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The Power of An Invitation

I will never forget the first time I attended my first Bible study in 2012.  I had been a Christian my whole life, went to church, read the Bible, but never attended a formal Bible study.  I could name a million reasons why I didn’t attend before then;  busy with motherhood, I worked during the week, I had to take care of the house, etc.  It’s funny how God has a way to always point you in the right direction.

I was at a point in my relationship with God where I knew He wanted me to take the next step towards a deeper relationship with him;  but I didn’t know how.  One day I was standing in the preschool parking lot talking with a friend, pouring out my heart to her.  I had just started to attend the same church as her.  As she was listening to me, she had opened the door to something bigger than I could have ever imagined.  She invited me to a Women’s Bible Study at the new  church I was attending.  I immediately accepted the invitation.  I was excited, because I knew God had used her that day not only to invite me, but to point me in the right direction towards what He had desired for me.

The day I stepped foot into my first Bible Study, I was hooked and I never looked back.  Once I started, I couldn’t get enough.  I wanted more.  Her  invitation to Bible study changed my life.  I never knew how much I was missing until I entered into God’s presence, opened up the Scriptures and allowed God’s truth into my heart.  My friend was faithful in listening to God, to invite me that day.  I only had to enter through the open door, God did the rest.

 

God used my friend in a big way that day.  I am so glad she listened to the prompting of the Holy Spirit to invite me that day.  Her invitation changed my life.  God’s words are what transforms our hearts, nourishes our souls, and gives life to our spirits.  God’s love is not meant to be hidden, but shared with everyone.

Just imagine if the three wise men never accepted God’s invitation to see the birth of baby Jesus.  They would have missed out on seeing the birth of their king.

Just imagine if Paul didn’t accept God’s invitation that day on the road to Damascus when he was blinded by the light.  We would have never seen God’s ability to  transform Paul’s heart, from someone who persecuted Christians to someone who risked His life to save them.

Imagine if the Disciples and the Apostles never accepted God’s invitation to become followers of Christ.  We would have missed out on the greatest message ever told. We would have never seen God’s ability through the Holy Spirit to grow the church.

We are merely vessels God uses to carry out His greater plan.  We are all apart of God’s great amazing story of the gospel.  If we never shared it with anyone, imagine how many  people miss out on the beautiful message of the gospel.

The worse thing a person can say is ‘No.’  God will continue to pursue their hearts.  You only need to be faithful in prayer of how God can use you.  

There will always be 101 things keeping us away from studying the Bible.  Not one of those reasons are ever good enough to keep us away from spending time with God.  When we give God the time He has given us, He will provide all the time we need to get everything else accomplished that He desires for us.

Have you been prompted to invite someone to church or Bible study?  You never know how God will use you to impact the life of someone else.  Your invitation might be the very thing a person needs to take their next step.

Have you ever accepted an invitation that changed your life?

How has Bible Study impacted your life?  

To learn more about why studying the Bible is so important Click Here.

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This post was first published on www.akchristianwomensministry.com.


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Born to Fly

This post is in honor of my daughter’s 10th birthday.

A letter to my daughter:

It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years since you have been on this earth. Where has the time gone?  It’s hard to believe when you entered into this world you were only a mere 3 pounds 8 ounces! You came way too early, I was not ready. How glorious it was to hear your screaming cry as you first encountered this world! You have never ceased to amaze me from the day you were born. Even though you had so many odds against you—they didn’t matter, you defied them all!

 

You have been fearfully and wonderfully made by the hands of God (Psalm 139:4).

 

You have taught me it doesn’t matter how big or small a person is to be able to make their mark in this world. What you lack in size you make up in spirit.

 

God has given you not a spirit of fear, but of power, love and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7).

 

You are one of the most determined people I know. When everyone is swimming down the current you are swimming up. You are a perfect picture of what perseverance looks like.  Keep swimming, never give up!

 

The first moment I saw you, I knew God had big plans for you (Jer. 29:11). Everyone in this world has been born with a purpose–my sweet child you were BORN TO FLY!  No matter how many times you fall you always get right back up and want to try again. Most people would have given up long ago when they can’t get it right, but not you. Never lose your determination or will to keep trying.  It will take you farther than you ever know.

 

Never let this world tell you, you can’t. Never believe you are anything less than who God says you are. I am glad God has made you small, so everyone can see how big your heart is. Your heart is filled with a kindness for others like none I’ve ever seen. Keep treating others with kindness and love to as many people as you can, in as many places as you can, for as long as you can. Your kindness shine the light of Jesus to others.  His kindness and love is a language everyone can understand.

 

“You are the light of the world.  A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.  Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.”  Matthew 5:11-15

 

Your heart will continue to grow immeasurably more when you allow God’s desires to be your desires. Keep allowing God to be a lamp unto your feet so he can always guide your steps and way.

 

You have been a blessing in so many ways and you have no idea how much I love you.

 

I know we have our stumbling and roadblocks at times and had to face adversities, but I’m so glad we have each other and God to walk through these times together. I pray you will always seek God for truth, wisdom and strength, He will provide for any of our needs if we just ask Him.

 

“Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding.”  Proverbs 3:13

 

I pray you will bloom wherever you are planted. I pray God’s seeds that  He has planted in your heart will take root, flourish and grow into something beautifully amazing, greater than you can imagine. I can’t wait to see all God has in store for you. He will use you for great and mighty things, one that only a small person with a big heart can do.

 

“But I have raise you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”  Exodus 9:16

 

Don’t be in a hurry to grow up to fast.  You only have 18 summers as a child.  Enjoy everyone of them.  You have the rest of your life to be an adult.  Cherish your childhood, you can never go back once you leave it.

 

There will be times we fail.  Never allow your failures to define your past but propel you to try harder and strive to do your best in the future.  Failures don’t limit us, our fears do.  Never allow your fear to be greater than what God is able to do.

 

I can do all things in Christ who gives me strength. Phil. 4:13

 

At times it will seem like you are up against battles as big as giants. Always remember David when he faced Goliath. He didn’t see the giant, he saw God’s power. When everyone else saw defeat, David saw through God all things are possible (Matt. 19:26).

 

God’s plans are always bigger than what we are up against (Jer. 29:11). There may be times you fall, but keep getting back up. God’s plans will always provide a way for you to FLY!  God LOVES you more than you will ever know.

 

It seems like only yesterday you were in diapers running around the house. Now you are doing cartwheels around the house. It seems like yesterday you lost your first tooth and now you are ready for braces. It seems like yesterday you were in kindergarten.  It seems these moments keep going by faster and faster and before I know it, you will leave for college.

 

I appreciate who you are.  God is equipping and preparing you to do great and amazing things!  You are loved beyond measure.  You are and are becoming such a lovely young lady. Keep being you, because everyone else is taken. You are one of the biggest blessings in my life and am so honored to be your mother.  And never forget you were BORN TO FLY!

 

I love you so much.

Love, Mom

I love this picture of my daughter enjoying herself in her muddy mess

 

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Can you relate to this post?  Leave your comments below!


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Chicken Soup for the Soul: Military Edition {Giveaway}

“I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives.  I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him” quote Abraham Lincoln.

I am so excited to announce the story I submitted last year to Chicken Soup for the Soul has been accepted and published in the Military Edition!  I am humbled and honored to have our story alongside other men and women who have served and been the force behind the forces.  And I’m thankful to have another opportunity to be published in the Chicken Soup Series!

I can’t believe how completely different our lives look now.

Never in my life did I think I’d be in this place I am today.  Never in a million years did I think I would be living in Alaska, living on a military base with my husband serving in the United States Air Force.  Never did I imagine all that we would see and learn just by taking a step of faith out of our comfort zone.  Only God.

You just never know what God has planned.

Even though we left everything we knew–family, friends, kid’s school, our home, jobs, etc.  We wouldn’t trade the military or Alaska for anything.  Coming up here we have become a closer knit family.  Moving to a place where you know no one, makes a family depend on each other in ways you never had before.  We also get to meet amazing military families who sacrifice their lives and serve just so we can be safe.

There is so much more to our story than what is published.  God has been writing our story for quite some time and is always full of surprises!

Life wouldn’t be life if there weren’t curve balls, sharp turns or detours would it?

As I am writing these words, we are getting ready to embark on our new journey to Colorado!  In fact we could really use your prayers.  There are a lot of unknowns of where we will live and what school our kids will attend.   We are trusting in God’s provision and leaving it in His hands.  Even though we don’t know how all the details are going to work, we know God has it already worked out for us.

There is something powerful in doing something bigger than yourself.

Alaska has taught us many things especially the art of camping and how to be prepared in all kinds of situations (wild life, negative degree weather).  We will be driving with our two kids and dog in our RV through Canada this summer, stopping by national parks along the way.  It is bittersweet for us to leave all the wonderful friends who have been our new military family to embark on our new adventure.  But we are excited for our new adventure that awaits.

Sometimes I question if we have to move every 3 to 4 years how are we able to grow roots?  I believe God uses us wherever we are.  He allows us to bloom wherever we are planted growing our roots deeper in every step of faith and act of obedience.  I will cherish the relationships and friendships we have made along the way and carry them in my heart wherever I go.  Each journey we go on grows us and prepares us for what God has in store (hence why we named our dog Journey ; ).

Our Journey Girl

Want a chance to win a copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul:  Military Edition for your self?  Before it is available in stores?

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Chicken Soup for the Soul:  Military Edition is available for pre-order purchase on www.amazon.com for only $10.37!  It’s a perfect gift to give to that special someone who serves for Memorial Day!

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7 Miracles I Have Witnessed as a Nurse

Have you ever witnessed a miracle, something so amazing, you knew it could only be God’s handiwork?  Being a nurse I can say I have been a first hand witness to some of life’s most amazing miracles.  I’ve witnessed countless births—babies taking their first breath of life as they enter into this world.  I’ve seen patients on their death bed who had no chance of survival, walk out of the hospital on their own two feet.  I’ve seen a father donate his own kidney to his son to give him a chance of life. It is an honor to be a nurse and a witness to some of life’s most precious moments that can only be explained as a miracle.  A miracle is something that cannot be explained by laws of nature but only by the divine work of God.

Here are 7 of the Most Precious Miracles I have witnessed (as a Nurse and Mother)-

1.  A Mother’s selfless act of giving her baby up for adoption–    I have worked in the operating room as a nurse anesthetist for over 13 years now and in that time, have witnessed hundreds of babies born.  I will never forget the love of the mother who gave her baby up for adoption.  I couldn’t imagine what that mother felt at that moment knowing she was giving her motherly rights away to another mother.  How selfless of the birth mother, putting her own child’s needs first before her own.  By giving up her rights she was giving another mother a chance to be a mother and a chance for a better life for the baby.  This selfless act of love reminded me of the selfless love Jesus gives us everyday.

2.  The Blind Couple-  One of the other births that I will never forget is a baby being born to a blind couple.  Both the mother and father were physically blind.  When their baby was born, they handed me their camera and asked me to take a picture of their new born child.  I literally had tears in my eyes taking the picture of their new baby, knowing they would never physically see their child with their own eyes.  What impressed upon me so much about their baby’s birth, was no amount of blindness can ever change the amount of love they had for their child.  Just because they couldn’t see their baby with their own eyes didn’t mean their love for their child was any less.  This picture of blindness showed me we may go through periods of darkness or spiritual blindness in our lives, but that doesn’t mean God ever leaves us or doesn’t love just as much.  

3.  #1 Nurse Necklace-  I will never forget the family who gave me a #1 nurse necklace.  I was a nurse on a medical floor and took care of an older gentlemen for many weeks.  This man had a very loving family. He became very ill and passed away a few weeks after being ill in the hospital.  I was so touched when the family invited another nurse and I to their father’s funeral.  I have had patients pass away before but have never been invited to their funeral.  Afterwards the family gave the other nurse and I a #1 Nurse necklace to thank us for taking care of their father.  It stirred my heart the way the family showed gratitude by giving us the necklace after their father passed away.  I never before had a family respond in that way and it moved me.  It showed the power in giving gratitude and kindness out of our grief and sorrow.  

4.  The Russian man-  I will never forget when a Russian man, whom I never met before, reached out his hand and said, “Do you believe Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior?” I said, “yes.  Then he says, “You are my sister” (while still holding my hand).  We are all brothers and sisters in Christ, adopted into God’s one big family.  It doesn’t matter if we are Catholic, Greek or Jew when we accept Jesus as our Savior, what unites us as family is the blood of Christ.  

5.  The Roll Over Accident-  Have you ever witnessed something and you know what you saw, but couldn’t believe it?  My children and I were driving down the highway one day when it was raining.  A pick-up truck about 3 car lengths in front of us lost control and flipped horizontally (3 times) on it’s side with a flat bed trailer attached to it.  When the truck and trailer stopped rolling, it laid horizontally on it’s side laying across all 3 lanes of the highway.   Not one car hit the rolled over pick-up truck.  What was so amazing, all 3 passengers inside the truck boosted themselves out of the window and walked away unharmed.  It was a bone-chilling moment, knowing the accident could have been much worse, but God protected us.  This moment showed me not only do physical seat belts keep us safe but so does God’s belt of truth when it’s worn.  Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place.”  (Ephesians 6:14).  

6.  Brooklyn-  Our daughter Brooklyn who is almost 10 years old now, was born 8 weeks premature.  When she was born she only weighed 3 pounds 8 ounces.  She was too tiny to bring home and needed to stay in the hospital to learn how to feed and grow.  Her birth and life have nothing been short of a miracle.  Since she was born, she has alway defied the odds.  She came home after only 3 weeks (usually babies have to stay until they reach gestation).  She never needed oxygen when she was born, in fact she came out screaming!  One thing she has taught us is to trust in God’s plans.  Life may not turn out the way we planned but God’s plans are always greater and better.

7.  Bowen-  Out of all the miracles I have witnessed, there has been none greater than our son Bowen.  He is our third child born six years ago.  Even though he lived a short life of only two weeks on earth, his life impacted us greatly.  God used Bowen in a big way in our lives to show us how life’s most devastating moments can be turned into life’s greatest blessings.  How God takes our tragedy, our hardship and heartaches uses it, molds it and turns it into something more beautiful than it was before.  He showed us the meaning of living a life of love is a life worth living, when we are loving we are living.  There is no gift greater than that.  

Our son’s life taught us that God does answer prayer, maybe not in the way we want. Our son is no longer suffering, he is living a life free from pain, disease and sorrow.  God went ahead of us and made the greatest plan ever.  He is taking care of him until the day we will see him again. 

Have you ever witnessed a miracle from heaven?  Something that could have only been God’s handiwork?  Please Share!

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Join me next week for the 4 part series of meeting Jesus in the scriptures, our struggles and our everyday lives.  I would love to hear from you!    Please Leave Your Comments Below.  Have a Blessed Week!

Jesus In Disguise

Have you ever had an encounter with Jesus that totally changed your life? I wanted to share with you about the first time I went to Honduras on a mission trip with our church.  We went down to help build a building for the sponsor children for Compassion International.  We were in a community outside of Progresso, Honduras.  One day the pastor took us on a walk to show us some of the other projects the church had completed over the previous 12 years.  They had built a water system for the community to have clean drinking water, houses for those in need and now the Compassion house.

One of the houses we visited in particular, was fragile and could have been blown down by a gust of strong wind.  It had thin walls, a metal tin roof and dirt floors. This house was among many which did not have electric or running water.  The owner of this house was a woman who invited us into her home.  Many women were left behind to tend homes on their own while their husbands left to find work far away.

When she invited us in she wanted to show her gratitude by offering the only meal she had—a chicken (which is expensive).  It was obvious she did not have much to give and yet she wanted to offer us her very last meal.  We said no we we already ate, please keep your chicken.  She was insistent to give us all she had even though she had no idea where her next meal was going to come from.  We did not eat her chicken but left her home filled with a richness so abundant that it was hard to describe.

What the woman gave me that day could never compare to anything I could ever give to her.  She gave when she had nothing to give.  She was like the widow who gave everything she had.  

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” (Mark 12:43-44)

She showed me a giving out of faithfulness to a degree I have never seen before.  Her giving was so selfless.  The only way I could describe it was, Jesus in disguise.  Her offering out of poverty, giving everything she had to live on to us was the richest gift I had ever received.  

“You can always give without loving, but never love without giving.” ~ Amy Carmicheal

Her giving showed me the love of Jesus, how he loves and thinks of us.  She was not afraid to give her love not knowing where her next meal was going to come from.  She gave without an expectation of receiving.  She lived faithfully in the love of Jesus, relying on Him for her every need and provision. His love knows no limits, is not bounded by boundaries, but free to everyone. Her offering her last meal, gave like Jesus gives to us everyday.  His love isn’t meant to be kept hidden but shared with others.  

I have never forgotten what she gave me that day. She gave me the courage to be courageous in love, not be afraid, share the love of Jesus with others, so they too may know there is no greater love than His.

Her giving challenged me to ask myself, what am I willing to give to others to let them know how much Jesus loves them no matter what the cost? 

Have you ever seen Jesus in Disguise?

How did it impact you?

“I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends.” John 15:12-13 MSG

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