I'll Praise You in the Storm

Yesterday was the day of: God's faithfulness and provision.

SUNDAY SCHOOL

I teach Sunday school infant-K. The lesson was about Elijah and the widow (1 Kings 17:7-16), this is one of my favorite stories as it really shows how God provides for us everyday just what we need. He is actually probably the only one who really knows what we need. As I prepared for the lessons I was reminded about all that God has done and provided in my life.

WOSHIP

After Sunday school, during worship service the choir sang a song that went right along with the theme of the day (that was becoming known to me).

Praise You in This Storm
by Casting Crowns
words by Mark Hall/music by Mark Hall and Bernie Herms

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.
Chorus:
And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You
and raised me up again
my strength is almost gone how can I carry on
if I can't find You
and as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away
Chorus
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth
Chorus

My eyes started to tear as I thought about the storms I am facing right now.
As my Mom mentioned in her last post, my Dad has a LVAD heart pump. When he is able to receive a transplant he will be out of work for almost 6 months. We have tried to come up with ways we will make it through those months and have started preparing. My Mom sells crafts at a Farmers Market, and we are trying to be very wise with money. However, I am currently not working.
I have my own small business being a Mothers Helper but there has not been many calls coming in. God convicted my heart about not being a Nanny (with responsibility in raising the children) but that I should be a helper in those times when things get a little chaotic for Mom's. I've been praying for the past 2 months about what the Lord wants me to do this Fall, and I haven't had a clear reply. So I am a little frustrated.
Then as I thought about how God has been there through my storms, I began to think about last Spring when my courtship with a young man ended. The healing from that relationship was one of the most painful I have ever been through. This song would pretty much reflect my prayers during that time.

SERMON

The Scripture for service was:
Hebrews 12: 22-29 "But you have come to Mount Zion, to the Heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."

The difference between Mount Zion and Mount Sinai (v. 18-21) is that Mount Sinai is for the unbeliever, for them to realise their sin. Whereas, Mount Zion is for the believer and is a place of forgiveness. When you come to Mount Zion you will see:

• City of the living God our new Home. Our address has changed.
• Greeted by the angels
• The Church of the firstborn. We are enrolled in Heaven.
• God the judge of all. All Christians will stand to be judged FOR their works, not BY their works.
• The Old Testament Saints
• You will see Jesus. Our mediator and our advocate. When Satan goes up the heaven and tries to accuse us of wrong and points out our sin to God saying "look what she is doing"...Jesus pleads our case. Isn't that cool!
• The Blood. God can't see our sin behind Jesus' blood.

How exciting to be reminded of the joy and blessing of following God!
As we had our Hymn of commitment "Blessed Assurance" a dear couple came up to share God's provision in their lives recently. The husband was blessed with work...4 times over!!! He gave it to the Lord and TRUSTED...and God blessed them. But not before a little bit of storms.

ENDING WORSHIP

We ended service with the Chorus "I know Whom I have Believed".
I walked out feeling so sure of who I was...a child of God. All of these stories and verses and songs encouraged me...in a way only the Lord could. I have been so worried about my Dad, money, my love-life, and I've even been worried about worrying...because I know, as I've always known, God will take care of me. God decided to encourage me more with the Widow and the oil jugs that never went dry, and a song that spoke right to my heart, and a sermon to remind me of my calling. HE LOVES ME!!! :)

LATER THAT DAY

I was trying to plan my birthday party and I want some friends to sleep over, and my Mom reminds me that my Uncle is coming down this weekend. This isn't a bad thing. But it messed up the vision I had in my head of how I wanted the party and sleepover to go. Now, I am going to be 22, so most of my friends are older as well...so it doesn't present that big of a problem...but it just wasn't what I had planned. I was upset, so I went to my room to vent and pray and somehow calm down. It took a while.
I sang hymn's, listened to music and prayed, but I still felt all "fired up" inside. So I prayed again. I grabbed my Bible and asked God to speak His truth to me in this time and opened it up...it opened up where is seems to be landing lately...in psalms (due to the crease). I began reading the pages that opened, not sure what I would find. Then, there is was...

"Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord as been good to you" Psalm 116:7

It may not seem like much but it was incredibly humbling! I realised that this was not the end of the world and God has been so good to me that I didn't NEED to have this party or even figure out what to do. My prayer turned from requests, to thanksgiving. And my mood turned too :)

BEING A STAY-AT-HOME-DAUGHTER

Many of my friends no longer live at home, due to disagreements, "independence" or school. I however, am still at home, and am convicted to stay. I'm convinced that God is honoring my request when I was 13..."prepare me for marriage now, so that I will be a good wife and mother". Let me say, I am very prepared for disputes! I know when I should not say things, when I should "cool off" and when I need to compromise. Though my teen years I gained much wisdom from my parents, which I believe was a blessing from Homeschooling. Now, as a new adult...I am learning WAY more from my parents, lessons that can only be learned when you are with them A LOT. I would be missing out if I moved out when the temptation came. My parents do not, by any means, "lord over me". We all have responsibilities in the house and we all encourage each other. I am able to still talk to my Dad about boys and he is able to still protect me. I am able to help my Mom and she is able to help me. We all draw each other back to the Lord and His Word and we all do not get along all the time. Let's face it, if we did, there would be a problem!

So yesterday was another lesson I might have missed out on if I was "miss independent". I am so grateful to my parents for being my helpers and for them encouraging me. I'm also so happy that God convicted me to be a stay-at-home-daughter, it teaches me to be a stay-at-home-wife...because let's face it...it wouldn't be right to leave my husband and move out when I want independence, if things get hard...or if I want to follow "my dreams".

REFLECTION

If we are true followers of Jesus Christ "our dream" would be to obey and honor the Lord with what HE calls us to...NOT through what WE want!

Should we be homeschooling?

Did I mention, we home school our children? My husband & I have 5 children. Oldest 31, youngest 6. Yes he was a late blessing. I was almost 48 when I had him. Anyway...homeschooling allowed our children to follow the path the Lord had for them, well, after some took their own path, but , their on their way back. So...first kiss girl...she was home schooled from grade 3 till she graduated. During that time, she spent a lot and I mean a lot of time with the Lord. In her room studying scripture, reading about how she should be as a child of God. Praying, singing, writing. She has so many journals, I hope she publishes them soon. There is a lot in there for young girls to read and learn.
What if we had not obeyed the word of the Lord to home school? What if I, a mom with a high school education and a technical school education, had given into my own fears of being in adequate? What if I said, "not me Lord", I'm just not able to do that". What if Moses said no to God on Mt. Sinai? George Washington Carver said in an interview that the wisdom he got in botany, he got from God. As a matter of fact, they mocked him. When I read that in the sower series books, I thought. That is how I am. I asked the Lord daily to give me the wisdom I needed for each school day and He did. Some days, we went so deep, I was amazed. Trusting. That is what I did. Trust Him to guide me. Don't get me wrong, I had to research, read, pray.
Some very prominent people say"homeschooling is not for all Christians". I'm not sure I agree. With the mess of the "government schools" I think the only way to be sure that our children get a good education through "wisdom" is for parents to follow the mandate to "train up our children in the ways of the Lord". How can you do that if they are on the bus at 7AM and don't get home till 4:45pm. Its crazy. And then do all the other things in the evening before the rat race the next morning.
During the past 15 years, home schooling, we burried 3 brothers, 2 fathers, 1 dear uncle, out of state, relocated from NJ to VA, had many miscarriages, 2 children got married out of state, had double by pass heart surgery, delivered a baby. Now my husband has an LVAD, waiting for a heart transplant.
Life and it's responsibilities is some of the greatest teaching tools. It doesn't happen only after the 7-4:45. It happens all day. God, is available 24/7. When would my daughter seek Him if she were not available?
Just a thought? Shalom

Did God give us warnings? Proverbs 22:3

How many times have you gone past a rattlesnake and heard the sound of it's tail shake at you? OK so maybe you didn't "personally" walk past a snake, but you know, alot of those western movies had rattlesnakes in them. You would see that snake lift up his tail, and shake it at someone like the dickens. You know the inside of the snakes tail is a material just like our nails. God is incredible. In His creation, we see so many ways He used what he had already made somewhere else...ut oh, gonna get of subject. I do that a lot...bear with me. So the snake shakes his tail as a warning..."get away from me or I will bite you!" If he bites you, your in big trouble...you could DIE!. Do you go near that snake? NOOOOOOO! You head the warning and if you have half a brain you run. Run as far away as you can.

Proverbs 22:3 says" A prudent person foresees the danger ahead and takes precautions; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." In the Bible(God's Word) there are many, many, many warnings of what could happen if you do not heed what He instructs. But do we follow them? Or do we just go along with the crowd, just like everyone else, like sheep being lead to the slaughter. When will we wake up and see that the ways of the world lead to destruction, but narrow is the way of the Lord. It's not a wide pathway, cause there are lots of "rattlesnakes". We need to walk, following the One who knows the Way, cause He can see farther down the path than we can.

We had an earthquake, less than 50 miles from our home this week. We never had an earthquake before and there was no warning. No damage to us or our loved ones or our home. Praise God. This weekend, the storm called "Irene" is scheduled to come this way. We have been warned, we prepared. Water, flashlights, food, generator, filled the tub with water (we have a well). We're ready.

God warned Pharoah of Egypt about a famine, He warned Pharoah to let His people go, He warned the Israilites...all the thru the book of Judges, we read how they did "what was right in their own eyes". That means they did not head what the Lord had told them of how to live a "good and prosperous life".

What warnings has the Lord given to you through His word or even through the consequences of what your friends are experiencing? Are you aware? Are you listening?

I was not raised in a Christian home. I am a first generation American Citizen. My parents were seperated when I was 2. I was infant baptized Ukranian Orthodox, educated Seventh Day Adventist, married by a Presbyterian pastor. I did not know the Lord or even understand His warnings. My parents did not teach me His ways.

My husband and I stood face to face in the 7th year of our marriage and promised to the Lord to raise His children by the Book...His Book. We are now married 26 years... That my friends is for another day.

May you seek the Word of God, follow His instructions and stay away from the ways of this world. God loves you, He sent His son Jesus, to die for your mess ups(sinns). You just need to recognize you are a sinner, ask God to forgive you and Jesus to be the Lord of your life. That is your first step. Pray! Let me know if you did that, I will be so happy. Shalom!

First post from my phone

I'm not sure about all of you (if anyone is reading this, lol) but I have not been sleeping well lately. I've been praying, trying to see if its something in my control, like worry. But I just don't know.
On the topic of all this nature stuff happening, with the earthquake and now the hurricane coming up the coast, it makes me think of the End Times. Then I think "if it is coming, am I prepared? Did I witness enough? Did I represent the Lord in my life?" Its a lot to think about.
There is only one person I feel I left things "unfinished" with and that's my neighbor. Growing up I would go to her house and play. She's a few years younger. We talked about the Lord and I often brought my Bible to answer her questions and we would sit on the hammock and talk. Then, we grew up and I stopped visiting. I invited her family to VBS at our church right down the road but really nothing else.

Then, I think about what I'm doing now. Am I doing my best and all that God has asked me to? I'm not sure if I know the answer to that but all of this just makes me THINK.
We should always have this mindset. We should always be thinking about Eternity and always have a sense of urgency. But so often we get caught up in our day to day lives and how we can be amazing people on earth, we forget the only approval that matters is God's.

I will end with this to ponder: Are you doing all you can for God? Is He the reason for everything you do and choose to do? Are you ready to leave this earth? Can you hear His voice saying "well done, thy good and faithful servant"?

posted from Bloggeroid

For the glory of God

Hi everyone.
Over the past few months my Mom and I have been talking about starting a Blog. We want to open up the conversations we have and I want girls to know they are not alone.
The purpose of this Blog is communication between Mother, Daughter and the Lord.
God has been using my Mother to carve me ever since I was very young. To this day, I still glean from her wisdom and LOVE talking and laughing with her.
I plan to get on here and write about things God shows me some days, things I struggle with and hilarious things that happen. I want it to be open for discussion on topics.


Yes, here I am, the MOM! We are hoping that you can glean from our own relationship together and with the Lord. How He has lead the way in our walk together as Mother and Daughter and how He still continues to lead us down His path.  I am a mom of 5, grandmother of 7. My oldest child is 31, my youngest is 6.  We have much to share for the Lord's glory and honor. We welcome you in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord.