Here are FIVE funny videos from YouTube this week. Enjoy!
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Saturday, August 31, 2013
Monday, August 19, 2013
Fill 'Em Up, Fill 'Em Up!
If you have read my blog this month, then you will know that my church is in the middle of a series on Elisha, an amazing prophet of God with some ridiculous faith. Yesterday, Pastor Craig taught from the encounter had with a widow. She was in debt and her creditors were going to come and take her sons. All she had her in her house was a small amount of olive oil. Elisha helps her by calling on God. He gives her specific instructions on what to do. She takes her family behind closed doors. The woman and her sons gather empty jars and she begins to fill one jar with the olive oil. The oil multiplies and fills all the jars she gathered. Then the woman is able to sell the oil, pay her husband's debt and keep her sons. Definitely a moment where God did more than she asked or imagined.
I have to just SHOUT with praise right now to God! I laugh about it because I am so amazed! To quote Margaret Feinberg, I am WONDERSTUCK with God's goodness right now. You see, I was really impressed about ten days ago when I actually sold two times on my TeachersPayTeachers store. I thought that was a pretty good start considering the the thousands upon thousands of lesson plans. BUT GOD (remember those favorite words of mine?) has done an EPHESIANS 3:20 moment in my store. I still cannot believe it! Those small beginnings have now turned an amount so great I would not have guess that it could happen in less than a month of having my store open. Let's just say it covers my student loan payment....which makes me give up a huge HALLELUJAH!! I seriously have tasted some of God's goodness. I feel I can totally relate to the widow Elisha helped. I took my little bit, and God has multiplied it to fill some empty jars in my life. All I did was take the small gifts He has blessed me with, and in return He has multiplied it more than I could have expected. It has encouraged me to continue on this journey with the Lord because I know any blessing that comes out of this comes from His Hand and not my own. God is truly FAITHFUL!
Now this excitement of God's faithfulness in this area has spilled over into other areas of my life. It has increased my faith to where I am finally at peace about some places God has called me to be obedient. One example is an area I touched on back in February in this post. I talked about how last August, right around this time actually, I knew God had called me to stop "looking" at potential husband material and to rest and focus on Him. I was back and forth on the fence, depending on my feelings. Because seriously, who imagines themselves single at 30? And waiting on God always makes me think that His timing is even longer than I would want it to be. Could I wait on God for a year? Could I wait on God for another ten years? Twenty years? God continued to encourage me in following Him by renewing my hope. However, those pesky feelings still got in the way until a moment I've dubbed "Whole Foods Sunday." In the Godincidence, I felt God truly calling me to surrender and wait on Him. It has been hard at times to rely on God, especially when no one else around feels the same conviction. The devil has seen this calling as place to just move on in and muck things up in my mind. I've wanted affirmation from other people that what I experienced was truly God, but God has shown me, that just like my journey with my TeachersPayTeachers site, His way of guiding me is unique to me. His voice trumps all others. I only have to take my faith and offer it up expectantly to the Lord, knowing that in His right time He will do more than I could ask or imagine. I just need to give Him my small amount of faith and my heart in FULL obedience and surrender. He will not lead me in a negative way. It may be painful at times, but it is not for my destruction, because my Father gives good and perfect gifts. The blessing will happen, just like it did with my TeachersPayTeachers site, but it is going to be in HIS time and way, not my own.
Thank You Lord, for blessing my TeachersPayTeachers site beyond what I could have asked or imagined you would do. Thank you for the small beginnings that you plant in our hearts. Help me to offer those beginnings up in faith. Give me the patience to wait because I want to be obedient to Your call. I trust that you will take my dream jars for my life and overflow them with oil in Your way and Your time according to the plan that will bring You the most Glory. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
I have to just SHOUT with praise right now to God! I laugh about it because I am so amazed! To quote Margaret Feinberg, I am WONDERSTUCK with God's goodness right now. You see, I was really impressed about ten days ago when I actually sold two times on my TeachersPayTeachers store. I thought that was a pretty good start considering the the thousands upon thousands of lesson plans. BUT GOD (remember those favorite words of mine?) has done an EPHESIANS 3:20 moment in my store. I still cannot believe it! Those small beginnings have now turned an amount so great I would not have guess that it could happen in less than a month of having my store open. Let's just say it covers my student loan payment....which makes me give up a huge HALLELUJAH!! I seriously have tasted some of God's goodness. I feel I can totally relate to the widow Elisha helped. I took my little bit, and God has multiplied it to fill some empty jars in my life. All I did was take the small gifts He has blessed me with, and in return He has multiplied it more than I could have expected. It has encouraged me to continue on this journey with the Lord because I know any blessing that comes out of this comes from His Hand and not my own. God is truly FAITHFUL!
Now this excitement of God's faithfulness in this area has spilled over into other areas of my life. It has increased my faith to where I am finally at peace about some places God has called me to be obedient. One example is an area I touched on back in February in this post. I talked about how last August, right around this time actually, I knew God had called me to stop "looking" at potential husband material and to rest and focus on Him. I was back and forth on the fence, depending on my feelings. Because seriously, who imagines themselves single at 30? And waiting on God always makes me think that His timing is even longer than I would want it to be. Could I wait on God for a year? Could I wait on God for another ten years? Twenty years? God continued to encourage me in following Him by renewing my hope. However, those pesky feelings still got in the way until a moment I've dubbed "Whole Foods Sunday." In the Godincidence, I felt God truly calling me to surrender and wait on Him. It has been hard at times to rely on God, especially when no one else around feels the same conviction. The devil has seen this calling as place to just move on in and muck things up in my mind. I've wanted affirmation from other people that what I experienced was truly God, but God has shown me, that just like my journey with my TeachersPayTeachers site, His way of guiding me is unique to me. His voice trumps all others. I only have to take my faith and offer it up expectantly to the Lord, knowing that in His right time He will do more than I could ask or imagine. I just need to give Him my small amount of faith and my heart in FULL obedience and surrender. He will not lead me in a negative way. It may be painful at times, but it is not for my destruction, because my Father gives good and perfect gifts. The blessing will happen, just like it did with my TeachersPayTeachers site, but it is going to be in HIS time and way, not my own.
Thank You Lord, for blessing my TeachersPayTeachers site beyond what I could have asked or imagined you would do. Thank you for the small beginnings that you plant in our hearts. Help me to offer those beginnings up in faith. Give me the patience to wait because I want to be obedient to Your call. I trust that you will take my dream jars for my life and overflow them with oil in Your way and Your time according to the plan that will bring You the most Glory. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Thursday, August 8, 2013
More Small Beginnings...
Last week I posted about finally conquering fear and beginning my Teachers Pay Teacher store. In the post, I wrote about how God had given me a verse from Zechariah 4:10- "Do not despise the small beginnings.". Again the phrase of small beginnings came up as I read my devotion plan this morning over the life of Elisha.
In this part of his life retold in 2 Kings 3:1-27, we see a huge conflict facing three kings. Their enemy Moab is rearing ahead to defeat them. The King of Israel is in a panic state. The King of Judah remains calm and asks the King of of Israel if there is a prophet, which invites God back into their situation. The King of Israel sends for Elisha, who tells the leaders that God wants them to dig ditches and then in the morning, it will be filled with water. All of that seems very small in perspective of the battle. God being the awesome and faithful God He is, sends water to full those ditches. Meanwhile, the Moabites see the water in the ditches and because the sun reflecting off the water, they think it is blood. They come to the conclusion the three kings fought and killed each other, so they head into Israel in a relaxed state, ready to plunder. Instead, when they get to Israel, the armies are waiting and they drive the Moabites out of Israel. Then the Israelites go into Moab and find victory there as well.
A large, mind boggling victory came to the people of God after they started small. God told Elisha to tell the people His directions. The people followed, even though it may not have made sense. A victory happened in a way they could not have planned.
I know that in my life right now I have acted more like the King of Israel than the King of Judah. I've looked at all the things I have to do to have my classroom ready. From reorganizing to lesson planning, my mind hardly slows down these days. I have a thousand ideas for my Teacher Pay Teacher store and not enough time to do it all. In my personal life, I feel like all I can see is defeat up ahead. I know I have been called to do some things specifically, and I've started to dig the ditches, but I won't lie, when I look with my eyes of flesh and not faith, I have no idea how that ditch will be filled with water. Instead of hitting the panic mode, I need to be more like the King of Judah and invite God back into my situation. I need to stop feeling overwhelmed and frustrated. I need to be still and start small while listening to God's guidance in my situations. He will honor my small starts by coming into my life and "doing more than I could ever ask or imagine." (Ephesians 3:20)
I leave you all with this challenge. What Moab type forces are you facing? Write it down, give it a name. Pray about it and then be still. Invite God back into the situation. Listen to the small start, the ditch digging guidance He is giving you. Go forward in that, and watch as God brings the victory into your life.
Monday, August 5, 2013
No Backing Up
Yesterday at church we started a new series about Elisha. You can check it out at www.lifechurch.tv for an online experience. Here were the verses we focused on which tells about Elisha's calling:
So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “and then I will come with you.” “Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?” So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant. (1 Kings 19:19-21 NIV)
Sometimes I can see that kind of faith in myself. However, most of the time, I get too easily side tracked by the flesh or what surrounds me. In this way, I see my heart more like Peter than Elisha. I answer the Lord's calling, but then the waves get bigger around me and I take my eyes off God. I doubt and try to find the alternate route, the back-up plan. It never works and I end up starting to drown. Then I find myself crying out, like Peter, "Lord, save me!"
May this story of Elisha become so ingrained into my soul that when I hear the Lord calling me, I too can immediately obey, discard any 'back-up' plans and walk forward in faith.
