fire

okay so i am at it again.........getting rid of all of this meaningless stuff i have been holding onto. Really just obeying God.... I am soooooooo materialistic and selfish. Among many other things I have been hoarding fabric forever for that "some day".... then God asked me for it. So i was going to give a little... then he said why are you being so selfish... and so i had to give it all...and then i was still trying to hold on to some of it to make an outfit for Perpetua and then He said to my heart.... TRUST ME....

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life whether you have
enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than
food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t
plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds
them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all
your worries add a single moment to your life? “And why worry about 

your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They 

don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not 

dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for 

wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will

certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry 

about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What 

will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but 

your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom 

of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything 

you need. Matthew 6:25-33

So i am....i need His help to even do that...

Also....good news Proceeds for Poverty just received a storage trailer of our own! PRAISE GOD! Now we need to pray for a few others too...i want to fill them up before next years SALE!!



And today God sent a friend over to light a fire for obedience under me. She said she is selling her house and all her stuff ... we encouraged each other with God's word and prayed and now i am even more convinced that crazy thing to do would be to hold onto all this stuff that will fade away, to invest money into stuff that can't help one lost soul meet there Creator, the crazy thing to do would be to store up treasures here on earth... where rust and moths will decay it.

“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and
 thieves do not break in and steal." Matthew 6:19-20

The crazy thing to do would br to not sell it and give the money to help show and share God's love all over the world. Seriously.

What if i was a follower of Jesus just like the Bible discribes... what if i thought like Jesus did.... what if i didn't even care where i laid my head (Luke 9:57-59).

So if you think i am crazy.... You must meet my Creator...... this is just a glimpse of what He has to say about it all:

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. 1 John 2:15-17


Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. 2 Peter 3:2-4


But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. John 6:27


God, HELP ME to trust YOU and obey!

hospitality

God is serious about hospitality. He mentions it many times throughout His Word, the Bible. To name a few:

When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality. Romans 12:13

Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay. 1 Peter 4:9

It is very American to be protective over "your" space... and the "right" to your own space.... root of that - Selfishness - and yes, I AM SELFISH. But in His love for me He has shown me my disobedience and struck me with a convicting picture....

Me standing before God after my earthly life is over and God is saying to me, "Why didn't you show My hospitality and i am not talking matching your center piece with your place settings to show off your grand matching skills for a dinner affair but MY sacrificially hospitality?

OUCH!

Needless to say it has taken time for me to get some of God's thinking about this subject...and i know i have further selfishness He wants me to be rid off. I had said that i liked the idea of all living in a community like the early churches did... with everything in common ...but obviously had not been living that way. So i determined to say yes to any opportunity to have someone stay with us.. to open our home to show His love to a weary heart.

Last year we had the privilege of loving Tony Klazar. An Iraqi friend whom God rescued when he was just a teen. Even though we aren't old enough to be parents of a 23 year old or even a teenager,  he became like one of our boys for little while... helping him get his first job, his drivers license, his first car, through a few heartaches, and helping him discern God's next step. It wasn't always easy. We both prayed and were concerned about him a lot. He has moved on to His next step in life now and i feel as though i hosted a prince.. a young man that God will use and is using mightily to show and share His love with the world! No telling what God can do in Tony as he continues to submit His life to Jesus! What a privilege it was to have him in our home for a year!

Now my heart is giddy as God gives us Martina, a young slovakian woman. I really feel that her entry into our home is His timing not only for her growth but to help us as well. I am excited for Martina's coming and the possibility of the transformation He can do in her heart and mind if she is so willing.

This is Martina with Elijah in Solvakia when he was 5 months old:

If you ever want to open your home to someone and show sacrificial love. Please contact me ... through GPPD we are connected to great opportunities to help show and share His love to people in need.

but a breath

I have seen and experienced a lot of "grown up"grief recently.

With the loss of my grandpa/their Great Paw Paw the boys had lots of questions.
E -"Why did God take Great Paw Paw?"
M-"We all have to leave this earth, God's word says our lives are short "
E- "Why did he have to die now?"
M- "I don't know, only God knows that, in His Word he tells us He knows the number of our days, and Paw Paw's days on this earth were complete. Because of God's grace through Jesus and Paw Paw's faith that God is who He says He is i believe we will see Paw Paw again when we see Jesus face to face in heaven."

We have talked about a friend's baby that passed away recently too. That God knew the number of his days were only 4. Death is hard to understand for a child but i want them to know that none of us know our number ....... so we must live each day to the fullest doing what we were created to do.

We have been memorizing this verse each morning this past week: "Teach us the shortness of life so that we may grow in wisdom." Psalms 90:12

Then this morning.... Crabby died.

Crabby is our first and only pet (besides the worms in the compost bin - but you don't pet those). He is a hermit crab. We have had him for over 3 months. And truthfully the adults were a little relived he was gone (maintaining a curious crab is a job)....UNTIL we saw Elijah's reaction.... he experienced every stage of greif. From blame, to trying to understand, to balling... ...i comforted him... i told him it wasn't his fault or any ones fault.... that God knew the number of Crabby's days (don't smirk.... God knows everything!).......that he was a good "daddy" to crabby and crabby lived longer than most crabs do. Then he asked me for markers and paper and proceeds to document the life of Crabby.

Elijah and Crabby claw in hand :) 

Crabby when he was a baby

Crabby in his cage.

Crabby climbing in his cage. 

Crabby putting Elijah in His shell to save his life from the Dinosaur.

Crabby in the trash can mommy "buried" him in. Elijah crying because Crabby was dead.  

Crabby R.I.P.

Life is but a breath, live every moment in His will.