A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes

Ever dared to dream?

Ever dared to dream BIG?

Have you sought God for a dream and a vision that He would place in your heart? One that you know is from Him and you desire it so greatly that there is no denying it's from Him?

I've been there before. I am right there now. And I am surrounded by people who are daring to dream so big that there is no human possibility of realizing the dreams and yet, doors keep opening and favor is poured out and there is an air of excitement and anticipation for what the next moment holds!

Matthew Barnett tweeted this the other day, "The longer you stay in the dream the greater the chance that anything amazing can happen." 

What an unbelievable thought! God is so amazing and He desires to give us the desires of our hearts! The key is to be in tune to what His plan and purposes are for our lives. When we find ourselves seeking His heart, the desires of His become ours. What a thought!

Ephesians 3:20 says, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,"

If we think our dreams and our thoughts are big and we continue to dream and think about the same things, not only can expect amazing things to happen, but His word says that He is able to much more than we can even imagine! 

Hallelujah! 

If you are thinking about something that you feel is just too big for you, I challenge you to seek God's heart. That thought you have, may just be from Him. And if it's from Him and you begin taking the steps to follow through on your thoughts, He will blow your mind! 

Go ahead. I dare ya! 

It sure has been a while

Hi. How are ya?

I so enjoy the blogging. So why is it so hard to get it done?

School is back.

Noah is playing football.

Ty tried football.

Colby is talking and fun!

I am back in school and working full time.

Donny is doing his best at being the stay-at-home-parent. It's quite the adjustment!

One thing I learned this summer? Just when you think all is lost or hopeless, God asks you to be willing to take drastic steps and measures. Once you do, He steps back in to show His faithfulness over yours! You can't out do Him.

Don't get so caught up in life that you miss the teachable moments. They bring the most growth.

Broken hearts

Broken hearts come in so many forms.

Love, friendship, spiritually and physically a broken heart is one of the worst things to go through.
That's why Matt Hammitt, the lead singer of the Christian band Sanctus Real, and his wife have started the Whole Hearts Foundation.

Matt Hammitt and his wife had a baby boy last fall with a congenital heart defect. Little did he know, when Sanctus Real released their latest cd 6 months earlier called Pieces of a Real Heart, that the theme of the cd would be the theme of his family.

Their son, Bowen is doing great now but they want to make sure that every baby in Bowen's situation receives the same care and help as they did. That's why they have teamed up with Pepsi for the Refresh Everything campaign. You can go to Pepsi's website by clicking here (or above on Whole Hearts) to vote for this organization!  Follow Matt on twitter, @matthammitt, to keep up with the information. This is the last week so get busy and vote! And share with everyone!!!!

Freedom, Family, Friends and FOOD!

This is my favorite picture of any of our 4th of July celebrations. And it could quite possibly be my favorite picture of this little punk.

Last year at this time, our family was quite a mess. It had only been a month since Donny's accident and he had only been home from the hospital for about a week. We didn't really get to do any of our normal family stuff. And as I look forward to today, I am excited to spend time with family, friends AND EAT!!! This quote from Erma Bombek fits perfectly,

"You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4th, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism."

Time

One song says that time is on my side, "Yes, it is!". I also hear that time flies. I think the latter is more true than anything else!

See this face

It became this face

Which then became

and then

which is one of my most favorite pictures of this little twerp. And then this face led to

this which makes me giggle. And then we came to this

and next week, he will be 6.
Did you hear me? I said 6! And I ask, again, where does time go?
As much as this child makes me nuts and at times want to cry, I can not imagine life without his funny little quips or actions.
For instance, last week he taught us that "lightning comes from hell cause it's scary." Now, where would be without that knowledge that only he can give? Where I ask you!?!

Life hasn't been dull since we were blessed with this child and I am looking forward to all God has in store for him.

Rainy Day Haikus

Rainy, rainy day
You are so gloomy to me
Want to clean and nap



Not  the best Haiku you've ever read, I am sure. I enjoy the rain and loathe it all at the same time. It just seems we've had SO much!

On to another subject. How do you get boys to clean their room? I mean, I have friends who have kids that probably border OCD and cleaning up is NEVER an issue. In this house, it's a problem. Grounding, spankings, loss of privileges, rewards...nothing works! And I am at the point where I don't think I should have to go down and clean it myself when they are both old enough to be able to do it themselves.  AND, if I do go down, it will most likely end up in them losing most of their toys to boxes, Goodwill or the dump. As it stands now, they haven't gotten any new toys since Christmas because they didn't take care of the ones they got then!

Okay, Moms, let me hear it. Suggestions are welcomed and appreciated!

Two red headed boys
Ginormously messy room
Two red headed boys

Thoughts of the day

So many different thoughts were running through my mind today and I so much wanted to blog about them all.
I should've written them down.
But I didn't.
So, I will meander about, rambling and hopefully something good comes from it.

Gifts
I believe what the Bible says in Ephesians 4:11, "He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor-teacher to train Christ's followers in skilled servant work, working within Christ's body, the church, until we're all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God's Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ." (The Message)

I have taken several Spiritual Gift Inventories and I always get similar answers. I guess that means they are true! One of them is Words of Wisdom and the other the gift of Discernment. These two come in handy so often! And at the same time, they can be so difficult!

Let me explain myself here. It's really hard to know what a person NEEDS to hear and to then actually TELL them.

On facebook tonight, I wanted to type a particular status regarding this. But as I typed, I realized the aftermath that could ensue and didn't post it. I feel like I missed the ball. So, instead of just putting it on FB I decided that I would blog about it now.
Here it goes!
I can't help but believe that God's heart is completely breaking over the things that people, people who say they love Him, post on their statuses.
Why do some of you feel the need to post things that are in no way glorifying Him? Why do you insist on listening to things that are not bringing you closer to Him?
Teenagers- oh, Lord help me here. Teenagers, why do you feel the need to air ALL of your dirty laundry and thoughts for the whole world to see? Why do you feel it's okay to go to church on Sunday or Wednesday and then every other day post statuses that use words that are vulgar, racist, hurtful or worse?! I am honestly too embarrassed and ashamed to write some of the words that students who attend my youth have put in their status updates.
I. Just. Don't. Get. It.
What does God have to do to get the attention of your heart? What will it take for you to become sold out for Jesus? What, in this world, is so worth giving up a life in Christ to have?
These questions are not rhetorical. I would love to hear answers.

Our Pastor's motto is "What got you here, won't get you there." Do you know what that means? The actions you have taken and the words you have spoken that lead you to where you are at in your life are not going to be the same as the actions and words needed to take you to the next level...out of despair, bitterness, anger and hurt. These things can only be escaped by turning your heart truly and completely to the One who is able to walk you THROUGH the hardships of this life. You won't ever be immune to the flaming arrows of the enemy, but when you are walking with Christ, you have an armor ready for you to wear so that you do not be come defeated but realize you have overcome!
You are more than a conqueror!

Want life? Give yours up. Let God take your life. He gives a new one! One that never ends and is filled with peace in the midst of storms. Love in the midst of pain. Healing in the midst of sickness. Joy in the midst of sorrow. Life where there is death.

Is it easy to walk the narrow path that God has laid out for you? No. Will there be obstacles? Of course! But God's Word assures us that He walks with us and stands with us in the good and bad times.

He loves you so much. Please, do Him a favor, love Him with more than just lip service.
I love the old saying, "Dying for me was the most He could do. Living for Him is the least I can do."
So where do you stand? He brings freedom. He brings peace. He brings joy. He brings hope, love, grace, favor, strength and the best is the His mercy is new every morning!
Please don't turn from Him. He is calling you to His side. He is reaching out with nail scarred hands. Grab a hold to those hands and hold on tight! I promise you, you won't regret it. Go ahead and just give Him a try. I double dog dare you.