Winter Wonderland

We woke to a winter wonderland! As fearful as I am about the skies opening this winter and not closing until June, it still is very pretty to see!Liberty says, "Burrrr, it's cold outside!"

Psalm 118:24 (NIV)
²⁴ This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

I am thankful for...

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and it is only fitting that I give thanks...

I am thankful that God is sovereign and is still on His throne.

Psalm 68:20 (NIV)
²⁰ Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death.

Jeremiah 32:17 (NIV)

¹⁷ "Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.

I am thankful that I am not who I was or could have been anymore.

Romans 12:2 (NIV)
² Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.

2 Corinthians 3:18 (NIV)
¹⁸ And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

I am thankful that I am forgiven.

1 John 2:12 (NIV)
¹² I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.

I am thankful that God Himself is my reward.

Genesis 15:1 (NIV)
¹ After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward."

I am thankful that it's not me, it's Him!

Ephesians 2:8-10 (NIV)
⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--
⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast.
¹⁰ For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

I am thankful that I have power over sin through Jesus.

Romans 6:17-23 (NIV)

¹⁷ But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted.
¹⁸ You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.
¹⁹ I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.
²⁰ When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness.
²¹ What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!
²² But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.
²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my friends.

I am thankful for God's convictions upon my heart. I thank Him for challenging me in areas that I thought were alright. I thank Him for showing me what is important and what is an idol. I thank Him for helping me to keep things in perspective. I thank Him that He puts up with me, that He will never leave me or forsake me, that nothing can separate me from His love, that He is for me, and that someday, I will see Him face to face.

"I lift my eyes unto the hills, where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of Heaven and Earth!"

God is so good! My prayer is that people will wake up to that truth. He is just, but He is good! His commands are not for our bondage, but for our freedom. His Word is life, not death. The world's ways bring bondage and death.

I praise Him because He has saved me from death, but He has also saved me from the "freedoms" that others believe make them free, when, in fact, they take them deeper into bondage and pain.

We can make sin look all pretty and fun, but it's brings pain and death. We can live by our feelings, but they rarely speak truth and will lead us down a path of hurt.

I know what it feels like to be deep in the pit of sin. I know what it feels like to deny that sin, to live by my emotions, to seek after those things that I thought made me feel better.

Now that I've experienced the forgiveness and grace of Jesus Christ, I want that more than anything for all those I love and for all those that I don't even know. I want that for those who don't understand and I want that for those that are hostile to the message. God is good!!

God is pummeling me from every side lately. His message to me--obey me! While that sounds harsh, it is so not. He's also been showing me that He is FOR me!! He loves me with a love that I cannot comprehend. He is my protector, my defender, the Lover of my soul. He is my all and all! Every breath I breathe is a gift from Him!! How could I not want to be obedient and turn to Him for deliverance in those ugly places of my heart that still torment me sometimes.

There is hope! He'll meet you wherever you are!

I know that I've been quiet lately. I think and I ponder and I write posts in my head, but they never seem to make it to blogger.

I do have a lot rattling around in my head. The situation with gay marriage, the Republican party and it's problems, my faith and how that plays out in all of it. Someday, it will come roaring out.

Currently, I've begun working on my annual order of Christmas stockings. I got this cool organizer to hold all my other WIP's from Patternworks, so today I spent quite a bit of time reorganizing my workspace. I feel a bit more functional now.

So, I'm off to enjoy homemade pizza and get back to work on my stockings.

Finally on DVD!!!

My nephew played "Cogsworth" (the clock) in their school play, Beauty and the Beast, last night. He did a phenomenal job!!

Our first snow!!! Not much of one, and it's really not this bright out, it's actually gray and gloomy and cold!

Happy Birthday, Mom!!!

I'm leading a new Beth Moore study, Stepping Up. I love it! She's taking us through the Psalms of Ascent--Psalm 120-Psalm 134.

She has us rewrite each Psalm in our own words and to fit our own circumstances, emotions, and/or situations.

I'm stepping out here and I'm going to share mine with "the world" (at least the ones I have done currently).

My Psalm 120

Oh Lord, I cry out to you and I know that You will answer.
Rescue me, Lord, from those who wreak havoc by lying and being deceitful.
You will punish them for their blaspheming, for their deceit.
Like a swift arrow or a raging fire, you will punish them.
Woe to me that I live in a land that has turned from you,
that has turned from You,
that I live amongst those that deny and blaspheme Your name.
It seems like forever, living among those who hate you.
I love you Lord and I want others to also,
but when I speak of You and Your Word,
they scoff.

My Psalm 121

I raise my eyes towards you, Lord.
The journey doesn't seem as long that way.
You will guide and lead me;
despite what my fear and doubts try to say.
Even though I'm not sure-footed,
You will not let me slip or fall.
You hold me up, you don't let go.
You don't need to sleep and I never get to heavy for you.
Lord, you are my protector. You keep me safe.
Nothing in this world can harm me, it can't get through you!
You are with me. All the time and You will guard my life and my heart.

My Psalm 122

I have rejoiced when people have said "Let us go to church and worship."
I have loved and enjoyed those times.
Some days it is more of a struggle now,
Lord, restore your joy!
Guide us from the wilderness we are in.
Convict, bring repentance, renew our first love!
Lord, there is great opportunity where you have placed us.
May we be a light shining in the darkness of our town.
Lord, may those in our small town find joy and peace in You.
May they seek Your face!
Thank you, Lord, that you are right here with us!!

My Psalm 123

O Lord, you are enthroned above all.
Your servants surround you, ready to do Your will.
I will try to keep my eyes turned towards you;
away from the scorn and negativity that is everywhere.
Show me your favor and kindness, Lord!
Keep me on your path.
Be merciful to me, as I have failed You to often.
Fill me with your love and mercy, so that I will remember who I belong to and who is in charge!
Help me to pass on that love and mercy to those around me!

My Psalm 124

If you, Lord, have not been on my side,
I don't know how I would have made it this far.
I would have been an ugly, hateful person,
but, You rescued me from myself!
How can I thank you enough?!
You rescued our family, you gave us hope and a purpose.
Without You, I see only pain!
Even though I still wander and struggle as a result of my own sin,
I know You are for me!
Nothing can separate us!
You will finish the job you started in me and I will become more like you!