works are important {even necessary}

Continuing in James 2:

James-series

14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?

15  If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,

16  And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?

17  Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

18  Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

19  Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

20  But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

21  Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

22  Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

23  And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

24  Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

25  Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

[bold emphasis added]

I think these verses are hard for us to swallow sometimes. [At least, I’ve had difficulty on occasion… 🙂 ]

{And there’s a bit of Old Testament here… because it’s just as relevant today as it was then! But that’s another post…}

Is James telling these Jewish Christians to maintain keeping the law in order to be saved?

NO. He isn’t.

But he is telling them, and us, that after we have confessed Jesus there WILL be a mark of works that show our faith to a lost world [and even to other Christians].

There is not really any explanation necessary:

We show our Christianity to others by
the works we do in our daily lives.

It’s that simple…
~ ~ ~ ~ and it’s that hard.

I’d love for you to share your thoughts on these verses!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Let’s connect on FACEBOOK!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I’m also on Instagram!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

and I’m on Twitter!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

signature

when life hands you {crazy}

when life hands you {crazy}

Right about one year ago I wrote this post… but it never got published. It was raw. It was typed out in frustration.

But when I came across it yesterday, all I could see was that it was REALauthentic feelings that I now know many moms feel.

And it’s not a sin to BE frustrated-only to allow it to control you.

The ages and such are a little different now, but the truth still applies… a whole year later:

…when life hands you crazy:

I know many families with more than 4 children who seem to really have it all together.

And I know families with less than 4 children who seem to, well, NOT have it all together.

Me? OH! Our family has 4 children… and definitely do NOT have it all together!

thanksgiving.

{but together, we have it all :)}

 

But, on occasion, we give the illusion that it’s all dandy. [hehe]

I have found that life just dishes out crazy… like there’s not tomorrow! {and there may not be}

So what’s a girl to do when the crazy just keeps coming?

The answer might sound difficult, but it’s really just a mindset:

EMBRACE IT.

 Welcome crazy to just come and have a seat right next to you!

 Crazy comes

and your baby has an outfit-dirtying-blowout 5 minutes before you are supposed to leave for school… go ahead and cry. We’ve all been there!

Crazy comes

and your already-trained-toddler wets herself in the bathroom… at church…

Crazy comes

and your 3rd grader reminds you of her project that was not finished but is due… today.
Apologize after you loose it, and take a few moments to remind her of her own responsibility… and that childhood is the time to learn it.

Crazy comes

when your baby breaks out in hives caused by an allergic reaction to his meds…

…and your 5 year old breaks out in something… caused by a-still-unknown-source…

…and your husband’s asthma [which has been very mild for years] starts acting up daily and your heart is terrified of the struggle to breathe…

…and you have friends and far-away-family struggling with things that make a soul yearn for the Lord to just return and take us all away…

And then you remember there are those who are not yet ready for that.

 And so, crazy strikes yet again and you realize that life is going on… for now… and HOW DO YOU LIVE WITH CRAZY?

oh, right… EMBRACE it.

The days I handle the crazy the best are the days I wake up and struggle to get out of bed... And my 5 year old gets up in a grumpy-funk, and I snap at her at 6:35 am…..

and I see the hurt in her face, in the face of her older sister sitting there listening to it…

 and the Lord catches me in my fall.

I realize crazy has come yet another day into my home.

 I stop.

I hug that 5 year old squirming her grumps away.

And I whisper a prayer that sounds something like… “oh God, please help me!”

I speak an apology to my babies and coax some laughter out of their little bodies.

because those are the days I am forced to keep muttering… “Lord, make me love with your love and make me speak with your words and make me touch with your embrace…” all day long.

kids2

 

Right about one year ago I wrote this post… but it never got published. It was raw. It was typed out in frustration.

But when I came across it yesterday, all I could see was that it was REALauthentic feelings that I now know many moms feel.

And it’s not a sin to BE frustrated-only to allow it to control you.

The ages and such are a little different now, but the truth still applies… a whole year later:

…when life hands you crazy:

I know many families with more than 4 children who seem to really have it all together.

And I know families with less than 4 children who seem to, well, NOT have it all together.

Me? OH! Our family has 4 children… and definitely do NOT have it all together!

thanksgiving.

{but together, we have it all :)}

 

But, on occasion, we give the illusion that it’s all dandy. [hehe]

I have found that life just dishes out crazy… like there’s not tomorrow! {and there may not be}

So what’s a girl to do when the crazy just keeps coming?

The answer might sound difficult, but it’s really just a mindset:

EMBRACE IT.

 Welcome crazy to just come and have a seat right next to you!

 Crazy comes

and your baby has an outfit-dirtying-blowout 5 minutes before you are supposed to leave for school… go ahead and cry. We’ve all been there!

Crazy comes

and your already-trained-toddler wets herself in the bathroom… at church…

Crazy comes

and your 3rd grader reminds you of her project that was not finished but is due… today.
Apologize after you loose it, and take a few moments to remind her of her own responsibility… and that childhood is the time to learn it.

Crazy comes

when your baby breaks out in hives caused by an allergic reaction to his meds…

…and your 5 year old breaks out in something… caused by a-still-unknown-source…

…and your husband’s asthma [which has been very mild for years] starts acting up daily and your heart is terrified of the struggle to breathe…

…and you have friends and far-away-family struggling with things that make a soul yearn for the Lord to just return and take us all away…

And then you remember there are those who are not yet ready for that.

 And so, crazy strikes yet again and you realize that life is going on… for now… and HOW DO YOU LIVE WITH CRAZY?

oh, right… EMBRACE it.

The days I handle the crazy the best are the days I wake up and struggle to get out of bed... And my 5 year old gets up in a grumpy-funk, and I snap at her at 6:35 am…..

and I see the hurt in her face, in the face of her older sister sitting there listening to it…

 and the Lord catches me in my fall.

I realize crazy has come yet another day into my home.

 I stop.

I hug that 5 year old squirming her grumps away.

And I whisper a prayer that sounds something like… “oh God, please help me!”

I speak an apology to my babies and coax some laughter out of their little bodies.

because those are the days I am forced to keep muttering… “Lord, make me love with your love and make me speak with your words and make me touch with your embrace…” all day long.

kids2

 

signature

d31fb     d31insta      d31twi

an update

How do you like the blog’s new look? ! If you are reading this in your e-mail, would you click over here and see it? 🙂 I appreciate ANY feedback.

If you have not visited in a while then I have some

BIG NEWS

 to tell you!

I am going to be TEACHING this year in our little Christian Church school…. So, it may be a while before the blog is completely ‘revamped’… I still have to re-attach most of my photos to their posts.

In the mean time, I am still on facebook!! and would LOVE to hear from any of you via comments or facebook.

BLESSINGS!

favorite story

not of the world {day 3}

Last night in my church’s special Revival Services, the Lord touched my heart. He convicted me about my witness… out in public, not an online public, but where people see the actual flesh and blood of my body and who I am.

Though He has many times spoken to my heart about its conduct. And He has changed many things in my life in the area of speech and dress and attitude. This is not how He spoke to me this time {that is not to say I think I have arrived! but it is something I consciously work on frequently.}

During our 9 years of living in this home, we have canvassed [invited neighbors to visit our church as well as ask about their salvation] our street and a few surrounding streets several times, though rarely is anyone home. And while I think we as a family could do this more frequently, that is not what He spoke to me about either.

Being a stay-at-home-wife-and-mother with 4 children [ages 1-8 yo], and many years off/on only having the one vehicle [and now fuel is so high, it’s almost like having one vehicle as we use them both at the same time so rarely], I did/do not leave the house often outside of attending church. But when I do, I am not normally thinking about speaking to anyone. I have a grocery list and a time-frame, and often 2 or more children with me.

kids

What the Lord so graciously and lovingly knocked me up-side the head with is that even then, even when rushed to make sure I do not forget the bread or that I don’t forget to look at the sales racks for that bargain…. I must not block out the world around me. The world that is literally rushing to spend an eternity in hell.

How long would it take me to grab a tract out of my purse and hand it to the lady perusing the canned goods with me? How much brain power does it really take so ask “Do you know Jesus?” to the family also looking for a deal in the toothpaste? How can I be so focused on the toothpaste that it takes precedence over a human soul? I am positive that if I came home and told my husband that someone promised to come to a service or even let me talk further about salvation right there in the grocery store, he would not be in the least upset that I told him I forgot the toothpaste… or even the milk and eggs and bread!

So, this soul-beating that I took last night has softened my heart to SEE the world around me. Just because I am not OF the world does not mean I am not IN it, and I have a grave responsibility of sharing Jesus with someone!

31days2012

 

the fulness of life {day 11}

I read recently where someone was saying that [one of] the problems with the church is that she is not teaching us about how to “work.” One commenter dubbed it the “doctrine of vocation.”

Here is a quote which nearly sums the article:

Christianity is given (sold?) to us, in the main, as a life of evangelism, morality and church activities. [yet] Our lives are made up of finely drawn details. Each day is full of countless ones. We do all these ‘little’ things at home, at work, and in the marketplace and they just don’t get a lot of sermon time.” [you can read its entirety here]  

{And I believe this man is honestly speaking from a sincere heart. This is no attack on him or his thoughts. I do not even know him!}

This got me to thinking… and wondering:

Are we supposed to learn how to “act Christian” at work?

Is there a different way to express our faith in the workplace as opposed to in church on Sunday?

…and that made me be stillto listen and know.

It is almost cliche among Christians {especially those who are faithful to church and church activities} to say: Let Christ have preeminence

{this is the first verse that popped in my head after reading the blog post: Colossians 1:18, And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence} 

It seems to be often preached: Put Jesus firstand you will have peace, you will know joy, life will have meaning, etc.

Often, both phrases are used interchangeably.

But they are not the same.

And I am not actually supposed to put Jesus first.

I am to put Him only.

Preeminence implies that nothing else can compare.

There is no list for Him to be “first” on because He IS “the list.”

In the beginning of my Christian journey, He was the “first one” that I reached for/called out to in certain situations… but because He is always enough, then I ended up realizing that He is the only anything that I need in any situation. We’re all learning.

The problem, as I find in the Bible, is not that the church does not meet this supposed need of teaching us how to live in our different compartments: church, work, play, with friends, with family, in a store, in a restaurant, at a church function as opposed to a work function, with church friends as opposed to unsaved colleagues,etc.

The problem is that: WE LIVE IN COMPARTMENTS.

If I could just realize {and convey through example and testimony} that Christ is to simply be my life… I would see how He permeates [fills] every aspect

… without special training or doctrines.

Further reading in that same passage reveals:

For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;….by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him… whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. Colossians 1:18-20. {He is the fulness of all things… in heaven or on earth.} [emphasis mine]

and further still…
And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled… through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:If ye continue in the faith and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, …even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:  to whom God would make knownthe glory of this mysterywhich is Christ in you, the hope of glory: whom we preach, … whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.Colossians 1:21-29 [selected, emphasis mine] 

If I remember correctly, Paul, though a traveling missionary… worked. He had a “vocation” outside of being a minister of the Gospel. And yet, when speaking of Christ, Paul never mentions anything apart from Jesus is the fulness… of… well, of life.

Jesus is the fulness of lifeall life.

He is not just the fulness of going to church or of witnessing or of having family devotions.

If the Spirit whispers within me to speak to a perfect stranger about the Gospel, Jesus is being the fulness “in the store.” If I realize that I have not given a true effort in a particular area of my secular job, then I know that I have not allowed Jesus to be the fulness in my “vocation.” 

When I rest in His strength and find joy in His contentment, He becomes the fulness of any area/compartment I may have in my life.

Thus, Jesus becomes my life; and I do not need to blame my church for not teaching me how to live in my compartments.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Let’s connect on FACEBOOK!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I’m also on Instagram!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

and I’m on Twitter!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

signature

giving good gifts {day 12}

“after” – this makes my heart sing.
Sometimes, it is frustrating to realize just how much like a little child {my children, no less!} I act. 

When they are asked to complete a very simple chore: please take the toys off of the bookshelves, because you know they do not belong there [this is purely for my own sanity]; their first response is: but I can’t reach… whatever toy on whatever shelf… excuses. 
[SOMEONE put it there! and it wasn’t Mommy!!] 

{yes. this happened just a few minutes ago… :)}

And then I think about simple tasks my Heavenly Father asks of me… write a kind note to a hurting church member, take a few extra steps and say HI to a visitor in church, let me {HIM} help you love your family as you want to… as is your heart’s desire.
… and I say, but LORD! I just can’t do that! for whatever reason. {I don’t have their address, I feel awkward talking to strangers, sometimes it’s hard to let God move in my heart….
I forget what I tell my own children: Just say yes, ma’am and do what you can; show me you are trying to obey, and ask for my help and Mommy will help with the rest…
“before”–’nuff said!
Is not God better than that?
and I am reminded of:
For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened…If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? Matthew 7:8 & 11
Yes, Lord. 

That is all the response He asks.

So, today, I wrote a note… and I am going to ask God to help me show my family how much I love them! And for tomorrow… we’ll just see what tomorrow brings!

one other passage came to mind:  
And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: 
for my strength is made perfect in weakness. 
Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, 
that the power of Christ may rest upon me
for when I am weak, then am I strong.  
2 Corinthians 12:9 & 10
 
 
The bookshelf pictures were from about 2 weeks ago… I did a major decluttering and re-shelving of books. When little fingers think the bookshelves are playgrounds, nothing is safe! Most of the messiness is moved and ‘rearranged’ books. The “after” picture is almost what it looked like again this morning after we removed several layers of toys… SO happy! I took pictures to PROVE that they CAN look nice 🙂 with all the books on the shelves and “in their home.”

when the season is called ‘wait’

We all have “big things” that happen in our life. Most people call them milestones-though between them is often much longer than a mile! 
Some of these may include marriage and college graduation, getting a job in your career field, becoming a mother, buying a new home or a myriad of other events. Days and months leading to these momentous junctures often give us a sense of purpose,  a motivation to get up, an intention for our day.
 
But what happens in the between times. 

 the wait? 

What is the reason for getting up each and every day with no change on the horizon? 
I have, on occasion, struggled with that.
And I have noticed others struggle with it also: perhaps someone engaged in an occupation that was not their “goal” when they finished college or a mother of young children or a family simply struggling to make ends meet. 

And I have thought, in those between times, “Is this really God’s will for my life?”

 BUT THAT IS THE WRONG QUESTION!

Of course, when the baby has messed all over and there are crayon markings on the wall, that is NOT the rest of my life, or yours.
And when your vocation is not what was intended upon college enrollment, that is NOT the rest of LIFE.
But it is where you are- now.
And our question should be:

Lord, what is your will for my life—today?

For me, today is about loving my children, preparing food, washing laundry, kissing my husband, encouraging a friend.
waking-up1
For you, today is about DOING whatever is required of you-be it as a SAHM, a teacher, a store clerk…. whatever!

and doing it with your whole heart as unto the Lord!

And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23,24 

Be a godly example of obedience to those under you AND those above you! Make wise decisions. And WAIT.

because we never “arrive” at the rest of our life!

Today is also about renewing my strength, preparing my soul for what lies ahead.

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

The Psalms are full of verses about waiting. Sometimes the author was pleading for help and sometimes he was simply weary of waiting; sometimes he was calm and content and sometimes he was not. But still, he waited.

Psalm 27:14 Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. [why would he need courage if he were doing nothing during his waiting?]

 WAIT, but don’t stop LIVING and SERVING while you wait!

d31fbd31instad31twi

signature