Today is a New Day

I woke up this morning to the birds singing outside and my first thought was "Thank You Lord for the beautiful wake up song". My second thought was "Thank You Lord for a new day".

I am so thankful for each and every new day the Lord provides. Not just because His days are so beautiful and full of wonder (because we just never know what any day is going to hold for us). But, thankful because it is another chance to get it right. It's another chance to do the right thing....and perhaps right some wrongs. It's another chance to show my love to those around me. It's another chance to ask for forgiveness - and to offer it to others. It's another chance to do something unexpected for someone....a random act of kindness. It's another chance to allow the world around us to see Jesus in us.....and possibly another chance to allow someone who's never met Him to finally see His love through us.

I think I could go on and on with my list of why I am so thankful for each new day. But I'd rather hear what makes each new day special for YOU!!! Please feel free to comment here, or on my FB or even my Twitter with what makes you thankful for each new day.

Honesty

I was just having a wonderful discussion with a very good friend today. And one topic that came up was "honesty".

When we lie to someone, we are not only telling that lie to them, we are lying to ourselves.....and then we further that lie and try to justify our words to our Heavenly Father. The worst part of a lie is the fact that it always ends up growing like mad. One lie leads to another and another and another. It's a never ending cycle. And it's so destructive. It not only has the potential to destroy the person who told the lie, but it has the potential to destroy friendships, to hurt others in a way that never was originally intended, and worst of all, it destroys your testimony as a Christian.

As Christians we are supposed to protect our witness, protect our testimony. When we behave in a manner that can, and in most cases does, bring about shame to us, we not only shame ourselves but we also bring shame upon our whole house (this would include our spouse, our children, our extended family, our church family - particularly if we, or anyone in our house is in a position of leadership, etc....I think you get the point). This shame damages our witness. And telling lies is damaging in this way. How can one be an effective witness for Christ when he/she is known as a liar? And believe me, even when you do not think others are "aware" of your lies.....someone always is. Don't ever assume that your lie is going to your grave with you......it's not....it's already known....people have already seen through it.

You tell a lie because you might offend someone? LOL If you are honest with me and my feelings are hurt.....well, I might get upset (most likely will get upset with you). But I'll go home, lick my wounds, probably throw myself a huge pity party.....pray about it and finally see it for what it is.....a friend being honest and me needing to make some changes, and forgive you for hurting my feelings and hopefully ask you to forgive me for behaving in a manner that made you call me out to begin with. I get over it....we move on.

Or maybe you've told a lie because you are embarrassed of a mistake you've made? I can assure you, it's much easier to forgive someone of a mistake they've made (no matter how big it is) than it is to get past the lies. Once you lie to someone, you break their trust. They may continue to be in your life, or not. They may continue to go out with you, or not. They may even still consider you their friend, or not. But one thing is for sure, they will never believe one single word you utter without hesitation and without double checking and verifying - if they even care after knowing they were lied to to begin with.

So anyway, back to this wonderful discussion I had today.....we just don't understand why people cannot be honest with each other. I mean, if you mess up.....just admit it. "Hey ,I messed up. Can you please forgive me?" Don't make excuses. Don't make up a lie (because remember, your lie is not such a secret and the person you are lying to already knows you're lying...even if they don't call you on it). Why is it so difficult for people to be honest with each other? You want to salvage relationships? Don't lie. Don't even do it just a little tiny bit and call it a "white lie". There is no such thing as a little white lie. Just be honest.

Fond Memories

Just last week I was sitting down with my boys looking through old childhood pictures (my childhood, not theirs LOL). Oh the fun they poked of me with my big '80's hair and the clothes we used to wear. And then came the pictures from when I was really young and just watching the expressions on their faces as they looked at pictures with me was so delightful.

We came across some pictures that are very dear to me. Pictures that included my Grandma R (my great grandmother). My Great Grandmother was such a dear sweet lady. I loved her so much and I miss her dearly. When she passed, the only thing I wanted of hers was her Bible. I remember sitting at her feet while she read her Bible. She would check off each chapter as she read it and she would read it to me like you would read a book of stories to a child. She kept her Bible right next to her chair and spent time in it every single day. At that time (I was really young) I just didn't understand why a book, any book, was so important. But those passages she was reading to me was sinking in and I was getting God's Word in a passive sort of way.

I now have her Bible. Although I do not use it (it's pretty worn an fragile). But it serves as a constant reminder to me of how much my Grandma R loved the Lord. It is inspiration to me to be a lover of the Lord just as my Grandma R was. Every now and then I will take out her Bible and just flip through the pages and remember how I used to sit at her feet while she read to me from this very same Bible. In flipping through the pages I've also come across all the little notes I used to write to her while sitting in church next to her....and even some of the little paper projects we made in Sunday School. I'll look at them and then carefully place them back where they came from for safe keeping.

It fills my heart with such joy and all sorts of warm fuzzy feelings to know that my Grandma R loved the Lord so much and that she left just a small piece of her love for Him behind as a reminder to me of how important my relationship with the Lord is.

Side note: for some reason today (already and it's only 8am) I've been super emotional. Not in a bad way. But just weepy over things happy and sad. So today probably wasn't the best of days for me to write this because it did not come without tears.

Feel free to share one of your fond memories in the comments below. I'd love to read them.

Confirmation

We go through life sometimes never knowing if we've made the right decision, said the right thing, done the right thing, etc. But sometimes in life we get so many confirmations that we have, in fact, made the right decision and spoken just the right things.

I've many such moments over the last several weeks since publishing Just Be! When you step out in faith and in obedience and share your personal testimony with literally the world the enemy is going to try his hand at weakening your resolve. He's going to shout out at you that you're setting yourself up for failure or you're making yourself too vulnerable.

But then God steps in and shows you in a way that only He can that you are good to be obedient. You are on the right track. And no matter what the enemy would have you think, being obedient may sting a little at times, but it is the right thing to do. Ever since publishing this book I've been to women's conference, church, and just out and about and have heard the same message over and over and over that I've put forth in Just Be! That message is to just be who God created you to be. Be yourself. This was confirmation for me that I made the right decision in being obedient to God's request of me.

The Warmth of Friendship - "Guest Blogger"

Let’s face it, it has been a cold few weeks. Just when you thought the chilling temperatures were on their way out, in comes another front, another system of bad weather. It is still Winter after all, it is a season that will come and eventually go.
There is no better time to put on something warm, drink a nice warm cuppa your favorite and wrap up in your most favorite blanket! The feel of fuzzy socks, fleece pajamas and your hands wrapped around your favorite book. Nice, Huh?
It is a very similar feeling when I am surrounded by the warmth of my friends. Maybe it is a text that says “Hey, just making sure you are staying warm?” or a phone call saying “Brrr!!! is it cold at your house?” followed by giggles from the end of the line.. Sometimes it is a general prayer for God to watch over us all through the winter storms. This is the most special kind of warming, the kind that warms from the inside-out.

Proverbs 17:17

¹⁷ A friend loves at all times,
    and a brother is born for a time of adversity.

Maybe some of your friendships have gotten a little “chilly” and your blanket has gotten a few worn holes? Maybe you have neglected to mend some of those tattered threads? What better time to share a little warmth, spend a little extra time mending than the current wintry season. Sometimes just a little extra  and winterizing goes a long way.

Our friends can warm the coldest of days. You may want to try a new recipe?

Instant Drink to Warm Weary Hearts

Ingredients:

50% Affection

30% Commitment

20% Devotion

0 %  Selfishness

When I find it most difficult to follow the recipe? I often look to the one that created the most perfect blend for friendship – the Creator. We were not created to be alone, we were created to have fellowship one with another.

Proverbs 18:24

²⁴ One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin,
    but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

We can all make preparations for the cold – making sure that we have what is needed to stay warm. Our relationship with the Creator and our earthly friends is like having a warm blanket on a cold day…

My prayer is that you stay warm during this season of cold, taking special care to “winterize” the things that are important….and may you always be surrounded by the warmth of friendships.

Link for other posts on The ChatterBox 

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. ~Psalm 139:14

This is the key verse and foundational verse for my book Just Be!. It is a truth that many people - men and women alike - fail to know about themselves. Or maybe we just choose to overlook it. Do we not believe it? Do we doubt it because of what others see in us? Do we doubt it because of what we see when we look in the mirror? Whatever the reason, this is a truth that we all need to hold onto and believe.

Have you ever felt like those around you are judging you based on your appearance (your smile, your hair, your voice, your hands or feet, your laugh, etc.), your personality, your talents and gifts? I know I have. I've been told how unfortunate it is that I have such a strong personality (I think mainly by those that I have not allowed to push me around LOL). I've also been told how my laugh is so annoying because it's loud - not quiet and dainty. I've had just about every aspect of "me" criticized at one point or another. But you know, I finally realized that these "opinions" of me do not matter. Why? Because "I am fearfully and wonderfully made" by my Father who loves me and makes no mistakes and deliberately made me the way HE wanted me to be made. He made me for a special purpose and I am no accident. He made YOU this very same way. You are no accident. You are made for a special purpose. You are made exactly the way He intended for you to be made.

There will always be someone that thinks they are better or smarter than you. There will always be someone who thinks they are better looking than you. But God made you, well YOU!! He made you unique. You are one of a kind. There is no other like you on earth. Sure, you may meet someone that has similar traits and that you have a lot in common with. But, you are the only you on the planet.

The next time you're around someone who seems down and just not happy with themselves or feels overly criticized, come up along side of them and remind them of how special and unique they are...remind them that they are "fearfully and wonderfully made". Be encouraging to someone today. And be encouraged yourself in knowing that God has a special purpose and plan just for you...a job that no-one else other than you can do because it is what you were created for.

Look in the mirror and see the beautiful and wonderful woman you were created to be.

Making Plans

"We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps." ~Proverbs 16:9

Plans.....I've made so many plans. Begun so many things only to stop and start another. Sometimes feeling as though I'm on a roller coaster ride that just goes back and forth, up and down all of life's ins and outs. It gets confusing sometimes, knowing which way to go and which plan to follow. Never did I ever think that writing would be one of my plans. In fact, writing was NEVER one of my plans. It was the same thing with speaking in church in any capacity.

If you had asked me 10 years ago what I'd be doing today you most likely would have heard something like this: I'll have a couple of dessert café locations. Or maybe I would have said that I'd have a large bath and body product shop that was booming. I might have even told you that I would be working in a hospital as a Cardiovascular Tech. It could have even been that I'd have several nail salons with several strategically placed in clinics or drugstore/pharmacy clinics. Yes, I've been a chocolatier with a dessert café, I manufacture bath and body products, I am a Cardiovascular Tech, and I am a licensed nail tech. So every single one of those things was truly a possibility. But I NEVER would have guessed a Christian writer or speaker would have been on that list.

For several years now I've felt that writing and speaking was something I should be doing. I just never made those plans. Something happened about a year and a half ago though. After having been working in children and women's ministries for quite some time, speaking and teaching, things began to change. I began to change. My desires began to change. And, my plans began to change.

God spoke to my heart one day about the women and children I'd had the privilege to work with...He told me this was just in preparation for the future. I cannot fully explain what I felt or what I "heard" but I do know that God was leading me to something bigger. Not for me....but for all of His people. Not through MY words, but through HIS words, through HIS message for all of His daughters.

So, I made the plans, the Lord determined my steps.