My thoughts are all over the place today, and I’m sure many in our area feel the same. I’m trying to piece together (while making sense) what it’s like to live in a Hurricane disaster area year after year after year.
First of all an evacuation is not a vacation.
It’s not fun. It’s costly. It’s worrisome. It’s extremely unsettling.
Why do people continue to live in our area when year after year hurricanes devastate our land and homes? Because it is home, and our roots run deep. Because the men and women here keep this country going. The refineries that line the Gulf of Mexico are instrumental to America.
What is it like for everyone living here now? It’s a waiting game. You prep and you pray. You check social media to see where your friends are. You keep news notifications turned on so that you are alerted when the storm trend changes. You are literally glued to some type of device – that’s just the way it is.
If you evacuated you stay up all night long watching the news bracing yourself for the impending destruction. If you decided to hunker down at home you stay up all night praying that your house and yourself survive.
But when the sun rises and the winds die down we will come together just like we’ve done storm after storm. Churches will literally be the hands and feet of Jesus, and the Cajun Navy will run as smoothly as a Chick-fil-A drive through helping as many people as humanly possible.
And we know:
We will rebuild. We will keep going. We will survive.
And come next August we may or may not do this all over again.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. Isaiah 43:2
Last year when Mrs. Imelda unexpectedly did what she did, my momma sent me the following message, “Remember, people are looking to Christians to see how they handle this. Be the light.”
I’ll never forget that.
As Laura looms over us, I keep playing those words over and over in my mind. As fear and anxiety try and take over every ounce of my being the following song keeps playing deep within my heart. I’m choosing to cling to these lyrics. Maybe they will help you as well.
🎶 In the eye of the storm You remain in control And in the middle of the war You guard my soul You alone are the anchor When my sails are torn Your love surrounds me In the eye of the storm🎶
He is in control of the storms, and He will help us control our emotions -if we let him.
I’m praying for our homes. I’m praying for my precious new school that just finished construction two weeks ago from Imelda. But most of all, I’m praying for our hearts and minds to be strong in the Lord. I’m praying that through this storm, and every storm, that we can in fact be the light.
He remains in control, y’all.
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10
“Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment and the second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 22: 37-39
Love God.
When you love someone they are continually in your thoughts and you do things to please them. Think about the light in your child’s eyes when you surprise them with a new toy or how they snuggle into your arms. Think about the loving embrace of your spouse. The loving relationships we have with our family and friends are beautiful examples of the loving relationship that God wants to have with us, but they don’t really even compare to the amazing love that God has given us and the pure delight that awaits us when we love Him.
God’s love is limitless. His power is untameable. He is the almighty – our creator – and we were made to worship HIM. There is a longing in my heart that is not filled by any other occupation than pouring out my love for Him.
I ignore it regularly and find myself miserable. I am easily frustrated by the pressures of daily life, the behavior of my children. I am exhausted by the physical, mental and emotional demands thrown onto me hour by hour. And then I compound my frustration by scrolling social media & being outraged by the conflicts in our society. I listen to the lie that a bath, a quiet walk, a funny tv show, a good drink will grant me some reprieve. But my heart is only recharged doing what it was made to do- worshiping my savior.
Only when I spend each day, hour by hour, breath by breath, in His presence do I fully possess the strength I need to manage my household, job, children, and relationships. On my own I fail miserably and wallow in it.
But when I set my mind on Jesus. When I serve my family because in doing so I serve my God He gives me joy in the dishes and laundry… When His praises are on my lips I have HOPE.
Trust me, I’ve read the headlines. 2020 is getting worse by the minute. Yes, I see the two hurricanes in the gulf and the political conflicts getting hotter by the minute. I have sat frozen-overwhelmed in this “new normal” that demands more of me than I can even pretend to be able to do… But in that moment when I cry out to Jesus – He is there. When I give him my whole heart there is no room for worry, frustration, selfishness, anger, or discontentment. When my whole heart is set on Him fears evaporate. His presence is too much for them. My daddy God, my savior, my LOVE is in control. He is with me and will not leave me or forsake me.
He is not surprised by the difficulties we have seen this year. I have no authority to say that God is chastising us or that the end times are near. I will not even pretend to understand why He allows disasters, and I am mourning along with most of you. But I know that God’s desire is for us to seek Him with our whole heart. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4
Nothing I have to share with you today is new or profound. But It is the pressing reminder I desperately needed today, and you might too.
Ladies, put down your phone and get on your knees. Turn off the TV and start singing praises. Stop focusing on the challenges and open your eyes to the blessings and provisions God has surrounded you with. You will not have the JOY and PEACE He has promised you ‘till you do. Don’t fall for the lies that we will find rest in selfishness. You will find invigorating joy in serving your saviour. He will give you the strength you need when you are fully relying on HIM.
“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40: 31
My sisters, I hope you experience His presence today. “Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you , says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity;” Jeremiah 29:12-14a
We are not captives in Babylon, but we allow our hearts to be captives to sin along with mental & emotional darkness. Seek the Lord with all your heart. He is faithful. His word is true, and my sister, you will find Him. “You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11
I listened in to my son’s remote kindergarten class this week. I took his headphones off so that maybe he wouldn’t yell so loudly at the i-pad (it didn’t work). But I did get to hear the “bucket book.” read aloud. It is a sweet story about how when we do kind things for others it fills their buckets… But ladies, we can’t rely on others to fill our buckets. Even the people we love the most will flip our buckets upside down, empty them out and kick them!
Our world desperately needs the love of God and we are commissioned to pour it out. Our buckets are only filled in God’s presence through the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit. As we praise God for who He is and all He has done- He fills us up. We can face the day with confidence knowing that our Father – the Creator has made this day – and we can rejoice! That is the kind of joy that will change the world. That is what our spouses and children need, what our co-workers will marvel at; that is how we shine a bright light into this dark world even in 2020.
Just because you’re a Christian doesn’t mean you’re not gonna get rattled. However, it does mean you know who can hold you steady when you’re shaking from the inside out.
A while back we had a Covid scare. Nobody has it – just an exposure. But let me tell you something, when we got the news fear crept in. Instantly a highlight reel of every possible awful scenario started playing in my mind.
I was scared, y’all.
But God – God is bigger than fear. He is bigger than anxiety. And He is most certainly bigger than Covid.
I text a friend and told her I was struggling. She began to pray. I opened up my YouVersion app and found a plan called “Praying through Anxiety”. God has given us strategies to fight back – we just have to know what they are.
God is good y’all.
God is strong.
God is bigger.
God is God.
Cling to Him.
“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” 2 Corinthians 12:9
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saint.” Psalm 116:15
When we lose a loved one, we experience grief, sorrow, and pain. It is tough. It is gut wrenching! But what if we could view our loss through God’s eyes?
Death, to God, is not a tragedy when it is one of His children. It is life – eternal life. The moment we take our very first breath in eternity excites our Lord. He rejoices! To Him, it is His child returning home. My Sunday School teacher once said that it is like a parent who has been anxiously waiting for their child to return home from a long trip. When that child is finally home the parent rejoices. Their child is safe at home where they belong.
We are the Lord’s children. He desires for us to be home with Him in Heaven. He rejoices when we are safe in His loving arms. So, when we view the death of a faith believing loved one the way God does we will surely experience the peace that surpasses all understanding.
This is His promise that comes to us through our faith in Him. It does not mean we do not grieve our loss, but with His peace we will not let it overtake us. We can rejoice and be assured that they are with the Father, safe in His loving arms, forever healed, forever whole, and forever happy!
As children of God we know that one day we will step into eternity, free from our sorrow, pain, and grief. Most of our lives will be touched by a loss, but to God His child is home. Knowing that we can find peace.
“He will redeem their life from oppression and violence and precious shall be their blood in His sight.” Psalm 72:14
You set the tone for you morning, momma. In fact, you set the tone for your whole family’s morning.
I didn’t always get this right. Some days I still don’t; however, the past five years I’ve been very intentional about how my family’s day starts.
Growing up I was the worst morning person – just ask my dad. I coined the phrase five more minutes. Just joking. Sort of.
The fact of the matter is, if I start my day rushed and running behind it turns me into a raging mommy monster, and that’s not good for anyone.
So here’s my routine – a routine I had to pray hard to make happen.
▪️Get up earlier than everyone else.
▪️Turn on praise and worship music.
▪️Get in the word.
▪️Talk to God.
Y’all, me becoming a morning person is nothing short of a miracle. In fact, it’s my favorite part of the day now.
I challenge you to get up and get ready for your day with Jesus. If this is something you struggle with, shoot me a message and I’ll pray with you about it.
I can honestly say it’s the best thing I’ve ever done for myself and for my family.
“But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.” Psalms 59:16
I’ve seen a quote floating around the internet that states, “I wish I could raise my children in the world in which I grew up.” When this sentiment is posted, it always seems to get a lot of likes and comments. I always scratch my head as I do not quite agree with this statement. I want to say, “You can!”
The power is ours. The world can rage on outside of our homes, but we hold the power to raise our children how we see fit. No matter which political party is in the White House or what the media portrays as normal, we have the control. We create the world in which our children are raised.
It’s our choice to teach our children to serve others, to love Jesus, to obey God’s word, to worship, and to give selflessly. It’s our choice to love their other parent and show them a healthy relationship. It’s our choice to show them to respect their elders as we honor our parents. And in so doing, they will take those things into adulthood and pass that on to their children. Eph 6:1-4
We tend to look at the past with rose-colored glasses, as if in the 1950s -1990s the world was perfect and only in the past generation has it become godless. The reason we believe that is because our parents usually did a pretty good job of creating a world in which we felt safe and taught us those things we hold dear. The world was not perfect then, it was filled with sin. We just see it more now because of the constant media coverage and access to it at our fingertips. “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – Ecclesiastes 1:9
Not everyone has had the privilege of growing up in a Christian home. If you fall into that category, you now have the opportunity to create it for your children. How? We have the perfect recipe laid out in God’s word and we have a generation of women to look to for advice. “Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children,” – Titus 2:4.
I’m not finished with this verse, but man it’s got me fired up this morning. I had to share now.
I don’t know how many times this year that I’ve said or written that the world is spinning out of control – cause it is. However, look at this beautiful promise straight from God – “He will quiet you by His love.”
In this verse the word quiet means to still, absence of bustle, to calm. I don’t know about y’all but an absence of bustle seems glorious considering 2020 and all that it entails. Can I get an Amen?
Hebrews 7:25, a cross reference for this verse, says that He will save those who draw near to Him.
Guys, we play a big part in the craziness swirling all around us. We can keep spinning with it, or we can draw near to Him – stand firmly on His promises – and Let God create an absence of worldly bustle within our hearts and minds.
We’re all looking forward to something. I believe eagerness is a part of our human nature. It’s healthy to be excited about life – eager to read the end of a book, attend an event you’ve waited a long time for, or catch up with an old friend. Anticipation makes life exciting. Who’s with me?
In Matthew 28:19 states, “Therefore go, making disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
How exciting! When I read that I’m reminded of
the many things so much greater than ourselves to be truly eager for. These words describe the eagerness our Father wants us to have. To be driven. To go into the world. To recognize the crucial fact he has given us a job.
I challenge you to be eager.
Eager to change.
Eager to grow in your relationship with Christ.
Eager to forgive.
Eager to learn more.
Eager to dig deeper.
Eager to teach.
Eager to love greater.
Eager to be an example of the greatest love.
Eager to impact.
Lastly, I challenge you to be EAGER TO GO. Wherever you are, you have the strength to help make disciples of all nations. He needs you to be the change. He needs you to be eager.
Rays of Sunshine inc 