Trusting God in 2010!

Ready or not another new year is upon us. Are you excited about a new year? What are you looking forward to in 2010??? What would you like to accomplish??? Have you set some goals...not made resolutions...but actually set some goals of things that you want to accomplish in this New Year! There is a definite difference. I, for one, am not making resolutions, although there are some things I am looking forward to in 2010. Like my daughter's 21st birthday, another trip to Williamsburg with my husband, Scrap Camp in March, completing another school year, my grandson's 2nd birthday, my daughter's graduation in July, completing another half-marathon, starting another school, beginning a new volleyball season, etc., etc., etc.

My goals are simple: Draw closer to God...keep my eyes focused on the Lord and let Him guide and direct my paths.

I am excited about 2010. I am looking forward to seeing what God has in store for me and my family. Jer. 29:11 says: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Why wouldn't anyone be excited, knowing that God wants to prosper them and give them hope and a future.

With God all things are possible...trust Him...and see where it leads you in 2010.

You just might be amazed beyond belief!

2009 Memorable Moments

It's hard to believe that 2010 is just around the corner. I don't know about you, but this year has flown by for me. As I look back on it, I am reflecting back on all the good memories that it has brought. How many good memories do you have of 2009?

1: The MB Bi-lo Half-Marathon. My daughter's first and my third. Time 3:04 (my fastest yet). We looked like two little bumble bee's going down the street. Even managed to get on the 11:00 news. We had a great time.

2: My husband and I went for a long weekend to Williamsburg, Va. We had such a great time. Also visited President's Park and Jamestown. I especially loved the hot tub and fireplace that came with our room.

3: Scrap Camp. Scrap booking with about 75 other women for an entire weekend is the way to go. We have so much fun. Until a snow storm blew in and I still had to drive 3 hrs home. That part was a little scary...but I made it.


4: Celebrating my Grandson's 1st Birthday. Wow! I couldn't believe all the people that came. My daughter and Son-in-law went all out for this one. We had a great time with family and friends.


5: Trip to Oak Island: One of my students' gave me a week at her parents condo in Oak Island. My husband and I had the best time. We strolled along the beach...fished from the peer ( I caught lots of baby sharks), took rides on the golf cart exploring the area. What a relaxing and peaceful time we had.


6: Monthly scrap nights with the girls from work. It's always fun to get together with them and hang out.


7: Ending a school year and starting a new one. It's always sad at the end of a school year...saying goodbye to all those students, hoping and praying that somehow you just made a small positive difference in their lives....but at the same time it's always exciting to start a new one. The anticipation and excitement can be overwhelming. I love the beginning of a new year.


8: Babies, Babies, Babies: This year four of my co-workers had babies. It has been such a blessings seeing all these new little creations of God. It just reminds me of His Awesomeness and Complexity.. They are so adorable.


9: Celebrating Thanksgiving with my family and "extended" family. We always have such a great time. the husbands go hunting...the wives cook...we get up in the wee hours of the morning to start shopping on Black Friday. Such a special time.


10: Our Traditional Christmas Tree Hunt. Every year we travel to the NC Mountains and pick out and cut down a Christmas Tree. We have so much fun. It was even more fun this year because my grandson was older and really enjoyed running in and out of all the trees.


11: Celebrating the Birth of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Christmastime is about Christ.


12: Taking my Grandson to see Santa. He is such a lil' trooper to wait in that long line and still give a great smile when he finally gets to sit on Santa's lap.


13: Seeing the look on my Grandson's face when he sees all his gifts for the first time. Christmas through the eyes of a child is the best!


14: Watching my Grandson grow. Having him living with us (for the moment) is such a joy. I am priviliged to watch him change and grow everyday. So many special moments with him.


15: Listening to my grandson try to sing Silent Night as it plays on the radio in the car.


16: Reconnecting with family and friends through FaceBook. Was never crazy about Facebook...but am glad that I signed up for it. I have been able to reconnect with family members whom I have missed having in my life.


17: Twittering...thanks to my closest and dearest friend...I began twittering this summer. It has been an interesting adventure.


18: Blogging....Again...thanks to my closest and dearest friend I now have this blog..which I am still now very good at.


19: Beth Moore Bible Study~ A Heart Like His...the story of David. It has been very enlightening and I just love studying God's Word and drawing closer to HIM!!!


20: Volleyball...having another great season...watching those girls give it all they have even though they are sick and hurt....persevering...winning the conference title again for the third year in a row.


I know I could keep going, but those are just a few of my memorable moments of 2009. What about you? I would love to hear about some of your most memorable moments of 2009.

Winning or Losing?

OK! So the question is: Is it better to lose with a Christlike spirit or Is it better to win with an UN-Christlike spirit? Personally, I would rather lose every game and keep my Christ-like attitude than to lose and be overbearing and cocky. Although...it is...as our coach says: "Much more fun to win than to lose.'' I totally agree with her on that one. It certainly didn't feel too good when we lost the second match today. Even though we won the first match. What's wrong with losing every now and again...after all this was only our third loss in almost 3 years? How will we ever know what we need to improve on, if we never lose? What made this loss so much more difficult to swallow than any other? These were all questions that I was trying answer, not only in my own mind, but also for the coach. It is never easy to lose and even though there were many contributing factors to our loss today, one thing we did do right was to maintain our Christ-like attitude. We could mull over all the mistakes we made, bad attitudes displayed by the other team, poor line judging, poor referee calls, but do they really matter. They certainly won't change the outcome of the game. A loss is a loss. So how do we handle a loss when we are so accustomed to winning...with a Christ-like spirit. Keeping our heads held high and allowing God's grace flow through us. Evaluating the skills that need improvement and doing everything we can in our own power to improve on them and then letting God do the rest. Realizing that volleyball is just a game, but we are in a much bigger game with a much higher stake...the Game of Life...where God is the coach and Heaven is the prize. If we keep our eye on the real prize and strive to win at that game...we will never lose. So what do you think??? How do you handle losses in your life?

Septic Tank of the Heart

Well...here I am. I did say last week in my blog about "CONSISTENCY" that I was going to try to be more consistent and write at least once a week. So I am trying to keep my word and be accountable, if only to myself.

Proverbs 23:7 says: For as he thinketh in his heart , so is he. I always tell my students that our brain is like a computer; whatever we put in our mind, is what is going to come out and spew onto others. If we are putting good stuff in, then good stuff will come out. If we are filling our mind with junk; then junk is going to come out.

Five years ago my husband and I built a house out in the country. Our land is butted up against a cow pasture and we literally have cows for neighbors. That is not to say that we don't have "real" neighbors..we do...but we also have cows. It's very peaceful and quiet...we just love it!

This summer we received a letter from the county we in which we live telling us that someone would be coming out to our house to inspect our septic tank. Apparently this is something new that the county began doing with new homes. No big deal, right! Well, when you have lived in a house for five years with 5 adults and a baby, you would probably think that maybe you would need to have your septic tank pumped once in awhile. NOT US! Never crossed our mind. So, the septic system man comes out, inspects our tank and proceeds to tell us we need to have our tank pumped immediately. That it was way overdue for a pumping and was one of the worst he had seen in a long time. They told us they would return to inspect the tank in about a week to make sure we had done what we were told...which we did and they did and everything was fine.

In the process of going through this though..The Lord began to speak to me about my heart in comparsion to a septic system. He began to question me about when the last time was that I cleaned/pumped the septic tank of my heart out? That HURT! Let's face it, we all put stuff into our minds everyday, which flows into our hearts and if we aren't careful it comes spewing out onto everyone around us. I'll admit...I love action movies. I could watch the Die Hard Series or the Bourne Series over and over again...but I know that the violence and language in those types of movies is not what I need to be putting into my mind, but still I do it. Therefore, I need to be making sure that I am cleansing my mind and heart on a regular basis...so that I am not allowing that kind of violence and language to flow forth from me. How do I cleanse my mind and heart...through the Word of God! Making sure that I am daily into His Word. Meditating on His Word day and night!

If I never pump out the spetic tank of my heart, it will end up like the septic tank at my house...overflowing with muck!!! That will in turn overflow into my actions and words. So I ask you...When was the last time you cleaned the septic tank of your heart???

Consistency

It has been way to long since my last blog...I began blogging during the summer when I was off from teaching and since school has started back...I feel as though I have no time to do anything except work. Though that doesn't mean that I haven't thought about my blog..it's on my mind a great deal...finding time to actually sit down and write is another story. So I am going to make more of an effort to write consistently, meaning at least once a week.

God has been bringing that word to my mind a lot lately...CONSISTENCY! Consistency is the key! Whether you are in His Word, trying to lose weight or maintain your weight through eating and exercising, or playing a game of volleyball! I realized recently that when I do not run on a consistent basis I struggle to get my 2 miles in...I tire much quicker. As is with my time with God...if I do not consistently stay in His word (meaning daily)..its shows in my actions, my attitude, and my words. As an assistant coach of a girls middle school volleyball team, one of the most important of the things that the girls need to do when they are playing a game is to be consistent. I can't tell you how many times we tell them when they are serving to be consistent in how they are serving...do the same thing every time. If they bounce the ball three times before they are going to serve, then they need to do that very same thing every single time. Consistency! Consistency! Consistency!

So...food for thought...how consistent are you??? How committed are you to being consistent??? Is there something in your life that you need to work on being consistent at? Are you consistently in God's Word??? Is your consistency evident in your actions, attitude, and words? Think about it! Surely I can't be the only one out there who needs to work on being more consistent. Or can I?

How Thirsty are You?

A few years ago I began participating in half Marathons. So far I have actually
completed 3...though my plan is to do at least 1-2 yearly. I started out fast-walking, but thanks to my daughter, I try to do more running than walking now. Being a teacher I am able to have the summers off, which allows me to run consistently in the early mornings. I call it my "God Time". I live out in the country, in a small town and it's very peaceful and quiet in my neighborhood ...only the birds and squirrels are up at that time. I use my time to pray for my friends and family and just talk with God.

One morning as I was running I became very thirsty...my mouth was dry...I was actually contemplating cutting my run short because I was so parched. I couldn't wait to get home to get a nice cold bottle of water. I was kicking myself for not haven taken a bottle with me, which I do on occasion. Then I began thinking about the various ways I drink the water when I finally get it. Though, as I said, on occasion I take the bottle with me...and take small sips along the way. At other times, after completing my run I grab a bottle out the the fridge and gulp it down. Then there are times when I have seen people complete a run and they don't just gulp the water they pour it all over themselves (from the head down). I haven't actually done that, but instead I just jump in the shower and immerse myself in the water. I feel so clean and refreshed afterwards.

As I liken the way I drink water to the way I drink and take in God's word...I began to realize that the two are some what similar. There are times in my spiritual walk when things are going along OK and I am only taking sips from God's Word. Frankly, it's when I am not consistent with my devotional time or prayer time. Then there are those times when I am gulping God's Word's. Those are the times when I'll hit a small bump in the road and I feel like I need God to help me get through it. Many times I'll get over that small bump and then just go back to sipping the Word. Lastly, I realized that taking a shower and immersing myself in God's Word daily is what I NEED to be doing. It is what will help me to be able to stand strong when the bumps in the road turn into boulders and mountains. God's Word says I need to put on the full armor of God...I cannot do that if I am not in His word on a daily basis. neither can you. So I'll ask you again...How thirsty are you?

Summertime Fun!!!

Wow! I can't believe, but my summer is coming to an end. Seems like only yesterday I was finishing up the 2008-09 school year and looking forward to a restful and relaxing summer. Of course like every summer I had my "To Do List". You know those are all of those little tasks and projects that you want to get done, but never seem to have the time. As I look back over these past 2 months...I am thinking I didn't accomplish near what I had set out to do at the beginning of my summer break. Though I did get a few things accomplished such as: spending time with my grandson, lazy days swinging on my swing, read 15 books, painted the kitchen, ran everyday, spent a wonderful week in Oak Island, NC, with my husband, had a pool party for my upcoming third grade class, spent several days in Myrtle Beach, SC, with family, had dinner with my high school English teacher, and scrap booked with the girls. Well, I guess I did do something this summer after all. I also became much more technical this summer...creating a Twitter account, Face Book account, and began this Blog. I can even Text Message on my phone, too. So much technology in one summer...I am feeling overwhelmed! I will just cling to God for he gives me the strength and power to accomplish mighty things. I never walk alone. Neither do you!!!