Unexpected blessing.......

On my way to church today, already running late, I discovered my gas tank was on empty. The bright orange light was lit and the digital DTE (distance til empty) said a big fat 0. I thought, what a bummer, I'm already late and we still have to hit McD's cause the kids never got breakfast, (ha, this happens once in a while!). We get to McD's and there's a line. Okay, I guess I am going to be later yet still! Anyway, we got our grub and hit the road and I thought, I will just chance it and get gas later. (even though I did that once and ran out on my way home and had to be rescued!!!) As I was driving, I thought about this decision and realized maybe I should just stop and get gas, you know be responsible! So, I happened to look at the gas gauge again, at this point the car had been running at least 10 minutes or more, and it was no longer lit up! Then I looked at the digital DTE, and it said I had 8 miles left! I thought that's weird! I even asked my oldest son, who happens to be very concerned about these kinds of technical things and he said "wow, it's like the car just filled itself up with a little bit of gas!"
I immediately gave God credit for this out of the blue blessing, saving me the headache of stopping and being late, and giving me just enough gas to get to church and back! Isn't he so kind! This reminded me of the widow whose oil and flour jugs never ran out.
I look forward to God's blessings in my life! He's so creative and thoughtful!

Awhile ago I listened to a series Rob Rufus preached on the, "Covenant of Increased Blessing" (here, here, and here), and last Sunday, Bill Johnson's message was quite stirring about increase in provision. These teachings have stirred my thinking and increased my faith and helped me to be more expectant when it comes to my Father giving me good gifts and blessings, just because He's God, He can and He wants to!!!

Unexpected blessing.......

On my way to church today, already running late, I discovered my gas tank was on empty. The bright orange light was lit and the digital DTE (distance til empty) said a big fat 0. I thought, what a bummer, I'm already late and we still have to hit McD's cause the kids never got breakfast, (ha, this happens once in a while!). We get to McD's and there's a line. Okay, I guess I am going to be later yet still! Anyway, we got our grub and hit the road and I thought, I will just chance it and get gas later. (even though I did that once and ran out on my way home and had to be rescued!!!) As I was driving, I thought about this decision and realized maybe I should just stop and get gas, you know be responsible! So, I happened to look at the gas gauge again, at this point the car had been running at least 10 minutes or more, and it was no longer lit up! Then I looked at the digital DTE, and it said I had 8 miles left! I thought that's weird! I even asked my oldest son, who happens to be very concerned about these kinds of technical things and he said "wow, it's like the car just filled itself up with a little bit of gas!"
I immediately gave God credit for this out of the blue blessing, saving me the headache of stopping and being late, and giving me just enough gas to get to church and back! Isn't he so kind! This reminded me of the widow whose oil and flour jugs never ran out.
I look forward to God's blessings in my life! He's so creative and thoughtful!

Awhile ago I listened to a series Rob Rufus preached on the, "Covenant of Increased Blessing" (here, here, and here), and last Sunday, Bill Johnson's message was quite stirring about increase in provision. These teachings have stirred my thinking and increased my faith and helped me to be more expectant when it comes to my Father giving me good gifts and blessings, just because He's God, He can and He wants to!!!

Nature - God's Sanctuary!

I am always grateful for God's creative expression through nature. I find it to be very kind of God to give us breathtaking views of His glory through creation. Here are two shots from the last two places we lived before now. I could look out the window every day and be saturated in God's glory unveiled in whatever he'd paint on the sky! For me, taking in beauty like this is like a soothing balm to my soul when I may be fighting for peace or joy! Thank you Lord for how you faithfully show yourself to us through the majesty and beauty of the earth!!

Nature - God's Sanctuary!

I am always grateful for God's creative expression through nature. I find it to be very kind of God to give us breathtaking views of His glory through creation. Here are two shots from the last two places we lived before now. I could look out the window every day and be saturated in God's glory unveiled in whatever he'd paint on the sky! For me, taking in beauty like this is like a soothing balm to my soul when I may be fighting for peace or joy! Thank you Lord for how you faithfully show yourself to us through the majesty and beauty of the earth!!

Easter Reflections.....

I am excited this year to celebrate Easter with a greater view of what Christ's death and resurrection means to me. For many years I have enjoyed celebrating Easter as a way to remember and reflect on Jesus sacrifice for me. Honestly for many years I celebrated His resurrection with joy for the simple fact that He triumphed over death making His death all the more meaningful and powerful. I thoroughly enjoy singing all the glorious songs that are sung specifically at Easter. (why don't we sing them all year round???)
For so long, I viewed Christ's death as primarily a means for me to be cleansed from sin and right with God, and on my way to heaven, and missing out on all the rest of the gospel. BUT, it was so much more! Here's a quote I enjoyed reading by Don Baker, he says this;

"I enjoy contemplating the following facts written by the Holy Spirit in Scripture:

that Luke opened Acts by referring to his gospel, in which he wrote about "the things that Jesus began to do" while in a body on Earth. For the early Church, the gospels were merely the gateway to understanding how Jesus was speaking to them currently, through his Spirit living inside them.

That the resurrection proved God had accepted Jesus' sacrifice on our behalf, and set the stage for Jesus going back into heaven to be presented as the Lamb that was slain in the heavenly Temple -- and beginning his role as our perfect High Priest!

That from this position, he could do what God had told the prophets he would one day do: Send the Spirit of Jesus to live inside us, ensure we're not orphans, give us hearts of flesh instead of stone, write his law on our hearts, give us his own mind, and share his throne-authority over the enemy as his co-heirs!!!!

That with this new, elevated position in Christ, we can rightfully take (loving) dominion over the Earth, work with him to "destroy the works of the devil", and help him to build a kingdom of worshipers who will become so overwhelmingly beautiful in sanctified holiness, that the Father will no longer be able to restrain himself, but will gladly release Jesus to claim his beautiful Bride while destroying, forever, everything on Earth that has continued in rebellion against the proclamation of his Good News!

That after these things, we will not live as disembodied spirits in heaven, but will live once again as human beings with the same perfect body Jesus now occupies, on a beautiful restored Earth -- never again to be tempted to sin! We may even get angry or upset, but will never experience anger leading to sin! We will also never again experience fear, shame, rejection, the bitterness of loss, envy/jealousy, a sense of futility or worthlessness, or the pain of aging bodies! We will also ALWAYS experience the unveiled presence of God in and around us, and be able to appreciate fully everything God has made us AND OTHERS to be and become! We will then truly rejoice in all things at all times, pray without ceasing or effort, and encourage others without hesitation and in total unity of spirit!" - 

For so many Easter is more a reminder of what Jesus accomplished at the cross in regards to our sins, but there is so much more. There is so much power in the resurrection of Christ - and I want to live in it! 

I just have to include yet another video of my favorite worship band, Hillsong, singing "Worthy is the Lamb." 

Easter Reflections.....

I am excited this year to celebrate Easter with a greater view of what Christ's death and resurrection means to me. For many years I have enjoyed celebrating Easter as a way to remember and reflect on Jesus sacrifice for me. Honestly for many years I celebrated His resurrection with joy for the simple fact that He triumphed over death making His death all the more meaningful and powerful. I thoroughly enjoy singing all the glorious songs that are sung specifically at Easter. (why don't we sing them all year round???)
For so long, I viewed Christ's death as primarily a means for me to be cleansed from sin and right with God, and on my way to heaven, and missing out on all the rest of the gospel. BUT, it was so much more! Here's a quote I enjoyed reading by Don Baker, he says this;

"I enjoy contemplating the following facts written by the Holy Spirit in Scripture:

that Luke opened Acts by referring to his gospel, in which he wrote about "the things that Jesus began to do" while in a body on Earth. For the early Church, the gospels were merely the gateway to understanding how Jesus was speaking to them currently, through his Spirit living inside them.

That the resurrection proved God had accepted Jesus' sacrifice on our behalf, and set the stage for Jesus going back into heaven to be presented as the Lamb that was slain in the heavenly Temple -- and beginning his role as our perfect High Priest!

That from this position, he could do what God had told the prophets he would one day do: Send the Spirit of Jesus to live inside us, ensure we're not orphans, give us hearts of flesh instead of stone, write his law on our hearts, give us his own mind, and share his throne-authority over the enemy as his co-heirs!!!!

That with this new, elevated position in Christ, we can rightfully take (loving) dominion over the Earth, work with him to "destroy the works of the devil", and help him to build a kingdom of worshipers who will become so overwhelmingly beautiful in sanctified holiness, that the Father will no longer be able to restrain himself, but will gladly release Jesus to claim his beautiful Bride while destroying, forever, everything on Earth that has continued in rebellion against the proclamation of his Good News!

That after these things, we will not live as disembodied spirits in heaven, but will live once again as human beings with the same perfect body Jesus now occupies, on a beautiful restored Earth -- never again to be tempted to sin! We may even get angry or upset, but will never experience anger leading to sin! We will also never again experience fear, shame, rejection, the bitterness of loss, envy/jealousy, a sense of futility or worthlessness, or the pain of aging bodies! We will also ALWAYS experience the unveiled presence of God in and around us, and be able to appreciate fully everything God has made us AND OTHERS to be and become! We will then truly rejoice in all things at all times, pray without ceasing or effort, and encourage others without hesitation and in total unity of spirit!" - 

For so many Easter is more a reminder of what Jesus accomplished at the cross in regards to our sins, but there is so much more. There is so much power in the resurrection of Christ - and I want to live in it! 

I just have to include yet another video of my favorite worship band, Hillsong, singing "Worthy is the Lamb." 

Current thoughts on parenting......

Over the years, my views on parenting have changed, as I have experienced a growing family. I grew up with Dobson, and bible believing parents, who, yes believed in spanking. I don't know too many Christians that don't! 

It's funny when you first become a parent, you think about parenting with such conviction and earnestness that it often becomes more of a way of doing something, than a way of understanding someone. I mean often I would care more about my kids behaviour externally than trying to understand their perspective. Early on,  I read books, took classes and observed others as I entered the realm of parenting. And well, honestly over time, I became very legalistic about it. There probably are numerous reasons for that, but mainly I realized rules and hard core principles don't replace love and understanding. I couldn't ever measure up to the standards of parenting I learned and believed to be "right" and biblical, and it only proved to be a severing agent in my relationship with my kids and my husband. So, what changed? God helped me to see my kids as unique precious individual gifts from him more and more over time. My family dynamic was unique, and different from that of anyone else's and therefore required patience and understanding for where we personally all where at, at any given season of life. In other words, my cookie cutter ideas could not possibly work!!! (nor could anyone else's models for that matter!)

God has really lavished his love so abundantly on me, He is patient and loving with me -ALWAYS! He loves me for who I am, and so I long to have his heart for my kids as well. I want to view them how he views me, special, unique, and wonderful!! The more I sense God's love for me, the more I can love my kids without conditions. 

So, parenting has become a journey that I can't ever predict, measure or figure out! I must have a go with the flow, and an open mind or I will only frustrate my children and be tempted to put them in a box or mold that they will never fit in. 

Currently, I am making sure my kids feel so saturated in my love for them, that they will never once question it. I'm gonna tell them over and over and over so that they never doubt it, listen to them when they want to talk,  and smother them with hugs, kisses and tickles until they beg me to stop!!! Okay, I know I am getting ridiculous, but if I can't get the love part rock solid with them, they will never grow up confident! And if all I am able to do well is love 'em up....then so be it! Now I am not saying I want to be lazy in training them, but they won't want to obey me out of their hearts if they don't first totally understand and sense my love and acceptance of them. Kinda like how Christianity should be! We are so amazed by God's love, so comforted by it so sure of it, that we want to please Him!!! 

I have done a bit of interesting research on grace-based parenting, and have found some unique insight on the Scriptures used for discipline, in regards to child rearing. My husband and I are slower to punish our children and to talk through how we will handle issues that rise up, rather than have one set way of disciplining them (ex. spanking.) I found there are studies on the rod that are very interesting, and as I see God with different eyes than I used to, I struggle with the idea of corporal punishment. I want pure grace in all areas of my life, and God's love to be unquestionably dominant in the way I raise my four wonderful sons!! 

(By the way, I realize I may create quite a stir with this post, in that I am seemingly chucking out a common held biblical view of parenting with the whole issue of spanking,  but these are my personal thoughts and views, and everyone else can have their own views too! )

Current thoughts on parenting......

Over the years, my views on parenting have changed, as I have experienced a growing family. I grew up with Dobson, and bible believing parents, who, yes believed in spanking. I don't know too many Christians that don't! 

It's funny when you first become a parent, you think about parenting with such conviction and earnestness that it often becomes more of a way of doing something, than a way of understanding someone. I mean often I would care more about my kids behaviour externally than trying to understand their perspective. Early on,  I read books, took classes and observed others as I entered the realm of parenting. And well, honestly over time, I became very legalistic about it. There probably are numerous reasons for that, but mainly I realized rules and hard core principles don't replace love and understanding. I couldn't ever measure up to the standards of parenting I learned and believed to be "right" and biblical, and it only proved to be a severing agent in my relationship with my kids and my husband. So, what changed? God helped me to see my kids as unique precious individual gifts from him more and more over time. My family dynamic was unique, and different from that of anyone else's and therefore required patience and understanding for where we personally all where at, at any given season of life. In other words, my cookie cutter ideas could not possibly work!!! (nor could anyone else's models for that matter!)

God has really lavished his love so abundantly on me, He is patient and loving with me -ALWAYS! He loves me for who I am, and so I long to have his heart for my kids as well. I want to view them how he views me, special, unique, and wonderful!! The more I sense God's love for me, the more I can love my kids without conditions. 

So, parenting has become a journey that I can't ever predict, measure or figure out! I must have a go with the flow, and an open mind or I will only frustrate my children and be tempted to put them in a box or mold that they will never fit in. 

Currently, I am making sure my kids feel so saturated in my love for them, that they will never once question it. I'm gonna tell them over and over and over so that they never doubt it, listen to them when they want to talk,  and smother them with hugs, kisses and tickles until they beg me to stop!!! Okay, I know I am getting ridiculous, but if I can't get the love part rock solid with them, they will never grow up confident! And if all I am able to do well is love 'em up....then so be it! Now I am not saying I want to be lazy in training them, but they won't want to obey me out of their hearts if they don't first totally understand and sense my love and acceptance of them. Kinda like how Christianity should be! We are so amazed by God's love, so comforted by it so sure of it, that we want to please Him!!! 

I have done a bit of interesting research on grace-based parenting, and have found some unique insight on the Scriptures used for discipline, in regards to child rearing. My husband and I are slower to punish our children and to talk through how we will handle issues that rise up, rather than have one set way of disciplining them (ex. spanking.) I found there are studies on the rod that are very interesting, and as I see God with different eyes than I used to, I struggle with the idea of corporal punishment. I want pure grace in all areas of my life, and God's love to be unquestionably dominant in the way I raise my four wonderful sons!! 

(By the way, I realize I may create quite a stir with this post, in that I am seemingly chucking out a common held biblical view of parenting with the whole issue of spanking,  but these are my personal thoughts and views, and everyone else can have their own views too! )

healing and truth.....

....you lay hands on the sick they get healed, but unless they understand truth they will get sick again..... if you know the truth the truth will set you free.....

F.W. Bosworth says most Christians are so weak b/c they eat three physical meals a day, but only one cold spiritual meal a week.. he says if you fed your body only one small meal a week think how weak your physical body would be....no wonder many Christians are so weak, b/c they are not feeding themselves with messages and tapes and cds of grace teaching every day....because faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God.

Quoted from a recent Rob Rufus message.......

healing and truth.....

....you lay hands on the sick they get healed, but unless they understand truth they will get sick again..... if you know the truth the truth will set you free.....

F.W. Bosworth says most Christians are so weak b/c they eat three physical meals a day, but only one cold spiritual meal a week.. he says if you fed your body only one small meal a week think how weak your physical body would be....no wonder many Christians are so weak, b/c they are not feeding themselves with messages and tapes and cds of grace teaching every day....because faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God.

Quoted from a recent Rob Rufus message.......

Health, Healing and Miracles.....

So for the past 6 months or so, Keith and I have been experiencing a lot of sickness, and general unhealthiness. We each have had our health issues over the years, nothing major, but enough to be a complete drag.(asthma, allergies, chronic sinusitus, hernias, back pain, sciatica, migraines, excema, rosacea.)  Anyway...... Since  we have come to the revelation and  understanding  about who God is, truly, and His Awesome grace, we are questioning things like the miraculous and healing. I honestly believe we experienced a huge miracle in the restoration and healing of our marriage, and this has built my faith immensely. But what about healing of sickness? We have wrestled with this one, amongst ourselves and with God. We have prayed and prayed, for ourselves for each other and have had others pray for us. NO breakthrough yet. I do not plan to give up until I see the Lord heal us! 

That said, I want to bring up our latest enjoyment of Bill Johnson's ministry. A friend of ours many months ago told us about Bill Johnson, so I looked him up and checked out his website and an interview he did on TV.  I was really eager to learn more and read some of his books. So recently we have been listening to the podcasts from Bethel, Bill's home church in California, and are enjoying them very much. Bill has quite a healing ministry and people flock to his church to be healed. Every week he shares testimonies of healings and in the service they usually always pray for healing and for salvation, and people are getting saved and healed like crazy! This is so amazing, inspiring and faith building to me! This is what normal church should be like according to the Bible! ......

This past week I began reading Bill's first book, "When Heaven Invades Earth," although I haven't finished it yet, I must highly recommend it here. 

One of the things I am learning about healing is that is should be something every Christian walks in, either receiving or taking part in praying for others and seeing them healed. Jesus healed all who came to Him in faith. And the first church, in the book of Acts, healed and saw multitudes being saved and added to their numbers daily.  Healing and health is something that Christ death on the cross has purchased for us, not just cleansing from our sins, but cleansing from sickness and disease. By His stripes we are healed.

So, why don't we see more healing? Good question. One of the reasons is many Christians, myself included, live in unbelief, and accept sickness as normal. We say things like, well God is using this illness or whatever in my life to build my character. Bill Johnson says this, "When I have misconceptions of who God is and what He is like, my faith is restricted by those misconceptions. For example, if I believe that God allows sickness in order to build character, I'll not have confidence in praying in most situations where healing is needed. But, if I believe that sickness is to the body what sin is to the soul, then no disease will intimidate me. Faith is much more free to develop when we truly see the heart of God as good." 

Then he adds a little story, "The same misconceptions of God affect those who need to have faith for their own miracle. A woman who needed a miracle once told me that she felt God had allowed her sickness for a purpose. I told her that if I treated my children that way I'd be arrested for child abuse. She agreed and eventually allowed me to pray for her. After truth came into her heart, her healing came minutes later."

Wow, never thought of it like that! He goes on to say, "Unbelief is anchored in what is visible or reasonable apart from God. It honors the natural realm as superior to the invisible. The apostle Paul states that what you see is temporal, and what you can't see is eternal. Unbelief is faith in the inferior." 

Just because you or I may have never experienced a genuine healing or miracle does not mean we should settle or have a lack of faith that this is not possible. With God all things are possible, and if we are already living in His Kingdom, shouldn't we be living free from sickness, and from disease? 

I just want to finish with this verse, 2 Corinthians 4:18..."as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." 

Health, Healing and Miracles.....

So for the past 6 months or so, Keith and I have been experiencing a lot of sickness, and general unhealthiness. We each have had our health issues over the years, nothing major, but enough to be a complete drag.(asthma, allergies, chronic sinusitus, hernias, back pain, sciatica, migraines, excema, rosacea.)  Anyway...... Since  we have come to the revelation and  understanding  about who God is, truly, and His Awesome grace, we are questioning things like the miraculous and healing. I honestly believe we experienced a huge miracle in the restoration and healing of our marriage, and this has built my faith immensely. But what about healing of sickness? We have wrestled with this one, amongst ourselves and with God. We have prayed and prayed, for ourselves for each other and have had others pray for us. NO breakthrough yet. I do not plan to give up until I see the Lord heal us! 

That said, I want to bring up our latest enjoyment of Bill Johnson's ministry. A friend of ours many months ago told us about Bill Johnson, so I looked him up and checked out his website and an interview he did on TV.  I was really eager to learn more and read some of his books. So recently we have been listening to the podcasts from Bethel, Bill's home church in California, and are enjoying them very much. Bill has quite a healing ministry and people flock to his church to be healed. Every week he shares testimonies of healings and in the service they usually always pray for healing and for salvation, and people are getting saved and healed like crazy! This is so amazing, inspiring and faith building to me! This is what normal church should be like according to the Bible! ......

This past week I began reading Bill's first book, "When Heaven Invades Earth," although I haven't finished it yet, I must highly recommend it here. 

One of the things I am learning about healing is that is should be something every Christian walks in, either receiving or taking part in praying for others and seeing them healed. Jesus healed all who came to Him in faith. And the first church, in the book of Acts, healed and saw multitudes being saved and added to their numbers daily.  Healing and health is something that Christ death on the cross has purchased for us, not just cleansing from our sins, but cleansing from sickness and disease. By His stripes we are healed.

So, why don't we see more healing? Good question. One of the reasons is many Christians, myself included, live in unbelief, and accept sickness as normal. We say things like, well God is using this illness or whatever in my life to build my character. Bill Johnson says this, "When I have misconceptions of who God is and what He is like, my faith is restricted by those misconceptions. For example, if I believe that God allows sickness in order to build character, I'll not have confidence in praying in most situations where healing is needed. But, if I believe that sickness is to the body what sin is to the soul, then no disease will intimidate me. Faith is much more free to develop when we truly see the heart of God as good." 

Then he adds a little story, "The same misconceptions of God affect those who need to have faith for their own miracle. A woman who needed a miracle once told me that she felt God had allowed her sickness for a purpose. I told her that if I treated my children that way I'd be arrested for child abuse. She agreed and eventually allowed me to pray for her. After truth came into her heart, her healing came minutes later."

Wow, never thought of it like that! He goes on to say, "Unbelief is anchored in what is visible or reasonable apart from God. It honors the natural realm as superior to the invisible. The apostle Paul states that what you see is temporal, and what you can't see is eternal. Unbelief is faith in the inferior." 

Just because you or I may have never experienced a genuine healing or miracle does not mean we should settle or have a lack of faith that this is not possible. With God all things are possible, and if we are already living in His Kingdom, shouldn't we be living free from sickness, and from disease? 

I just want to finish with this verse, 2 Corinthians 4:18..."as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." 

..baby steps.....

This morning I listened to yet another inspiring message by Rob Rufus, that just confirmed and encouraged in my heart so many things. One of my greatest desires of late is to truly experience God in a real meaningful and tangible way. I long to meet with Him and be filled with some sense of His love, and His heart for me. I also long to get to know the Holy Spirit better, I believe I have truly quenched and grieved him in my life over the years and for that I am truly sorry. But I repent of that and no longer want to be afraid or critical of Him coming and moving in my life. The Bible says, not to be drunk with wine, but with the Holy Spirit. I want to experience this! I want this because it is available to me, and because I want to be encouraged in the Lord and I want it to pour forth out of my life into others lives! Currently I have only had a buzz here and there, in the Spirit, no full out drunkenness. But that's okay, I will take what I can get! Every time I experience a little outpouring, it blesses me. It gives rise to my heart and makes me hungry for more! I thank God that he is revealing himself more and more to me. That he is stripping me of a legalistic mentality and helping me to relinquish control over my life and more and more submit it to His will.  I am aware that there is more, that God has for me, and am eager for it, but I know this will come in time as I pursue Him. I don't want to settle for the little that I have now, although I am grateful for it, I want to be expectant and hopeful for more of the supernatural things of God becoming active and vibrant in my life!!! 

I believe that the Lord looks at me, as I would see my young 9 month old, and is thrilled for every new developement and every new word he says - God is also thrilled when we step out in faith and hope for all that we can grow in - in Him!!! Every baby step, every baby step, he is delighted in! 

..baby steps.....

This morning I listened to yet another inspiring message by Rob Rufus, that just confirmed and encouraged in my heart so many things. One of my greatest desires of late is to truly experience God in a real meaningful and tangible way. I long to meet with Him and be filled with some sense of His love, and His heart for me. I also long to get to know the Holy Spirit better, I believe I have truly quenched and grieved him in my life over the years and for that I am truly sorry. But I repent of that and no longer want to be afraid or critical of Him coming and moving in my life. The Bible says, not to be drunk with wine, but with the Holy Spirit. I want to experience this! I want this because it is available to me, and because I want to be encouraged in the Lord and I want it to pour forth out of my life into others lives! Currently I have only had a buzz here and there, in the Spirit, no full out drunkenness. But that's okay, I will take what I can get! Every time I experience a little outpouring, it blesses me. It gives rise to my heart and makes me hungry for more! I thank God that he is revealing himself more and more to me. That he is stripping me of a legalistic mentality and helping me to relinquish control over my life and more and more submit it to His will.  I am aware that there is more, that God has for me, and am eager for it, but I know this will come in time as I pursue Him. I don't want to settle for the little that I have now, although I am grateful for it, I want to be expectant and hopeful for more of the supernatural things of God becoming active and vibrant in my life!!! 

I believe that the Lord looks at me, as I would see my young 9 month old, and is thrilled for every new developement and every new word he says - God is also thrilled when we step out in faith and hope for all that we can grow in - in Him!!! Every baby step, every baby step, he is delighted in! 

overflowing love.......

Lately, Keith and I have noticed an extra measure of love that we have for our children. Often we will just look at our kids and just have waves of love come over us. And Keith, the sensitive man that he is, will just have tears fall down his face, tears of "I just can't believe how much I love these kids." It really is amazing! We have four beautiful, wonderfully unique boys! I am falling more and more in love with them every day it seems. I can't hug, kiss, or squish them enough! And we have noticed how much they seem to be full of love in return. It really is amazing! I truly believe the main reason for this, is that more and more we gain confidence in the Father's heart of love for us, and out of the overflow of our hearts we can love intensely, as He does. I am finding it so special to see how I feel about my children and relate it to how God must feel about me, as I am His precious daughter. As parents we really can comprehend in a deeper way, our Father's love for us! 

I love how my kids great their daddy whenever he comes home, they run to him and fling themselves upon him and yell "Daddy!" and giggle and smile and ooze out their affection and adoration. And Keith eats up, he loves it more and more every time, he never gets tired of it! 

I imagine that's how the Father is when we run to him and desire to wrap our arms around our Daddy, and praise and adore Him! I imagine the Father, looks at us lovingly and adoringly, and smiles with deep affection for all His children! 

It really is wonderful to be able to taste and sense this exchange of love and affection between us and our Heavenly Father! 

I found a wonderful quote on Adrian Warnocks's blog, that John Piper shares about experiencing the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and he paints a scenario of what that may look like, by using the example of a Father and child love exchange.  It really blessed me to hear a prominent man of God speaking in this way! Hope it blesses you too! 

overflowing love.......

Lately, Keith and I have noticed an extra measure of love that we have for our children. Often we will just look at our kids and just have waves of love come over us. And Keith, the sensitive man that he is, will just have tears fall down his face, tears of "I just can't believe how much I love these kids." It really is amazing! We have four beautiful, wonderfully unique boys! I am falling more and more in love with them every day it seems. I can't hug, kiss, or squish them enough! And we have noticed how much they seem to be full of love in return. It really is amazing! I truly believe the main reason for this, is that more and more we gain confidence in the Father's heart of love for us, and out of the overflow of our hearts we can love intensely, as He does. I am finding it so special to see how I feel about my children and relate it to how God must feel about me, as I am His precious daughter. As parents we really can comprehend in a deeper way, our Father's love for us! 

I love how my kids great their daddy whenever he comes home, they run to him and fling themselves upon him and yell "Daddy!" and giggle and smile and ooze out their affection and adoration. And Keith eats up, he loves it more and more every time, he never gets tired of it! 

I imagine that's how the Father is when we run to him and desire to wrap our arms around our Daddy, and praise and adore Him! I imagine the Father, looks at us lovingly and adoringly, and smiles with deep affection for all His children! 

It really is wonderful to be able to taste and sense this exchange of love and affection between us and our Heavenly Father! 

I found a wonderful quote on Adrian Warnocks's blog, that John Piper shares about experiencing the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and he paints a scenario of what that may look like, by using the example of a Father and child love exchange.  It really blessed me to hear a prominent man of God speaking in this way! Hope it blesses you too!