Renewing Your Connection

I've mentioned that I was having computer problems.  BIG COMPUTER PROBLEMS.  Since MARCH.

I knew the computer was full...mostly with pictures.  Trying to move the pictures over to an external drive helped, but even then, the problem persisted.  I tried all kinds of things making sure to save the pictures at least in one spot.  Albums to Facebook, Shutterfly, Carbonite and the other external thing just kept part of them saved, but I could never get all of them moved for some reason. The computer was slow and slower, then finally, basically couldn't work at all.  The little spinning ball kept spinning and spinning and spinning.  I was desperate because writing out my ladies' Bible class lessons is hard to do without a computer.

My husband had said back in the spring that I could get a new one, but that seemed wasteful at the time, thinking I could surely make the other one work better eventually.  Well, after eight months, I decided I needed to just get one.  The before "Black Friday" sales helped save some money and the new computer was ordered.  It was so nice to be able to go to wherever I needed to go and for the pages app to load immediately.  The last time I had tried to print out something on pages on the old computer, it took a day and a half!!!  It was crazy!!

So, all was going along well until last week.  The NEW computer was acting slow.  I knew that our internet could just be slow at times, especially during peak times of usage in our rural area, but this was different.  I finally just decided to call about it.  The service representative had me run a diagnostic test and then had me repeat it immediately afterwards.  On the repeat, the time of the test was so quick, it was amazing!  I asked what she did so quickly that made such a difference.  She said, "Oh, I just renewed your connection." Wow!!  How did something that took only a few seconds make such a huge difference?  Because the other connection was weak.

In our spiritual lives it's possible that we have a weak connection.  It's possible we need to renew our connection to God, to Jesus, and to the church.  The old saying goes, "If you feel far from God, guess who moved?".  God doesn't move.  Jesus doesn't move.  It's WE who move.  It's ME. It's YOU.  You and I have the ability to grow closer to Him and grow in our faith or we move away from Him and our faith grows weak.  Now, it may not be as quick of a fix as my internet connection - it may take some time - but oftentimes it's just a simple thing that will help.  Pray more.  Study the Word more.  Worship more.  Assemble with the saints more.  Think of others more.  Simple things, yet often tough to do at times of weak connection.

Probably all of us have weak connections in our lives at one time or another.  If not spiritually, maybe it's with our relationships or our commitment to our families or our work ethic.  We have to reconnect....renew the connection....work at it and make it stronger.  But as a Christian, nothing we do has to be done alone.  God is there with us.  Jesus is with us.  The Holy Spirit lives within us to help us in our weakness.  HE is the renewing factor of the poor connection!

Maybe I've written about this before.  It seems like it.  But maybe that's because it's what I usually need myself so often, that it is just where my mind tends to go.  I'm not sure I could think about it too often because when I'm thinking about it, it means I'm working on it.  Maybe you are, too.

Renewing your connection begins right now!

“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.  John 14:15-17

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. Romans 8:5

For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14

 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. Romans 8:26-27

Oklahoma FFA State Convention 2013

WOW! What an exciting time it was at the Oklahoma FFA State Convention last week!  This year's theme was "Grow Like That", and the theme was carried throughout the two day event.

This year, for the first time and only time, our three oldest children attended the FFA Convention together.  The last year for our daughter and the first year for our third child (son).  It was pretty neat for me getting to be there, too! 

The State FFA Chorus was great again this year.  Sadly, our daughter didn't make it this year, as she had last year.  There were about 100 in the chorus and about 200 tried out to be in the chorus - so there were many that didn't make it.  What a great problem to have!!  So many talented singers in the Oklahoma FFA!  Our oldest son did make the chorus, but forfeited his place because of a regional golf tournament. 

The convention speakers were great this year, and I'm always amazed and inspired that the FFA organization doesn't shy away from Bible based principles.  In fact, EVERY speaker spoke of God and Jesus in their speech at some point.  That is AWESOME!  Brooks Gibbs (quote above and picture below) talked about how he was bullied as a child.

But the amazing part of his talk was how he told the teens to NOT be a victim any more.  He told them to stand up for themselves and not allow hurtful comments from others to keep them down forever.  It was great!  I am sure he inspired everyone in the convention hall.

A group called iLuminate performed several times and it was amazing to watch them!! This picture isn't good, but shows them lit up with lights as they danced.  They performed on "America's Got Talent", so if you're interested there are YouTube videos about the group.

Our oldest son and some friends went to the Devon Energy Center.  It is worth visiting, for sure!  Devon is a huge supporter of the Oklahoma FFA and welcomed the members to visit during the convention.

On the final night of the convention, the state officers entered the building kind of like the Duck Dynasty show's intro.  "Sharp Dressed Man" blared, laser lights flashed, and the vehicles transported the officered into the arena for their final duties.

The highest award that can be given at the state level is the State FFA Degree.  This year 751 seniors received the award.  This is our daughter receiving hers from State FFA President, Brandon Baumgarten.  This was the biggest group to get the award in a few years.  I think 1994 must have been a baby boom year or something!!

After the convention ended, our FFA group took time to take a picture together.  They spent the next day having a fun day in Oklahoma City, but the fun was squelched a bit by the cold front and high 30's temperatures!  

Lots of memories were made last week.....and lots of inspired members left OKC with dreams of "Growing Like That"!

The Chronicles of Biscuit - The Seed

The Chronicles of Biscuit - Stories about our youngest son whose nickname is Biscuit.

Biscuit handed me a hand-written paper the other day, with the following "parable":

Life is like a seed. It grows and grows. You grow and grow. The seed also has bad things....we do, too. The bad way is, of course, satan's way.  The real good way is, of course, God's way.  Which way are you going?

Biscuit's "parable" is short and to the point, but Jesus taught a parable about seeds in much more detail.

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. ² Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. ³ Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴ As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵ Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶ But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷ Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. ⁸ Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred,sixty or thirty times what was sown. ⁹ Whoever has ears, let them hear.” Matthew 13:1-9

 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: ¹⁹ When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. ²⁰ The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. ²¹ But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. ²² The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. ²³ But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” Matthew 18-23

I'll end today's thought with the same question Biscuit asked, "Which one are you?"

Use It or Lose It

When our son first broke his arm the week of Thanksgiving, it was a strong arm - with lots of muscle.  He had been playing football and basketball and was very active.  It was his dominant, right arm.

Right before Christmas, the big, bulky cast was removed and this shorter, smaller cast was put on - just in time for our trip to Disney World.  Jacob noticed that his arm was much smaller and the cast even got looser as the weeks went by. (Note:  Donald Duck signed Jacob's cast!  See his signature below!)

Yesterday, after three weeks of wearing the short cast, the cast was removed!  Yippee!!  We're so excited, especially Jacob!!  His bubble was burst a little bit when he found out he would have to wear a brace for three more weeks.  He was ready to be totally done and get back to basketball.  He may get to play the very last basketball game of the season, but no more than that one.  

Jacob was shocked to see how small his arm was now.  He has muscle atrophy...the loss of muscle due to the lack of use.  It's normal after being in a cast, but Jacob doesn't like it!  None of us would!

The phrase "use it or lose it" is true.  Whatever we have and don't use - we lose.  Plain and simple.  Spiritually speaking, it is the same way.  If we don't use God's Word - by reading it, living it, and learning it - we will lose it.  Our knowledge - however big or small - will not be retained if we don't review it from time to time.  If we want to grow spiritually, we must continue to "feed" and "exercise" our minds by reading the Bible, memorizing the Word, and applying it in our lives.

When Jacob saw his arm he was shocked and is anxious to do something about those muscles!  He's anxious to use them again!  Shouldn't we be shocked if we were to see our spiritual lives diminishing?  Hopefully and prayerfully so.  Actually, hopefully and prayerfully we don't get to that point where we see any lessening, but are constantly striving to grow and build that strength.

Examine your life daily.  Examine it by God's standard - by His Word.  Don't let the "use it or lose it" ever apply to your spiritual life.  Grow in Him.  Build up your strength through Him.  God loves you, and He wants you to continue loving Him, too! 

WHAT KIND OF EGG ARE YOU?

It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad. C.S. Lewis 

I found this C.S. Lewis quote this morning and really liked it!  He has a lot of good quotes and many of them fit well for the life of a Christian.  This one reminds me of a new life in Christ.  Either a new Christian begins to grow in the Lord, becoming more and more like Jesus Christ, or he/she doesn't.  If we're not changing, maturing, and growing, we're stagnant.  And when we're stagnant, we're going bad...just like a rotten egg.

God's Holy Spirit can help us grow and mature, but we must do our part, as well.  If we don't care to grow and mature, the Holy Spirit can't help us.  It's at that moment we are grieving the Holy Spirit of God because instead of growing in the fruits of the Spirit, we're continuing in our old ways.....the sinful nature that we should have left behind.  We're quenching it's fire.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. ³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

Ephesians 4:29-31

Do not put out the Spirit’s fire. 1 Thessalonians 5:19

So, examine your own life.  You can't go on just being an ordinary, decent egg, as the quote says.  You must either hatch and learn to fly or you'll go bad.  As a Christian, you must either grow, mature, and change to be more Christ-like, or you'll go bad.

Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. ¹⁴ But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Hebrews 5:13-14

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" 

2 Corinthians 5:17

The Chronicles of Biscuit - Square Roots

The Chronicles of Biscuit - Stories about our youngest son, Tyler, whose nickname is Biscuit.

Last week, after Tyler got in the car after school, he began talking about squart roots.  He's in 3rd grade, so in my mind I was thinking, "I can't believe what young kids learn now!  I don't remember learning about that until junior high or high school and don't remember much of anything about it!".  Tyler continued by saying the teacher was asking him to tell the square root of 25 (he answered 5), the square root of 16 (he answered 4), and on and on.  After a few answers, he explained that the answer was just a number times itself, such as 4 x 4 is 16, etc.  Then he said, "You know?  Little kids would probably think it would be 4 + 4, but not me.  I know it's 4 x 4.  Mom, am I a big kid?"

I was still amazed at the whole square root thing to begin with, so I didn't answer immediately.  I thought quickly about the best way to answer him and came up with the answer that he's kind of in the middle.  Not big, but not little.  Nine years old is kind of in-between, don't you think?  He seemed satisfied with my answer and went on to talk about other things from his school day.  And.....I was still stuck on the fact that he knew more about square roots than I did!

The whole big kid/little kid thing got me to thinking, though.  In the Bible, Jesus tells His followers to be like little children, but then in other scriptures it talks about how we should not be infants, but to grow to maturity.  Is this a contradiction???  Not at all!  We can be as children, but also be mature.  The key is wisdom.  Wisdom in knowing when to be like each of those characteristics.

People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

Luke 18:15-17

We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food.  Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.

Hebrews 5:11-13

To be like children is to "come to Jesus" like Jesus mentioned in the scriptures above.  They longed to know about Jesus and wanted to be near him.  Little children have full faith in their father, just as we should in our Heavenly Father.  We should have faith, trust, and confidence in the Father as the little children did who were coming to Jesus.

As mature Christians, though, we should be growing in wisdom, in faith, and in our relationship with God/Jesus.  We should stand firm on the foundation layeed out in scriptures and be able to teach others about Jesus.  If we're not growing...if we're not maturing....we're still infants, and in that way, we're not pleasing our Heavenly Father.

Biscuit wanted assurance that he wasn't a little kid because of his square root knowledge.  As Christians, we should be examining our lives to see what age group we fall into, as well.  Are you a child, with a strong desire to be close to Jesus?  Or are you a "big kid" who tries to tackle the world all by yourself?  Are you an infant, still not sure about your faith and struggling to grow in your Christian walk?  Or are you in the process of maturing, learning and growing in your faith and in your relationship with God and Jesus?  We can be as children, but be mature.  It is possible.  With God all things are possible!

You're Fired! (Part 2)

Yesterday I told you about being fired and how that something "bad" turned into something "good". God worked it out for the good, just as He has promised in His Word. Isaiah 55:8-9

Now I want to tell you about another side of that story:

There was a woman (I'll call her Sally)who was having a very difficult time at her job. Sally didn't enjoy her job or anything about the job. She began praying that God would open the door for her to have a new job. I'm not sure how long she prayed for this to happen, but it was several months.

On April 26, 1993, God answered the Sally's prayer! When I was fired, Sally replaced me in my job!

God answered her prayer, but I lost my job.

I didn't know this part of the story until about three years ago, long after Tyler's bout with glaucoma. When Sally told the story about praying for a job, I was in the room, along with several other ladies. I realized what that story meant to her, but also what it meant for me. Her prayer was answered by my job loss. WOW! Isn't that an amazing thing? God's ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts!

It doesn't bother me at all that God allowed me to suffer, and with my suffering it opened a door for Sally. In fact, it makes me realize even more that it was all in God's plan. I don't know that I would have realized God's hand in it all if I had heard Sally's story right when it happend, when I was 23 years old. Maybe I would have, but I'm not sure.

So, on this Gratituesday, hosted by HeavenlyHomemakers.com, I am grateful for being FIRED! Yes, grateful. It saved Tyler's eye. It caused me to grow in my faith as a Christian. It gave Sally a new job. It confirmed to me that God's promises are always true, even when things don't make sense. It has also provided and will continue to provide a huge lesson for our children when something disappointing happens in their life: That life isn't always fair and sometimes things happen that may not seem right, but that God is in control and we must trust in Him and look to Him for strength. I am grateful for God and His promises and His plan.

Think of Joseph and his life. He was sold into slavery by his brothers. They hated him. But God took care of Joseph and when the brothers eventually found out Joseph was alive and was in charge of the palace where they had come to get food, they were ashamed and sorrowful. Yet God worked out His plan through Joseph's life:

But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your children." And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them. Genesis 50:19-21

And of course, Jesus! None of us will ever go through what He went through. And He went through it for us to live with Him in Heaven some day. Our earthly trials and suffering could never compare to His death on the cross. Thank you, God, for Your plan!!

How would it make you feel to suffer, but by your suffering, someone else is blessed? Have you ever experienced something that was bad at first, but then you were grateful?

Never Give Up!

How Does Your Garden Grow? Part 6
Our house faces the south. My husband tells people we live on the south loop of Tipton (it's a joke). For those of you who may not know, Tipton is a town of less than 1,000 and has only one light. Not a stop light - just a flashing warning light at a 4-way stop. Since we are the last south street in Tipton, across the street is out of city limits and it is a field. So, the front of the house gets straight south wind and hot, hot wind in the spring and summer. But despite that, every spring I get excited! I like to plant flowers. I look for pretty colors and spend time getting it all ready. Last year my parents gave me money for my birthday and I bought flowers. I got a gift card from my in-laws and I bought a wreath with flowers on it for the front (south-facing) porch. I also bought one of those small garden flags - you know, the pretty little ones?

A week after I got the front area all fixed and looking nice, we had a wind storm. It blew and blew and blew and blew and blew (do you get the point??!). It blew all day and all night long. The next day, I went out to look at my flowers, my wreath and my flag. Some of the flowers were gone, containers were dumped, the wreath was missing several things it had had, and my little flag was no where to be found.

I asked myself, “Why do you do this every year?” “Why do you try planting flowers knowing that south wind is going to blow hard most of the time?” Why? Because flowers are pretty. Planting and watching them grow is neat. It’s something the kids enjoy, and my husband and I enjoy. They remind us of God’s creation of beauty.

The next day, guess what I did? I went out and bought more plants!! I know. It sound ridiculous!

In our lives, the winds are going to blow, the storms are going to come, and even the weeds will pop up their ugly heads more often than we want them to. In the garden of our spiritual life, just like in our flower or vegetable garden, we shouldn’t give up. If we give up working in our flower or vegetable garden - give up watering, give up caring for it - that garden will die. If we give up working on our spiritual garden, we will not be doing God’s Will, but our spiritual garden will also wither and die..

Galatians 6:9 says, Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Our spiritual gardens, just like real gardens, need care to help them grow. By Growing with God (Part 1), Abiding in Jesus (Part 2), Reading His Word (Part 3), Deepening our Discipleship (Part 4), Expecting Weeds (Part 5) and striving to get rid of them, and by Never Giving Up, our spiritual gardens will grow to maturity.

After a seed is planted and grows and grows and reaches a certain stage of maturity, the flowering plant will begin to bloom. Well, guess what? GOD WANTS YOU TO BLOOM, TOO!

Maybe you don’t feel like blooming. Maybe you want to keep growing, you’re content with the way thing are now and you don’t want to change anything. But God says, “BLOOM”! Bloom and show your beautiful flower! Maybe you don’t want to bloom where you are. Maybe you want to bloom somewhere else. You want to be transplanted. But, God says, “BLOOM!” Show your beautiful flower! Maybe you feel too old, too young, too tired, or too busy. Maybe you want others to bloom and you don’t care to. But, God says “BLOOM!” Show your beautiful flower!

GOD SAYS "BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED!!"

To bloom is to fulfill your purpose in life. Ephesians 2:10 tells us that God had specific works in mind for each of us (uniquely each of us!)before we were even born! What an awesome thought! "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Doing the job that God has give you to do the best of your ability. Blooming is doing whatever you can for God where you are - where you live - right here and right now. We all want to live some day in Heaven with God.

I pray these lessons will help you as you grow your spiritual garden. Remember to BLOOM!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Many of you may have gardens or grow flowers and plants and enjoy doing this as a hobby or maybe even for food. Some of you were raised in a family who farmed or maybe you are involved in farming now. We all know that growing food, plants, & flowers takes a lot of time. It takes work.

It would be so easy if flowers, fruits and vegetables just grew, never needed tending to, and took care of themselves, but they just don’t. Weeds just grow - they don’t need any work to grow, but they take time and effort to keep them from growing. It is the same in our lives. Good fruit will not just grow in our lives, either. And sin, like weeds, will come about in our lives if we don’t work to rid our lives of those sins. Throughout the Bible, fruit is referred to as what should be evident in the lives of Christians. The fruit is visible evidence as to what is growing within us. We should have good fruit within us because we are children of God.

This week's daily blog posts will look at our lives as a spiritual GARDEN and find out what it takes to make them grow. I like acrostics because it makes points that are easier to remember. I hope that you do, too!

G - GROW WITH GOD.
In our world we are bombarded with all kinds of things that we can learn and so many different ways to gain knowledge. We can buy CD’s, videos, and attend seminars and read books. We can go to college for years and years and obtain any type of degree we can imagine, but while that knowledge is good and may bring us success in life (worldly wealth and financial gain) it can not become what is most important in our lives. I want to grow with God - grow how God wants me to grow - that’s what is truly important in life. I hope you want to grow with God, too.

So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. I Corinthians 3:7

To "Grow with God", we must get close to God. If you want to get to know someone - another human being, you have to grow closer to them, don’t you? It’s impossible to get close to someone without spending time with them. Think about your spouse or friend. How did you become close? By getting to know one another. You talk to each other. You hang out with each other. You share with each other. You do things together.

When we do the same with God, it’s called prayer. The more we pray to God, the closer we will become to Him. The neat thing about prayer, though, is that God can’t wait to hear from us! Do you realize the fact that God cares about every single thing in your life? Do you think that God only cares about the big things? No! We must believe that God cares just as much about the famine in 3rd world countries as he does about the pain we may be having in your big toe. So talk to Him...about EVERYTHING!

Jeremiah 29:11 "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."

"Getting with God" not only involves prayer, but also worshipping - worshipping Him alone in a quiet devotional time, but also with your congregation during worship services. Worship is not confined to a building or to a certain time or day. Coming together as a congregation on Sundays (and many on Wednesdays)is the congregation’s way of worshipping and obeying the commands of God, but we can and should worship God alone and on every other day, as well.

So, first of all, in our spiritual gardens, we must grow with God. Tomorrow we'll look at "A".

Have a blessed week!