment and post, so that You will be glorified to the highest. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.
This week I will be praying about the focus the Lord wants me to have for His blog. Please pray for me to have clear guidance and wisdom as I take it to the next level, making it truly God’s blog!
In His Love,
Cee
Do you feel the person in the mirror is your harshest critic?
Watch this music video.
The church I go to is named Grace Point. I like that name, because Grace IS the point of salvation and our relationship with God. I did a word study while the puppies were sleeping today. I have been told it’s “undeserved merit” from God. But what IS Grace? In today’s language, thank you.
Here are a few things I found in my dictionary surfing:
Grace is another word for mercy, clemency and pardon. OK, I can understand it better when I read Paul saying it’s by grace we are saved, not by anything we can do (Cee paraphrase there). Read the rest of this entry »
A week ago today, Sunday July 12, I agreed to take on 2 puppies. They were 3 weeks old.
Lewy and Rusty first day
My neighbors were leaving. They had the momma and pups. But they couldn’t take the pups. They came to us asking if we’d be interested in taking just one. I took both. I know! What a softy, huh? I just couldn’t stand the thot of either of these adorable mixed mutts being abused, or killed. My mothering instinct kicked into hyper drive, I guess. (sheepish smiles) Read the rest of this entry »
Our water heater has served us so well this past 12 years. It has given us hot water without fail, even when our household number was as high as 8 people. So it came as no huge shock to me when we found it was not producing hot water a few weeks ago.
My wonderful handy husband quickly surmised that the element that lit the heater had gone out. It was a part that cost less than $10. But we quickly learned this wasn’t the entire problem. It needed the thermostat thing that let the heater know when to fire up and warm more water. Again, it was not an expensive part to replace. Yet it was a bit labor intensive. I am so grateful Rick saved us hundreds of dollars being able to fix the water heater himself.
What I haven’t told you yet, is that this whole situation took place over a two week period amidst a very chaotic schedule. Rick was able to light the water heater manually, so he could light it in the morning before he went to work. That way Mikki and I would have hot water for our morning showers. Then he’d light it when he got home so that he would have hot water for his nightly shower. We weren’t totally without hot water; it just wasn’t as readily available to us like we are used to.
This incident has been a discipline of learning to be so grateful for the most mundane of modern appliances, the water heater. We don’t think about it, but every day it serves us without fail. Never asking for anything in return… I thank God now, each morning, as I feel the hot water coming out of the spigot.
I can’t help but see a spiritual lesson in this. God is there for us day in and day out. He never fails us. It has me asking myself, “Can I ever be a servant to God and others that way?” I know it is a lofty standard to set for myself. However, I’d like to stretch myself to be more like a water heater, always available when called upon by The Master, than to be found cold when He opens an opportunity for me to show warmth and love.
Deuteronomy 20:1 (Moses told the Israelites before they entered the Promised Land) “When you go out to battle against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.”
Many years passed and the Israelites had almost conquered the land completely.
Joshua 17:14-18 Then the children of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given us only one lot and one share to inherit, since we are a great people, inasmuch as the LORD has blessed us until now?” 15 So Joshua answered them, “If you are a great people, then go up to the forest country and clear a place for yourself there in the land of the Perizzites and the giants, since the mountains of Ephraim are too confined for you. 16 But the children of Joseph said, “The mountain country is not enough for us; and all the Canaanites who dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both those who are of Beth Shean and its towns and those who are of the Valley of Jezreel.” 17 And Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph-to Ephraim and Manasseh-saying, “You are a great people and have great power; you shall not have only one lot, 18 “but the mountain country shall be yours. Although it is wooded, you shall cut it down, and its farthest extent shall be yours; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots and are strong.” (NKJV)
Often, we lose courage to continue to fight for what is ours. We know it is ours, we fought so hard to get it. We seen so many miracles that God did in our behalf to have it. But years and years later, we are tired of fighting…. Read the rest of this entry »
1Peter 5:8 “…Be watchful. Your adversary the devil, walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (WEB)
Job 1:6-7 “Now it happened on the day when the God’s sons came to present themselves before Yahweh, that Satan also came among them. 7 Yahweh said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered Yahweh, and said, “From going back and forth in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.” (WEB)
Photo Courtesy of Juliane Riedl
My head was pounding, my heart racing, as the latest installment of stress was handed to me…. Mark had returned to his old ways.
I suddenly had a vision in my mind of a lion chasing its prey; The poor creature zigging and zagging, attempting to avoid the inevitable. Read the rest of this entry »
Ecclesiastes 10:12 “The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious,” (WEB)
While growing up, I was told frequently, “You catch more flies with honey than vinegar”. This rule was helpful when my weekend newspaper was not delivered for the fourth Saturday in a row. I called the customer service, as I’ve done for the past three weekends, to tell them the paper delivery person forgot us again. This time it was very tempting to get that ’barracuda’ attitude I’ve been known to don when I am upset (one that I have been working on for the last 20+ years to tame). I felt like the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland – “OFF with their heads!” Read the rest of this entry »
John 15:5 “I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (WEB)
I have a grape vine out in front of my house, growing along an old ladder. It has finally reached the edge of the garage. This is the first year it has actually produced iddy biddy grapes.
I did some study on grape vines. Did you know the big part that comes out of the ground is called the vine? Then the branches are what grow out and bear fruit. Read the rest of this entry »
