Lent

So apparently we are two days into the Lentin Season. I've never personally "observed" Lent in the sense that some do. I've never given anything up or added any new habits for the sake of Lent.

But this year, I feel like I should give something up for Lent. Every time I think about what I could give up, the first thought that pops into my head is "the computer". Something tells me it is the Holy Spirit. While I have measures in place to prevent me from spending too much time on the computer, I still feel like I have a lot of room to sacrifice.

So, until Easter Sunday, I am going to give up the computer...for the most part.  I have several orders in the works, plus two orders for Thank You notes that have been pre-paid and will need to be done in the next few weeks. Because of that, I will need to check my email. Plus there are a couple other things that simply MUST be done on the computer (finances, school-related). Because of all that, I decided to make some rules for myself.

Starting tomorrow, here's what I'm going to do during Lent:

• Until my pending orders are completed, I will limit myself to 1 hour per day. I pray my customers will not get too impatient with me if they have to wait!
• I will deactive my Facebook account (again!), at least during this season of Lent.
• I will not be checking any blogs. OUCH.
• I will tweet from my phone only.
• I will blog my weight loss progress from my phone, but since I can only blog via text message it will be a super-short post! As in 160 characters! :)

I'm excited and nervous about this. Excited to grow closer to the Lord. Nervous that I may go a wee bit crazy. ;)

I plan to keep a written journal during this, and I might share parts of that journal on here.

Blessings to you!

Book Review: How To Reach Your Full Potential for God

Dr. Charles Stanley offers up seven essentials to reach you full God-given potential. He is straightforward in exhorting that we need to spend regular time, every day, in God’s word; that we must speak the truth in our minds if we want our actions to be godly; that we must embrace the gifts that God has given to us instead of trying to be like others; that we must honor God with our bodies; that we must pursue right relationships; that we must be good stewards of our time (difficult to do in a world saturated with TV, Facebook, sports, overinvolvement etc); that we must step out in faith; and so so much more!


God really spoke to my heart through many of the pages of this book, and I know it’s a book that I will have to re-read. I was so impressed by how Biblically sound this book was, and I really enjoyed the real-life anecdotes at the end of each chapter. It really brought the truths to life! At times I felt like I was on information overload, but it helped me to read some and then spend a few days pondering what I had just read. This book is full of valuable tools and scripture for reaching your full potential for God.

Psalm 19:1

I took these last night. I thought of it as God's Valentine's Day gift to me! It was so beautiful...

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

-Psalm 19:1

Happy Valentine's Day to the Love of My Life

He loves me even on the days when I am unlovable.

He always forgives me, no matter what I've done.

He protects me and makes me feel safe.

He takes care of me.

He makes me feel special.

He encourages me.

He inspires me.

He makes me feel more beautiful than anyone in my life ever has.

He helps me every day.

He has taught me - and continues to teach me - the true meaning of love.

He comforts me and holds me when I'm hurting.

He would walk to the ends of the earth for me.

He instead walked the hill at Calvary.

He would die for me, and in fact, He DID die for me.

His name is Jesus, and He is the Love of my life.

You are what you eat think.

Right now our pastor is leading an amazing sermon series. It's all about exposing our sins, understanding where they come from and why we struggle with them (aside from the fact that we're just sinners by nature), and letting God rebuild our lives.  The goal is to ask God which area of your life He wants you to focus on.

I had a bit of a head start because God has been exposing my sins to me over the last year.  The problem with that was: I didn't know where to start.  Which area is most important? My marriage? My parenting? My.......?

Oy.

Last week God orchestrated several things in my life (books, radio sermons, etc.) to remind me that I had stopped working on the sin that He exposed to me over 6 months ago: my thought life.

Of course! How could I forget that? HOW DID I FORGET THAT?

And over the last week, God has been revealing even more to me about the dangers of having a negative thought life.

I already know that having hate in my heart is the same as murder.

Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.

1 John 3:15

And I had already learned that looking at another person with unholy thoughts is the same as committing adultery.

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Matthew 5:28

And that my thoughts largely determine my actions.

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

Proverbs 4:23

But God startled me with a couple new revelations this week.

First, he revealed to me that my inner dialogue is littered with thoughts of what I wish my husband could be, instead of thanking God for what he is.

As wives, every time we entertain thoughts like, "Look at how great that guy treats his wife." or "Why can't my husband help out around the house like that." or "I wish my husband was as honorable and respectable as that guy." we are making a big mistake. Not only are we coveting, but we are also giving the devil a foothold in our marriage, and even setting ourselves up for adultery.

Secondly, I learned through a book by Charles Stanley that the more we dwell on the things we DON'T want to become, the more likely we will become those things.  This is something I do all the time.  I focus on how much I don't want to repeat the sins from my recent and not-so-recent past, rather than focusing on the new creation into which God is making me.

If you're reading this and you can relate, I encourage you to join me in fighting the Enemy.

Let's dwell on the things of God.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Phillipians 4:8

Let's purge the negative thoughts and be thankful for the good in each person and circumstance.

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

And let's focus, not on the kind of person we don't want to be, but on the kind of person that we can become with the help of God.

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

2 Corinthians 5:17

Let's stop listening to the Devil's lies. He doesn't love us; he doesn't care about us; and he most certainly doesn't deserve the opportunity to influence our thoughts.

This post is linked to Kingdom Twindom's Bold Blogging Challenge. Make sure to read her post! As always, it's bold and brutally beautiful. :)