Rest, Restore, Reset

Will you join me for a little coffee chat?

I sat down and started staring at this blank screen with the cursor blinking at me I started thinking about our lives.  Our lives are a lot like this blank computer screen when they start out.  A simple, white, empty canvas ready to be filled up with words and pictures. Throughout this canvas there will be mistakes made.  We type out our story on the screen and we misspell a word and a red line appears there's that constant reminder there has been a mistake made.  Those reminders are there as a way of telling us that we made a mistake and something needs to be fixed.  Most of the time we are quick to hit that backspace key and correct the mistake we just made. While other times we tend to let the errors pile up until the end of our work.  

Wouldn't it be great if life was that simple, that if we made a mistake or did something wrong we could just it the backspace button and it would all be gone so we can start over.  

So...we may not have the backspace button to erase with; but, we can make a fresh start.

Your story is constantly being written and you are continually discovering to ways to succeed and new ways that things won't work out.   So when things don't work out....

We have the opportunity to take the time to REST and RESET...

"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Corinthians 5:17. (NLT)

How can I do this? How does it look?

• Take some time for yourself.  A little bit time to pause in the work day and focus on your needs and spiritual health. 

• Dig into scripture and allow God to speak to you through His words.

• Take a walk in nature and observe the beauty of creation around you. We often tend to get so caught up in our schedules that we miss the little things that made our community what it is. 

• Keep your focus and let in others to help keep you accountable.

• Join a Life Group in your local church that fits your needs, or start your own.

• Or maybe, just take some time to spend time with friends. Develop relationships and invest in one another.  If we are always on the go, then when do we have time for relationships with people?  Make time for each other.  

Stop. Breathe.  Rest. Reset.

Enjoy life!

The Bigger Picture

“I will call upon your name and keep my eyes above the waves

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders, let me walk upon the waters wherever you would call me, take me deeper than my feet could ever wander and my faith would be made stronger in the presence of my Savior.”
(Oceans – Hillsong)

Eyes swollen, tear-stained pages of my journal, my Bible underlined, written on and highlighted, scared of the next step and determined to conquer the world at the same time.  I’ve felt this strong feeling for a while, I’m ready, show me where to go from here.

In a season of waiting it can be difficult when all life tends to throw at you is the word no, not yet, later, hold on, etc.  It can be utterly discouraging and emotionally exhausting.  I thought you said I was ready, why are you making me wait? Can you even hear me?

If you ask me, it’s the word that most of us have despised since the moment we first heard it.  That word that disgusts us because we know we are not getting what we really want. As hard as it may seem to fathom, as much as we want to fight against it with all our might, just maybe that “no” is temporary.  A simple no doesn’t always mean forever, it quite possibly may be no for a season, a matter of protection to keep our heart pure, and potentially protect us from a bigger rejection or hurt.  God does know the perfect time to say yes, but as much as I hate to admit it, I still want to sulk into my pillow and scream when I hear the word no from something I really wanted or I think I am ready for.

“Have mercy on my, Lord, for I am in distress. Tears blur my eyes. 
My body and soul are withering away.” Psalm 31:9

In a season of waiting I always tend to think of David.  This was a man who was least considered in his family.  I bet he thought nothing good would come from his existence.  He was despised and rejected for much of his life.  Someone who was chosen last but still kept going. Despite several failed attempts at life, David was still known as a man who was devoted to God.  Much like all of us, we fail from day to day.  It’s when we realize where we fell and turn to our Savior to help us back up.  We can’t do it alone and we don’t have to, even though it may seem like it at times.

Father God, when I feel like giving up, help me put my trust in You, my God, my strength when I am weak, my Comforter when I am scared, my Protector.  Help me keep my eyes on you and know that you are with me in times of trouble and I’m afraid.

“You are my refuge and my shield; your word is my source of hope.” Psalm 119:114

Blessings, 

Set apart...

It's all in God's perfect timing! His plans for me are perfectly planned out for what I was made for and who I am in Christ. 

I can't wait for this book to release! So excited to dive into this reading! 

"There is something wonderfully sacred that happens when a girl chooses to realize that being set aside is actually God’s call for her to be set apart.” @LysaTerKeurst #UninvitedBook

                                  

Blessings, 

Tami

If I had one chance to tell you something...

You are loved! 

If I had that one chance...that one chance to talk to you...that one chance to strike up a conversation even when I am not sure what to say...I would want to speak to straight into your heart. 
I would want to be able to tell you that you are precious, you are valuable and you are loved with immeasurable amount of love. 

With all that you have been through there is a plan, a purpose as a destiny for your life.  God is faithful and has always been there and He will always be there for you.  Run to His arms!  When you are feeling weary, alone, scared or even happy and excited.  Our God is there to listen and love us at every moment in our life.  
Romans 8:38 says, "And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love.  Neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separated us from God's love.

                                     

Blessings,

Calling all hearts!

Music Video:  Be One
   (Natalie Grant)

“It's time to get our hands dirty
Be love there's a whole lot of hurting
Calling all hearts
Calling all hands
Calling all feet to take a stand
Why sit around and wait for a miracle to come
When we can be one
When we can be one
When we can be one”

Hey there!  Hope everyone is doing great out there!  I just love our coffee chats on here.

I recently attended the movie debut of the Dare to Be movie.  It was amazing and inspirational.  Sitting in the theater and listening to these women share their story and why they do what they are called to do and how they work with God through it all.  Natalie Grant presented some powerful songs from the beginning of the movie.  Then it came time for her to sing the song, Ever Be.  I love this song, "your praise will ever be on my lips"  and that's what it should be...always.  God's praise should be upon our lips.  It's hard though, right.  Circumstances through out our day get us down and it's hard to sing that praise.  God can help us through that, taking our mind off our own circumstances and situations and putting our focus solely on God and his presence in our lives.  
It's not about who we our in our life, it's about whose we are in God's family and what God has called us to do.  

"...Faithful you have been and faithful you will be..."

As I was listening to Charlotte Gambill give a message in the movie, she talked about not letting the misunderstandings of your past claim your future. Isn't that the truth?  So often we feel so dragged down by the past hurts in our lives that we stomp out all the good that is awaiting for us in the future.  Our destiny is far greater than our past. 

I love how Matthew 11:28-30 states this passage in the Message Bible,  "Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion?  (Hand raise in the air) Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. (Amen) I'll show you how to take a real rest.   Walk with me and work with me--watch how I do it. (YES!)  Learn from unforced rhythms of grace.  I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you.  Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."
Have you ever felt like this?  You can work for God, you can work with God and these two are far different from each other.  God tells us to walk with Him.  Walk with Him and He will be with us and help us.  

I love the saying, “all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage.  Just literally 20 seconds of just embarrassing bravery.  And I promise you, something great will come of it."

What happens when we take that 20 seconds and do something so incredibly brave that our lives could just possibly change forever.  What if we dared to be fearless?  What if we set out to do that one thing that we have been scared to do?  What would happen?  How would you help someone?  What would you do?  How would you feel after it was all over? You may go out there wanting to be able to bless someone, but just maybe you'll find yourself just as blessed by them. 

What would it take for you to get out there and Be One for Someone? To recognize there is a need that you can help out with.  To be able to share the love of Christ with someone else.  What would happen in your 20 seconds of courage? 

Dare to be what God is calling you to be!  What are you daring to be known as?

Here's a little take home. Leave a comment with your dare to be answer.  

I Dare to Be known as __________________.  


Praying for you!


Blessings, 

Be Brave!

Some encouragement and motivation for the day!

Make a difference

ME...Really? 

Music Video:  "Be One" Natalie Grant 

I love our coffee chats here!  It's been on my heart and mind lately that there is so much to out there.  I love writing down my ideas but I just don't want to be one that writes about doing something. I want to be one that gets out there and does something.  I love the newest song from Natalie Grant, "Be One".  There is a world out there that is hurting and falling apart.  Something has to be done.  It has to start somewhere.  Whether it is something big or even something that may seem small to us. 

Stand up and make a difference in a world that doesn't know, in a world full of people who just need to believe. 

That girl down the street or that guy in the next town over. The neighboring family. You never know who you can inspire or teach. You don't have to be this great theologian to teach someone about Jesus. Your relationship with Jesus can speak more powerful than a loudspeaker just by the way you live your life. 

In the world today, there's so much crime and violence happening it's hard to see the 'good' in things.  Then, there's all the talk from...let's face it...people who speak out of pure ignorance and who just like to hear themselves talk on subjects they have no understanding about.  It can feel that we are just not ever going to be heard.  This is where we need to stand up in the midst of everything going on and stand firm to our faith.   

The Bible says it all! Stating clearly the good and bad, the rights and wrongs. 

Spending time daily in God's Word helps us understand this huge book also. Let's face it, it's not the easiest book to sit and read especially when you get to all that genealogy stuff. Although it's that genealogy stuff that tells us "who" we came from. It's our family tree. 

Reading the Old Testament and seeing how it all came to be and then reading the New Testament and seeing it all play out and how we are saved by grace. 

I started this devotional app called First5.  It's amazing!  You can set an alarm so it goes off first thing in the morning and you can spend those first 5 minutes when you wake up with God.  

Telling the world this is extremely important.  Like the song says, it's time to get our hands dirty because there's a whole lot of hurting going on in this world. You may not fully have your pain taken away, but knowing Christ you can find understanding and joy in your life.  

What are some ways that you can get out and help your community?  

What if we invited a couple friends to help us out?  We just might make this world a little better, one outreach at a time. 

Blessings,

Embracing my Quiet Time...An Invitation...

Embracing my quiet time with God each day

The More I Seek You - Kari Jobe

The more I seek You,The more I find You
The more I find You, the more I love You

I want to sit at Your feet

Drink from the cup in Your hand.

Lay back against You and breathe, feel Your heart beat

This love is so deep, its more than I can stand

I melt in Your peace, its overwhelming

I love when I get to hear amazing music and lyrics. To be able to turn on the radio and be uplifted by positive and encouraging music.  Which is why I love this song from Kari Jobe, The More I Seek You.  What a great way to enter into our quiet time with these lyrics.  I want to sit at Your feet drink from the cup in Your hand.  Lay back against You and breathe...The more I seek You, the more I find You.  

I wanted to start this blogging challenge to keep a daily check on my quiet time with God and to have others be able to join in and embrace their quiet time as well.  I want to be able to post inspirational thought and scriptures for anyone out there. 

Starting at the beginning. I want to start with an invitation.  Inviting God into my quiet time and presence.  

So, here's my invitation I created...

To:         My Father, God

For:        To dedicate time together to reflect and listen. 

When:    Daily

Where:   My Heart

Why:      To enhance our relationship 

What do I need to bring:  my Bible, journal, pen, coffee/tea, 

                                  listening ears, a open heart and mind. 

So, today I was flipping through my Bible and I stumbled once again on reading Psalm 139.  I've read this several times, but it's always inspirational every time I read this.  
I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  What if we just paused a minute to really listen and comprehend those words that are told to us.  In just a small sentence there is so much wisdom.  
Psalm 139:14 (KJV) I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
Psalm 139:14 (NLT) Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.

Reflection time

To know that God created every part of me for a purpose. He knows my name.
Which reminds me of another song from Francessa Battistelli. This is probably my favorite verse. 

I'm not meant to just stay quiet

I'm meant to be a lion

I'll roar beyond a song

With every moment that I've got

True to who You are

You saw my heart

and made

Something out of nothing

I am created for a purpose. The purpose to spread the good news of Christ and to tell the world about the amazing relationship that is out there. I love to be able to share this through Christian skits and music. It's a huge passion of mine. This stretches me beyond my personal comfort zone and challenges me each and every time I can do this. 

So not only are we fearfully and wonderfully made, but He also knows our name. 

What do you enjoy about your quiet time each day?

How can we support each other in having our quiet time each day with our God?

Grace and Peace,

Heart of Christmas

(December's blog post)


Music Video:  The Heart of Christmas. 

It’s that time of year again.  December…and even crazier, it’s almost over.  Most often, that one word can strike you with terror, just because of how busy you can get at this time.  So much on our to-do lists to take care of.  What if we just took a moment to stop, sit still and soak it all in.  I mean really take in the “Reason for the Season”. 
                                Jesus! 

It’s why we all are here in the first place, right?  It’s because of His birth, His death, His resurrection that we are able to have a fresh new beginning with our Father in Heaven.  It’s the reason we believe and want to share with others about this amazing event while we are here on earth, waiting for Christ’s return for His followers. 

We all face good and bad times. Sometimes we feel that sense of why is this happening to me?  Why did I have to go through this?  It’s knowing that in every good and bad situation we are faced with, Our God knows how to use us in each and every situation we have been through.  It’s hard sometimes to wonder what that reason is really for, but knowing that there is a greater plan for our lives even if we don’t know what it may be yet. 


I love the music from Matthew West.  One song, The Heart of Christmas, from the movie The Heart of Christmas, tells the story of a family through their journey with their son at St. Jude Children’s Hospital and the life they had dealing with treatments.  Dealing with so much with their young son and having to get through life in general.  It’s so great how their family, friends, new friends and even strangers pulled together to help this family out.  To be a voice, to lend a hand, to pray for them.

So what's your favorite thing to do during this amazing season?  How do you show the Heart of Christmas to those around you?

Greater love....

Today as we reflect on Veteran's Day, we remember those who have served our country in some form or another.  They gave up their lifestyle with their family and friends to defend our rights.  While few have made it home, back to their families, many have lost their life in service.
We are forever grateful for those who have served and have given their lives to serve.  

As we remember those people we are reminded of how much God loves us as well.  To have a Heavenly Father who would give up His Only Son; so that we may be free and forgiven from our sins, so that we may live forever in eternity with Him.  John 3:16 says that, God loved the world so much.  
Can we even fathom how much those words that mean, so much, in this verse?      Someone who loves every part of everyone.   No matter who they are or what they have done.  Sometimes I think we think we know how that feels, but sometimes I think we don't even know the half of how that really feels to love that much.  (The way God loves us).  It's that close, eternal, infinite love that we can come as close to as we can to show that kind of love.  
We strive to be like Christ.  To show love to our fellow people in this world.  We have God's Word to help guide us in that love.  A love letter to us to share with the people we come into contact with in this world.  So because God sent His Son to save us, we have so much freedom and a reason to share our faith with others.
And, we want to thank those who have served and fought for our rights to be able to keep sharing our faith and God's Word.  Because we have these people in our lives we have the freedom to keep sharing openly about our Christ.

I saw this verse earlier today......

John 15:13 (NLT) There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

John 15:11-15 (MSG)  “I've told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I've named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father.

Keep on sharing Christ's love with everyone in this world.

Blessings,