Tag Archives: Christ

Simplify

This was my post on Facebook on October 31.

simplify simplify simplify….which may mean I thin out my fb list of friends!
I only have 325 – so, hmmm – but next year is going to be MUCH simpler – and I am focusing on what My Lord and Savior wants me to do….for me…as for me and Him…and me…and Him…and Jim Wildman, too – but, I need to get back to the one on one faith that has brought me through so much…so, as I simplify my life – I am planning next year to do an experiment – 365 days of Biblical Womanhood and Faith( combining the experiences of two books I will add here).
Focus on the gifts God has given me – writing and painting.
And focus on the responsibilities that God has given me – wife and mother and friend.
That should be simple enough.
I don’t know what travels will be in my path, or trials, or triumphs!
But, I want my friends to know that if I thin things out, don’t post on your page, disappear for long periods of time – it’s not because of a lack of love for YOU, it’s because I am growing my love for myself, My God, and my husband. If anyone does not understand this – please unfriend me now – it will save me time l later! see – simplify!
Also, if you do not like me posting scriptures and Christian based faith things on my page, go ahead and unfriend me – It’s my page, but, you have the choice to not look at it.
So – this is my fair warning – I’m putting things into place for finishing up 2014, and starting 2015.
There are many holidays for many folks that are occurring from today, until Jan 1 – I hope that everyone that I love enjoys some time together with the ones they love!

I am working on simplifying my life – to focus on only those things that are important.

In the book A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans – she talks about a prayer life, a bible reading life, and then, she discusses Mary and Martha – the quintessential dichotomy of being a Biblical woman in the home, and being at the feet of Jesus.

THIS HAS BEEN THE BASIS FOR MY STRUGGLES BETWEEN MY CALLING AND MY RESPONSIBILITIES!

When we were first married – and I had no urgent responsibilities, and only the fresh memory of being single – and desiring to read the Bible, I read the Bible for hours.
We chose NOT to have a TV, because of the distraction it would cause Jim in his studies, but that ended up allowing me to have the freedom to study the Bible.

My first love – when I first understood my salvation I thirsted, and hungered for the Bible. I read the Bible to understand this man that had given his life for me, and how to be more like him. I read the bible to understand the roots of the religion I was now embracing. I read the bible like some eat bread and drink wine. It was my sustenance.

My first love in our marriage was to please Jim in all ways – cleaning, cooking, sewing, decorating, and pleasing him by meeting him at the door with a smile and a kind word when he returned home.

In Revelation 2:4 Jesus says to the church:
Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

This is after he praises them for their good deeds.
His counsel is this, in Rev 2:5

Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

I need to repent so that I can simplify.
I need to return to my first loves.
I hope that it is not too late!

update Nov 5, 2014
Of course it’s not too late – I am not dead, I have not been raptured, Christ has not returned, and I have not faced the white throne of judgement. By grabbing onto the horns of the mercy seat, and crying out for mercy, and grace – I can change my life to glorify God. It’s not too late as long as I have breath!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

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Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi’s Heart Mission

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

My Faith Revealed

I am a Christian.
what does that mean?
It means that I desire to live like Christ, because of what HE has done for me – by FAITH –
I believe “the stories”
I believe “the legends”
I belive ” the myth”
I believe it is TRUTH!

This morning – I went out to the beach, for a sunrise service that was too late for the sunrise.
but I was able to sit, listen to my husband read scripture,

MATTHEW 27

then we sang The Easter Song

“Easter Song” performed by Matthew Ward:
Easter Song

And I prayed  for forgiveness for last year, and for renewed grace for this next year – to grow closer and more like Jesus.

And then, to remind myself of my baptism….

image

There is only one baptism in Christ, for the forgiveness of sins:
Mark 1:4

Ephesians 4:5-7 
5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

But, for myself, a very kinetic learner, that needs kinetic reminders – I choose to go to the water, and remember my committment.

And the meaning of baptism is this:

Romans 6:3-5
…3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?
4Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.
5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection,…

And this is the life I want to live:

Romans 6:6-8

…6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.
8Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,…

There are so many ways that I allow death to enter my body – with food, thoughts, and even deeds that I do or leave undone.
Here is the Prayer for forgivness from the Episcopal book of common prayer:

Almighty and most merciful Father,
we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep,
we have followed too much the devices and desires of our
   own hearts,
we have offended against thy holy laws,
we have left undone those things which we ought to
   have done,
and we have done those things which we ought not to
   have done.
But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
spare thou those who confess their faults,
restore thou those who are penitent,
according to thy promises declared unto mankind
in Christ Jesus our Lord;
and grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake,
that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life,
to the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.

And, then, the priest – whom today is Jesus – says to me:

The Almighty and merciful Lord grant you absolution and
remission of all your sins, true repentance, amendment of
life, and the grace and consolation of his Holy Spirit. Amen.

And my statement of Faith –

The Apostles’ Creed

Officiant and People together, all standing

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
    maker of heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord;
    who was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
    born of the Virgin Mary,
    suffered under Pontius Pilate,
    was crucified, dead, and buried.
    He descended into hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
    He ascended into heaven,
    and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father almighty.
    From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost,
    the holy catholic Church,
    the communion of saints,
    the forgiveness of sins,
    the resurrection of the body,
    and the life everlasting. Amen.

And, a prayer for guidance:

O heavenly Father, in whom we live and move and have our
being: We humbly pray thee so to guide and govern us by thy
Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life
we may not forget thee, but may remember that we are ever
walking in thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord.     Amen.

And my specific prayer for myself:

Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

I want to be like Jesus – in the ways of Love, laid out in 1 Cor 13; by growing fruit, as specified in Ephesians 5:22-23; and by good works – as spoken of in

Ephesians 2:10.

If I work on these things, I will be more than busy enough for the rest of my earthly life.
If I work on these things, I will be more and more like Christ each day.

In my heart, this is my reasonable service:

Romans 12:1-2

1Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
2And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.…

And, after my meditation for this day – this day to celebrate the ressurection, I ended with a very precious song from my childhood services:

Christ the Lord is Risen today

for further contemplation, I present 10 Favorite Easter Scriptures! from the Gospel Herald.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.


If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.



If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.”– from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!

Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! And you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi’s Heart Mission

Sponsor a Child

 
Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

how many is too many?

How much is enough?

    8 surgeries in three years….too much.
    3 headaches in 7days…too much.
    250 pounds – too much.
    5 children and 2 miscarriages in 6 years…too much.
    2 meds, 4 meds, 6 meds, 10 meds?
    VITAMINS?????
    cars in the front yard?
    houses on every continent?
    $$$$?
    how many things,
    how many crises,
    how many children,
    how many difficulties, 
    how many traumas….

how many, how much is too much?

Starting my continuing care medical appointments feels like too much.

    Primary care
    ortho
    neuro
    fibro
    rheuma
    podiatrist
    opthamologist
    gynocologist
    dentist
    and a  pain specialist that makes me feel like a drug addict.

But, how much is enough?

    enough to stop the pain?
    enough to block the memories?
    enough to feel satiated?
    enough to feel appreciated?
    enough to feel safe…

We live in an RV, but have lived in 2000+ sq ft houses.
We have had a new car…but now have older cars with all the bugs worked out of them.

Too much or too little?

    I want to walk – I’d like to walk the recommended 10000 steps  per day…but I broke a bone in my left foot.
    I want to swim – but the outside pools are too full of people, or the weather does not cooperate.
    I want to bike – but I injured my knee on a recumbent bike.
    I want to do body weight exercises – but my elbows never fully recovered from prior injuries.

how many surgeries, injuries are enough? Too many?  enough to get things to work well?

    How much bible reading is enough?
    How much is not enough?
    How much prayer is enough?
    How much is not enough?
    How many smiles are enough? not enough?
    How many tears are enough? Not enough?
    If I wear a covering? or not?
    If I wear a dress? or jeans?
    If i don’t wear make-up? or do?
    If I grow my hair long? or cut it?
    If I eat kosher? or just clean?

If I give all to the poor – ALL – if I have not love…I am a noisy gong.
And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though

I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 1 Cor 13:3

But that doesn’t answer my question. How much is too much? How much is enough?

    GRACE
    MERCY
    FORGIVENESS
    PATIENCE
    LONG-SUFFERING …

The fruit of the Spirit!

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness AND Self-control.

The Love Chapter in the Bible.

    love is patient
    love is kind
    love is not envious
    not conceited
    not rude

Think on these things:

    whatsoever things are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy.

That is a lot to keep in mind….
Then there’s

    modesty,
    humility,
    compassion,
    actions and
    non actions…
    how to BE MORE than you ARE!

How much is enough?

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

In the work out realm…the balanced answer is:

just do one more than you did yesterday.

But am I able to accept that what I am doing right now is enough?
Probably not.

Am I able to accept that right now, my life is revolving around doctors – helping to fix the things that have been broken?
I’m trying.

Am I able to rest in the fact that Jesus died for me – and that believing in Him is all that is needed for salvation? The Bible Tells me so:

Rom 10:9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
(and Rom 5:9-10; Acts 16:31; John 3:16-17; 1 John 3:23)

But there are times that I think I should DO more…

And then, I think about the Apostle Paul. His life was rough.
But he writes and encourages the church to be content in all things.

Reading the list of things that he went through – I think, it is too much!
Reading the times of suffering want – I think, it’s not enough!
But, Paul says – it is enough – I am content.
HOW???

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Phil 4:13

Doing all things through Christ?

And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;Col 3:23

So –

    If I go to the doctor because I have not been miraculously healed – I do it through Christ and unto the Lord.
    If I workout to strengthen my body – I do it through Christ and unto the Lord.
    If I choose to dress in one way or the other – I do it through Christ and unto the Lord.
    And if I go to bed, and I have done all that has been presented to me, I have attempted to be better today than I was yesterday, then I can be content.

    AND If I stumble and fall – I have the promise that he will forgive, and pick me up – His mercies are new every morning.

How much is too much? more than I can handle. And He promised not to give me more than I can handle.

How much is too little? less effort than I can give. Less than what I have.

I’m not done with these thoughts…but this is a good place to close this for further processing.

Apparently, I need to work on being content.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! And you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi’s Heart Mission

 
Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

Welcome 2014

I may be a bit strange…well, yes, I am peculiar….but I have a way of looking at the new year that sort of gets some folks down.

It is like a new salvation confession.

During December, in the midst of all the celebrations, I look at my life as if I am going to meet the Lord Jesus. Of course, that IS what folks supposedly celebrate on Dec 25, welcoming the Lord Jesus into their lives – but that discussion is for another blog!

I look at the Old year as, well, my old life….it is passed away by 2014…and I look it over as if I was preparing for my confession of Christ as my savior. Sort of like one would do before their public baptism.

What things troubled me last year?

What things needed help last year?

What were my weak areas?

What were, if any, my strong areas?

DID MY LIFE SCREAM JESUS EVERYWHERE I WENT?

Well, of course, there are times that our lives should just whisper Jesus – but the point is, did I shine the light of Jesus to those around me? Or did I hide my light under a bushel?

2013 was a year of recovery.

2013 was a year of acceptance.

2013 was a year of resting and leaning on Jesus.

Yes, I failed.

  • I failed in my consistency of blogging.
  • I failed in my consistency of painting.
  • I failed in my consistency of writing…or writing the books at all!
  • and those are just the public failures!

But were those my goals or God’s goals????

  • I was blessed to help out our daughter, Faith, around her baby boy’s birth.
  • I was blessed to enjoy a week of vacation with our son and his family here in Florida.
  • I was blessed to visit some ‘old’ friends in Ohio.
  • I was blessed to take a road trip with my daughter, Rachel.
  • I was blessed to go on some trips with my husband.
  • I was blessed to walk up FOUR lighthouses!
  • I was blessed to get to see two cousins that I hadn’t seen in years…one that was my ‘older sister’ cousin, and one that was my ‘younger sister’ cousin.
  • I was blessed to learn that milk and bread mess up my body and cause pain.
  • I was blessed to learn about alkaline ionized water, and how it benefits my body to enable me to do many more things with my chronic illnesses.
  • I was blessed to learn that I could choose my food…my food did not dictate or, rather, my emotions did not dictate my food.
  • I was blessed to learn that my husband and I love each other more and more than we did when we got married…with 34 years of experiences, good and bad, shared.

In all of those, I learned many things.

Did I get done the things I thought I was supposed to get done? no.

Some of that is my fault…some of that is what God brought down my path.

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (Ps 16:11)

I say I want to walk the path God gives me…that I want Him to lead me and be the light unto my feet, and the lamp unto my path…but

  • do I follow? or,
  • do I follow willingly? or,
  • do I follow unbegrudgedly? or,
  • do I whine? or,
  • do I embrace JOY? and accept HIS pleasures (listed above as blessings)?

The sheep don’t whine about following the shepherd.

Those that wander, he breaks their leg, so that they learn to stay near…

I have had several years of learning to be still….the last surgery was a HUGE be still lesson.

But, that was last year.

Just as someone that is going to their baptism, their public confession of Faith…that is in the past. When I confess my sins, he is faithful to forgive and to cleanse me of all my sins (1 John 1:9).

That is what my evaluation of last year is all about.

Then, 2014 – all things are new….I have been washed in the blood – and my time before me is NEW…just as after my confession of sin, and confession of the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior, I am a new creation…old things are passed away, all things become new(2 Cor 5:17)!!!

So, I start this year with some new goals…I’ll write about that in another blog. But, 1/1 seems to be a great time for a NEW start.

I will fail…but He is the glory and the lifter of my head(Ps 3:3).

I will succeed…but I am weak, success is because HE is strong(2 Cor 12:10)…

and I will flounder…I still live in this body of flesh…Romans 7

But I will work out my own salvation with fear and trembling(Phil 2:12)…I will press on towards the mark of the prize of the high calling of Christ Jesus…I will continue to run this race….because I know what is at stake! Eternity! 1 cor 9:24; Heb 12:1-2; Phil 3:14

BTW – every evening can be a re-eval of your day, and every morning can be a new day – weeping may be for the night, but joy comes in the morning.(Ps 30:5)

May each of my readers be blessed this year with a new and fresh knowledge of Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! And you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi’s Heart Mission

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

What a Week – GRACE ABOUNDS!

In the last two weeks we have gone from settled into our trailer(RV) life in Spring, Texas, to wanting to possibly move it to Katy, Texas, to rethinking everything in our lives financially, and remembering our first desire of our life….to live debt free in glory to the Lord, and honoring His command to owe no man anything but to love him.

So…here’s the progression:

  1. June 1-15, safely secure in our current situation – living in an RV in Spring, TX
  2. June 16-17, find out about a new RV park in Katy,TX and discuss moving there!
  3. June 17-24, financial digging – Katy does not make sense $$$, but, what about our desire to be debt free? (rent the same, studio +$150, drive rougher)
  4. June 22-23, hotel suite in Austin – room, room, room- even Gabriel seems happier
  5. June 24- Looking at Wildwood Forest Apartments – love, love, love! (two patios, facing lake, East and South sun, a studio 3x the size, for the same rent as RV lot and Studio/Storage)
  6. June 25 – apply for apartment (called PPL RV sellers, they want the trailer by Saturday, free detailing, for their 4th of July sale! very excited)
  7. June 27 – accepted – put in to move before July 1st – avoid rent at RV park
  8. June 29 – move in and empty trailer (added to the going away party for those leaving for the Katy RV park – some day in the future, we leave tomorrow) And God blessed with a cloudy day and less heat!
  9. June 30 – empty trailer – and drive through driving rain storms down to PPL (appraiser declares it EXCELLENT!)
  10. July 1 – no trailer, no bed, no living room furniture – but we are in this beautiful apartment, in this beautiful complex, in obedience to the Lord.

We are praying that the trailer sells quickly, so that we are out of debt…AND with $1,000 extra that we may use purchase a bed.
But, God is not done with us yet!

On top of all of this provision…we are on the third floor.
In January, I was in a wheelchair!
I am able to walk up and down these stairs – yesterday, I did it twice!
AND walked a mile around this beautiful property!

On June 13th, I was rearended…went to the ER, and we were unable to find the police report until a week ago.
The insurance agent set up with me to meet on Monday, July 2…since we were moving.
On top of giving me the $120 out of pocket expenses, and setting aside the amounts to cover the medical – SHE GAVE ME $1000 FOR MY INCONVENIENCE!

The Trailer wasn’t even on the lot at PPL, and GOD had given us the $1000 for the bed!!!

Last night, we were discussing whether or not we would use one of the credit cards to purchase a mattress “just in case”
What were we thinking? Oh US of LITTLE FAITH!!!
We have now gotten totally free of the debt, and things we bought with debt because we wouldn’t wait upon the Lord…and before the trailer is even set onto the lot for the sale, we are talking about putting things back on a credit card?
AND IN THE FACE OF GOD PROVIDING TWO WEEKS EARLIER WITH A ROMANS 8:28 TYPE OCCURRENCE!

PRAISE GOD FOR HIS GRACE ABOUNDING IN OUR LIVES!
God is so quick to forgive, so gracious to allow us to be human, and to draw us nearer and nearer to HIM!
We both decided that WE WOULD NOT GO BACK INTO DEBT TO PURCHASE THINGS BEFORE THE VERY THING WE ARE SELLING TO GET OUT OF DEBT IS LISTED TO BE SOLD!
In fact –
We both recommitted to:

Romans 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

These weeks have been full of roller coaster rides, death of visions, renewal of visions and commitments, and connecting to each other to refine OUR vision of OUR life for Christ Jesus.
We have had to make some hard choices in order to choose Jesus instead of OUR plans.
The joy that we feel, even in this empty apartment, is indescribable!
Grace is definitely abounding to us!

Here’s some fun photos – and a youtube video!

Byebye trailer

Bye Bye Trailer, dropping it off at PPL

apartment complex

WildWood Forest – our apartment – top floor on the right

Apartment complex

WildWood Forest

apartment

WildWood Forest

night fountain

The fountain outside our apartment at night

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! Or sign up for an account, and you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

28 Days of Grace – day 24

Follow Up with Doctor
oops, nope….health and wellness doctor got sick!
So, work on the things I was planning to work on…online….and then, I thought I’d go paint.
Only, by the time I got the things done I was planning on getting done before my 2pm appointment…well, it was 1:30pm!!!

So – what did I do?
took Gabriel for another walk!
This was not as far…
This morning’s walk was .47 mi in 15:41 minutes(with doggy poo waiting involved)
This afternoon’s walk was .34 mi in 7:40 minutes. I was pushing the speed…and could feel the beginning of the shin spints on the right leg…BUT it was at 2.65 mph…the fastest since my surgery!

My goal? 4mph…is that possible with walking? I don’t know….
How has this yeast free program worked to help me in this?
Lowered inflammation TOTALLY!
My endurance is growing…and I’m not freaked out by the pains!

Eating…totally going paleo…I feel better than ever.

Is this like paying the price for heaven?
what? there’s a price that we pay?

YEPPERS!
Luke 14:35 and following….there IS a COST to discipleship!

And I am learning that the cost for health is just part of the cost of discipleship…because:

1 cor 3:16-17

Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which [temple] ye are.

1 cor 6:19-20

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost [which is] in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

I don’t belong to myself…except that it is my choice to whom I belong…and I choose to glorify God in MY body!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

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We have email subscription! Or sign up for an account, and you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

28 DAYS OF GRACE – DAY 22! A NEW DAY!

Jim is doing a Level Up program through Nerd fitness….
and today’s post is AMAZING!

But it’s copy righted and for a private paid for group(I get bonus because I’m Jim’s wife).
But this is a quote that Steve quoted in this post:

Victor Frankl, author of the absolutely heartbreaking and yet incredibly positive “A Man’s Search For Meaning” once said:

“Those who have a ‘why’ can bear with almost any ‘how.”

Here’s my response:

Yes yes.yes…I’ve wanted a why for my whole life, and for our married life!

WHY?

and then, the what and how fall into place, or at least the what nots are more easily recognizable!

I’ve always had a WHY that pertains to EVERY Christian:

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Eph 2:10

walk in good works to glorify God!

WHICH GOOD WORKS?????

Obviously, the good works that ALL Christians are supposed to walk in…..
The Fruit of the Spirit – Ephesians 5, Galatians 5

The Number one Fruit – Love – John 13:34

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

The Whole Law – Matt 22:37-40

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second [is] like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

BUT WHAT DOES THAT SAY TO ME, SPECIFICALLY?
That gets into talents, hiding them, or investing them…

I wrote about that before…but the WHY for how to live, for me, is to glorify GOD!
The HOW and WHAT is all about investing the talents God has given ME to use for HIM.

And, there is another thought hidden in here for me….
“Love your neighbor AS YOURSELF.”

I HAVE SPENT MANY MANY YEARS NOT LOVING MYSELF!

Not taking care of my own health has been a self hatred behavior.

These 28 days of Grace…which was what I was begging and praying for to get through this Yeast Free program…has not just turned my body and health around…it has turned my heart and mind around.

I need to LOVE ME because HE FIRST LOVED ME!
And if GOD has decided to LOVE ME the way HE does…Who am I to argue?

Good food
Good exercise
Good prayer
Good fellowship….
Good life!

I CHOOSE LIFE!
God life!
And I pray that my life will glorify Him, as I learn my WHY, WHAT and HOW to walk in good works!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! Or sign up for an account, and you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

28 days of Grace – day 21

Today has been a very rough day.
Many things in our lives have been placed up in the air this weekend…and we are struggling as a couple to figure out what WE are supposed to be doing, in light of GOD’s plan for our lives.

In the process of MY working things out…I called upon a friend to talk things out with me…so that I could figure out my own logic, heart, mind, emotions…and be able to present my position to my husband, Jim, without all the drama of emotions that ran throughout the weekend for and from me.

DID I BINGE IN THE MIDST OF EMOTIONAL TURMOIL????

BY THE GRACE OF GOD I DID NOT!!!

Food is NOT for settling emotional issues.
Food is NOT for comforting a broken heart.
Food is NOT for answering the tough questions.

Food is Fuel
Food is good for celebrations….and no, every moment of every day is not an option for food celebrations!

This weekend, we spent time eating out.
I CHOSE PLACES WHERE I COULD MAKE GOOD CHOICES!

I MADE THOSE GOOD CHOICES…though of course, they were not as good as if I had stayed home….but staying home forever is not an acceptable concept!

I didn’t even think about deserts at those restaurants! SERIOUSLY! AMAZINGLY! BY GOD’S GRACE, I AM STANDING!

And this is with deep despair, lonesomeness and feelings of abandonment and broken promises swirling around me and my husband.
This used to be Pizza and apple pie time, with ice cream.

This time, it was talk with each other, talk with God time!

I pray that, by the grace of God, I will continue to move forward in my life, with this relationship with food…fuel…that can taste good, but isn’t the fuel to make my life good!

My life is about my choices…and I choose to make food one of my tools, not to be ruled by food!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! Or sign up for an account, and you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

28 Days of Grace – day 19 – in the flow!

This morning, I woke up before Jim, and got dressed to take Gabriel out for his walk.
Before I was ready, Jim awakened, and offered to go with me.
As we walked, we made plans for the day.

I walked further than usual, and then asked him to walk up to the exercise room with me.
We walked in, and I tried my feet at the bicycle(first time in a year or more!) and he showed me a few exercises that I could get started with.
When we walked back, with full intentions of following OUR plans for the day, we bumped into some friends we hadn’t seen for a while.

These friends told us about a new RV park over near where I go for Physical Therapy. We had wanted a place in that area for any time that I might need extended care.
We decided to drive there right then.
But we were out of eggs, so we went to a restaurant, and I was able to order just eggs and meat for breakfast! And unsweet iced tea!

We were almost to this new RV park, and our friends from Katy(the area where the new RV park is located) called us.
These are the friends that we were not able to meet up with because of the car wreck. Their morning was open, for a change, and we were able to run on over.

Their daughter and son-in-law were home from Germany, and we were able to take everyone out for a welcome home lunch!
Kaley and Omar got to meet Gabriel.
We all got to sit and visit.
We went to a restaurant that I knew, and was able to ask for my salad per my needs, with a half a lemon and olive oil for dressing! And unsweet iced tea!

If Jim and I had not gone on the long walk, and had not walked into the exercise room, we would not have just bumped into our friends.
If Jim and I had not just taken off to head towards Katy, we would not have been in the position to say, Hey, let’s just drop by!
If Jim and I had not been open to the Spirit of the Lord moving across the waters of our plans, we would have missed the beautiful time we had with the Maben family!

Then,Jim was able to put together some of my meal plans for supper…for a wonderful turkey spaghetti, with black beans and grated goat Parmesan cheese! Absolutely delicious! Ah, but all out of unsweet iced tea! LOL!

Jim’s word? Serendipitous!
My word? Divine Intervention!

The truth? being filled with the grace of God to follow where HE leads!

Ps 37:23The steps of a [good] man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.

Ps 121:8 The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! Or sign up for an account, and you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

28 days of Grace – day 16 – the wreck

On Wednesday, June 13, I was in a wreck.
when I posted for prayers, one of the most common comments was “not another injury!” or something like that.
I was looking forward to my physical therapy session (to where I was headed), and dinner out with friends…and I was thinking that I was almost done with PT for my ankle. Anyway, I wrote this email to a list that prayed for me…and since I am in some pain, I’m just going to post it here.

First, Thank you for your prayers.
Thank you all for your daily prayers for this group!

I was driving NB, on a major freeway loop around Houston, and a small white car stopped in front of me.
Now, as everyone knows, when driving, you should keep 2-3 car lengths between you, and drive the speed limit.
I got my 1 ton truck stopped…and the two people behind me did not.
Thunk, THUNK!

610 is one of the busiest highways around Houston. 3:50PM is already rush ‘hour’.
I was about to get off at the 59 exit, and this car just stopped. I don’t know why…it’s highway traffic. It happens.

I was fine, until I was hit from behind(yeah, milliseconds there)
I could see behind me that both vehicles were hit, and the rear one, the driver’s face was hidden for a while….and then, he picked his head up. Was he hurt? Did his airbags deploy? How was I going to get out and offer first aide in this 60 mph zone?

We had an exit that we could pull off, if cars would let us move to the side! The second car back kept moving so that I could pull out. There was no room to pull off to the side, because it had already turned into an exit only lane, so I exited, and headed to the parking lot, where two police officer cruisers were sitting.

To say I was dazed is an understatement. I couldn’t get out on the freeway…and when I came up to the police officers to tell them, I looked back, and the two other drivers did not follow me down there. I was sure they were trying to get out of the middle of the road, too!

While I was getting the police officers attention, they were being called to assist at a multi car crash….and with much confusion, they determined that it was mine…but only came up with one vehicle. They told me that apparently the third vehicle didn’t hit, because there was no rear damage to this car. Seriously, I believe that this was the third car, and the middle truck just drove off. But, I can’t prove it!

I kept asking the officer, “should I have stayed on the road? I thought we were supposed to get off the road!” Officer Jefferson was so comforting, as he was trying to calm me down, figure out if I indeed was the first vehicle in this reported accident…and trying to get the whole thing pieced together. As I walked around the truck, my back and neck started hurting…and I just felt like “Oh c$@p. I’m going to have a headache!”

“Oh, yeah, I’m not going to get to take our friends out that just returned from Germany.”
“Oh yeah, I’m not going to get to…..PAINT THURSDAY!”

As the adrenaline wore off…and things started hurting, the officer asked did I want medical. Jim said,(on the phone) absolutely!
He called for medical.
The EMT’s came, and the first concern was the dog.
They questioned whether they could transport the dog…the answer is YES(duh)
I had to threaten to contact the city about the policy about service dogs…and then, they said, oh, wait, I didn’t know it was a service dog. (That’s why I put a vest on him, and tags that shout SERVICE DOG).
They wouldn’t put me on a backboard or cervical collar, because I had to control the dog…so, um,what was the point of riding in the ambulance???
BUT, it meant I had to sign a paper saying I would not take the back board or the cervical collar. I wanted that collar…every movement in my neck hurt…but, they wanted me to be sure to take care of the dog(handled the dog while in transit). I even had to strap Gabe in.
GET IT DONE ALREADY, THE PAIN IS CAUSING ME TO HAVE DIFFICULTY THINKING!

So I was transported by ambulance to the inner city type hospital, and they did nothing…I was more comfortable sitting on the floor (didn’t think they’d let me lay on the floor – cold for my back).
No xrays…just a muscle relaxer that I told them I had at home…and sent on my way.
No x-rays for a back and neck injury???? WHAT?????

The hospital questioned whether I could have Gabe with me…the answer is YES(duh)
And then, the typical “so can you see some?”
“I can see, he is a medical alert dog”
“So, does that mean that you aren’t totally blind, just impaired?”
“No Ma’am…I am not blind…he is a medical alert dog…he alerts to my medical conditions”
“Oh, all this time I thought you were blind!”
hmmm, that’s why I could find the bathroom all by myself…oh well…

Jim was able to have someone from work take him to the truck, and then he came from there to the hospital. You see, Jim takes the bus into Houston…30 plus miles. I had the truck on the SW side of Houston…and he thought he was going to have to take a taxi! Another friend was able to drive him to the park and ride and pick up the car when we got back home. I thank God for great friends! Jim got to the hospital just after I got into my room…and he was able to take Gabriel out for a bathroom break, and I was able to take myself for a bathroom break.

And then, I blew my yf diet with a whopper. No cheese, removed half of the bun.
then I remembered that I had a great piece of chicken breast in my cooler. When I was checking for my tomatoes.
Oops….I could have been totally on program!
Oh well, live and learn!

Did I say that my truck won?
I’ll post a few photos.

I did talk with my PCP, and I’m going in tomorrow to get some x-rays….
I talked with the PT folks, and they are going to do a little bit of an evaluation….
Then, we will move forward talking to someone about getting this done.

Thank you all for praying!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

If you like The WildBerry Patch, follow me with the RSS feed.

We have email subscription! Or sign up for an account, and you can manage your subscription from the dashboard!
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!