Journey

This is my morning face...

Take that.

The journey of a thousand miles begins.

Details to follow....

Great God

What a day, God provides!

Did some tree trimming work with a great family in Tennessee, the Bates family.

Great experience, great family,

Great God.

By the way, the pic here? Maybe I should start a convenient store?? ;)

Pressure

It's in the crucible's of life that we find out who we really are. It's easy to appear pious and full of faith when things are rolling along well. It's another thing to walk displaying the fruit of the Spirit when the pressure is on, nothing is going right, and you're hard-pressed on every side.

But, there is good news-

Somewhere in that crucible, somewhere in the fire, silver and gold is refined. The impurities are removed from our lives. In the pressing of the grapes, a fine wine is made.

The Bible says,

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. From Chapter 1 of the book of James, ESV.

Let's count our trials joy today. And let's let steadfastness, or patience, have it's perfect work, that we may be perfect and complete.

Lacking in nothing.

Friends

I'm so glad tonight for friends. Friends that you can share your heart with. Friends you can share your life with.

The older I get, the more I realize good friends are hard to come by. A good friend is to be cherished and treasured.

Unfortunately, too many people live cold and lonely lives, missing deep and meaningful friendships. Friendships are replaced with fronts, keeping the relationship many times at a surface level masquerade.

We're great at that in the Church.

It shouldn't be that way.

So I encourage you: take time this week to pull off the mask, stop the masquerade, and share your life, real life, with a friend.

Opening up is risky...

But worth it.

Listen

Ignore the balloons... supposedly they're there for inspiration too?

As mentioned before, God is carrying us through a difficult season. A faith-testing season, a character building season... A good season.

These series of three inspirational quotes were on my iGoogle home page today. With what the Lord may be doing in our lives, all I can say is wow, Wow, and WOW! When pressure is on and difficulties arise, it seems we can sense Him all the closer in those times, and, if we are willing to listen, He also seems to be speaking so clear.

Maybe this is one of those times.

What about you? What are you facing? What is He speaking to you?

Or, maybe better, are you listening?

POOL PARTY!!

Today was the last day of school for our kids, which means...

...movies, games, Cheetos, slip 'n slide, lunchables, music, squirt guns, beach ball, Popsicles, mini-pool, fruit snacks, sidewalk chalk, and...

Whew! What a blast! They deserved it for all their hard work.

I hope they sleep good, 'cuz Daddy needs to ;)

How You Look At It

We are in a tough season as a family. The future is unknown. We need answers and time is running out...

Time to PANIC!

That's one way of looking at it.

The other way, is that we are in a...

Blessed season. I am home more with my family.

Season of adventure. We don't know what lies around the corner. That can be exciting and thrilling. (And scary!)

Season of testing. And when our faith is tested, we go through trials, God does great things in our lives and hearts (when we do it His way).

Supplied season. All our needs are covered and supplied day by day.

Carried season. When we run out of answers, the only thing we have left is that Jesus Himself is carrying us through. And that's not so bad of a position to be in.

In what basically equates to a lay-off, I am out of work and not sure when the next pay check will come in. Not sure how we will pay the next months bills. And, I know we aren't the only ones facing this right now.

Though things don't look (or feel) good, God has given my wife and I great peace in the midst of the storm.

Not answers, but peace.

He knows our need before we ask // We are of much greater value than the birds of the air // As we seek His kingdom first, all these things will be added unto us...

This Scripture (below) has been encouraging to me in this time, and would like to share it with you, hoping maybe it will help someone else as well.

Thank you Jesus, our peace in the storm...

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:25-34