I borrowed these words of wisdom from Perry Noble, Pastor of NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC.
#1 – I cannot expect to win arguments with those who don’t want to settle the argument, they just want to fight for the sake of fighting. (II Timothy 2:23)
Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.
#2 – I cannot expect people to read my mind. (I Corinthians 14:8)
Again, if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle?
#3 – I cannot possibly expect to have a complete and detailed plan from God that tells me exactly what His plans are for the next 20 years. (Psalm 119:105) – He doesn’t promise to let us see years in advance, but He does promise to show us our next step!
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
#4 – I cannot expect to be a follower of Jesus and keep everyone around me happy at the same time. (Proverbs 29:25)
Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe
#5 – I cannot expect to stay the same and see progress (Isaiah 43:18-19)
Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
#6 – I cannot expect to please God without taking steps of faith (Hebrews 11:6)
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
#7 – I cannot expect to hear God’s voice if I am always running at an unsustainable pace! (Psalm 46:10)
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Sunday, March 13, 2011
"I'm Afraid of Failure"
During the month of March, Grace Family Church is doing a series entitled, "I'm Afraid of ________." This week was "I'm Afraid of Failure." I filled my bulletin with a lot of tidbits from the sermon, so I thought I would share them.
To hear the full message, go to http://bit.ly/fRKps4. The link should be up and working Monday.
* Failure is not a person but an event.
* The question isn't will we fail, but how will we handle it when we do.
* "I'd rather fail at doing something great, than succeed at doing nothing."
* We can't let our past failures define who we are.
* Failure is NOT final. God is not finished with you.
* Fear of failure will keep you from experiencing what God has for you.
* You may gave given up on yourself, but God hasn't given up on you.
Hope this is an encouragement to you as it was for me.
"Though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again." Proverbs 24:16a
To hear the full message, go to http://bit.ly/fRKps4. The link should be up and working Monday.
* Failure is not a person but an event.
* The question isn't will we fail, but how will we handle it when we do.
* "I'd rather fail at doing something great, than succeed at doing nothing."
* We can't let our past failures define who we are.
* Failure is NOT final. God is not finished with you.
* Fear of failure will keep you from experiencing what God has for you.
* You may gave given up on yourself, but God hasn't given up on you.
Hope this is an encouragement to you as it was for me.
"Though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again." Proverbs 24:16a
Saturday, March 5, 2011
A Proud Wife
Last weekend Josh preached at our church's main weekend services. He did a great job! He preached from a passage in Jonah. Below is the link to hear his whole sermon. He preached the message 3 times in the course of 18 hours. WOW! Let's just say I would dig my own grave and die before attempting that.
http://bit.ly/gD5ifb
I am so proud of my husband. He is a great spiritual leader for me, and I know that one day, he will be an outstanding leader for our family. He seeks God first and aims to please Him above all else. In the past 8 years that I've known him, he has been committed to following God's will for his life and that has led him to 4 different states and 4 different ministry positions. I know that God has been preparing him along the way to take on more and more responsibility. He may be an unlikely candidate (a farm boy from Virginia) to preach God's words to thousands of people, but God uses those who surrender themselves to him.
http://bit.ly/gD5ifb
I am so proud of my husband. He is a great spiritual leader for me, and I know that one day, he will be an outstanding leader for our family. He seeks God first and aims to please Him above all else. In the past 8 years that I've known him, he has been committed to following God's will for his life and that has led him to 4 different states and 4 different ministry positions. I know that God has been preparing him along the way to take on more and more responsibility. He may be an unlikely candidate (a farm boy from Virginia) to preach God's words to thousands of people, but God uses those who surrender themselves to him.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Frustrated
Today has been one of those terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days. Ok, well it hasn't been horrible I guess, but it hasn't been the best either. It all started when I was headed out of the apartment to go to school, late at that. I have a 45 minute drive, so I have no room to be late. As I was walking out the door, equipped with my 50 lb. backpack, another bag for books, my gym bag, lunchbox and coffee, Roddick (our black lab) decided this would be a great time for him to get a run in. So, he bolted out the door. Usually he will come back when you call him or at when you promise him food, but today when I asked him to come back in, he looked at me and headed the opposite direction. By the time I had dropped all of my crap (oops, stuff), he was already half way around the apartment complex. Thankfully, a kind neighbor grabbed his collar until I could make my way to him. The weird thing is that Roddick is not a runner. He loves to be home, with us and when we had a yard, all he wanted to do was lay by the door until we let him back in. But he hates this apartment; he hates dogs barking at him all the time, he hates the cramped space, and he hates being left home alone for an extended period of time. I think he was just trying to escape the apartment and wanted me to come with him. So that is how my day started...
The day only continued to get worse as I was 5 minutes late to class and had to walk in in front of everybody. Then while I was in class I got 2 emails that I have been waiting to receive for weeks. Since transferring to Stetson, I have been anxious to find out what credits were going to transfer from UK. Of course, I had a plan if it was not what I hoped and it was not. I received 36 transfer credits, meaning I lost 8 in the move from UK. Two of my classes I took last semester didn't count at all. For those of you who are in school, you know how precious those credits are. Not only am I now going to have to take summer classes, but I am also going to have to take out an additional loan and try not to dwell on the fact that 1/2 of my work last semester didn't count for anything.
My second email was from a professor who had requested a Research Assistant to help her with an adoption law project. I was very excited about this opportunity because I want to go into adoption law. So I submitted my application with high hopes and I prayed that God would grant me this desire. The networking possibilities would be great, the extra income would be great, and the job would go into the summer. But alas, I was not chosen. This morning I had prayed that God would provide news on these two things and He did, it just wasn't what I wanted to hear.
"And we know that all things work together for the good of those that love God and are called according to His purpose." Romans 8: 28
We trusted God's call to move to Tampa; we trusted him with our finances, we trusted him with out future, and we trusted him with my law career. Now I just have to patient and wait for him to work it all out.
The day only continued to get worse as I was 5 minutes late to class and had to walk in in front of everybody. Then while I was in class I got 2 emails that I have been waiting to receive for weeks. Since transferring to Stetson, I have been anxious to find out what credits were going to transfer from UK. Of course, I had a plan if it was not what I hoped and it was not. I received 36 transfer credits, meaning I lost 8 in the move from UK. Two of my classes I took last semester didn't count at all. For those of you who are in school, you know how precious those credits are. Not only am I now going to have to take summer classes, but I am also going to have to take out an additional loan and try not to dwell on the fact that 1/2 of my work last semester didn't count for anything.
My second email was from a professor who had requested a Research Assistant to help her with an adoption law project. I was very excited about this opportunity because I want to go into adoption law. So I submitted my application with high hopes and I prayed that God would grant me this desire. The networking possibilities would be great, the extra income would be great, and the job would go into the summer. But alas, I was not chosen. This morning I had prayed that God would provide news on these two things and He did, it just wasn't what I wanted to hear.
"And we know that all things work together for the good of those that love God and are called according to His purpose." Romans 8: 28
We trusted God's call to move to Tampa; we trusted him with our finances, we trusted him with out future, and we trusted him with my law career. Now I just have to patient and wait for him to work it all out.
"I Have a Voice"
The blog is going through yet another transformation, which I think is only fitting that the blog display the changes in my life. Josh has started his own website (www.joshhawk.com), which you should definitely check out! Since he has made the transition from couple blogging, I felt like it was only fair that I do the same. It's not like this was ever really a couple blog anyway, unless you count Josh's 3 contributions!
In addition to this blog being authored by me alone, there will also be a change in content. After I started this blog a couple of years ago, I was always worried that no one would read it or that nobody cared about following what we were doing. The same was true in my life. For the past couple of years, I have felt somewhat invisible. I have realized that I have been content to live in my husband's shadow because I thought nobody cared what I had to say. You still may not care, but I am going to share anyway because I have discovered that I too have a voice.
For those of you who saw "The King's Speech," you will remember the scene in which a stuttering King George VI (Colin Firth) yells at his therapist (Geoffrey Rush) after having been asked why he was in the therapist's office, "Because I have a right to be heard. I have a voice." That scene is so powerful to me because not only did I realize that I have a voice, but that everybody has the right to be heard. Unfortunately, we live in a culture where some voices are louder than others. Those voices drown out the voices of injustice and discrimination and because of those thundering voices, many choose to remain silent.
I am not going to use this blog to make a political statement (well not often), but rather I am going to speak what is on my heart. I have found that it is not in who listens or reads my thoughts, but the importance is that I fight the comfort of invisibility and use my voice. So this blog will be a journal of sorts, though not that personal, a way for me to find my voice. If you choose to listen, I will be honored; if you don't, I will speak still.
In addition to this blog being authored by me alone, there will also be a change in content. After I started this blog a couple of years ago, I was always worried that no one would read it or that nobody cared about following what we were doing. The same was true in my life. For the past couple of years, I have felt somewhat invisible. I have realized that I have been content to live in my husband's shadow because I thought nobody cared what I had to say. You still may not care, but I am going to share anyway because I have discovered that I too have a voice.
For those of you who saw "The King's Speech," you will remember the scene in which a stuttering King George VI (Colin Firth) yells at his therapist (Geoffrey Rush) after having been asked why he was in the therapist's office, "Because I have a right to be heard. I have a voice." That scene is so powerful to me because not only did I realize that I have a voice, but that everybody has the right to be heard. Unfortunately, we live in a culture where some voices are louder than others. Those voices drown out the voices of injustice and discrimination and because of those thundering voices, many choose to remain silent.
I am not going to use this blog to make a political statement (well not often), but rather I am going to speak what is on my heart. I have found that it is not in who listens or reads my thoughts, but the importance is that I fight the comfort of invisibility and use my voice. So this blog will be a journal of sorts, though not that personal, a way for me to find my voice. If you choose to listen, I will be honored; if you don't, I will speak still.
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