A Boastful Heart...

Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money."  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."

James 4:13-15

    Do you know anyone like this?  You constantly hear them bragging about their accomplishments or maybe name dropping to look as if they are important.  Maybe they boast about their many possessions or throw money in front of you as to try and impress you.  I have met a few of these people in my day; and I honestly hope I have never been one of those!  I of course wouldn't be throwing money around because I've never had wealth by means of financial success but I do have wealth in the Heavenly sense.

    I recently encountered someone that spoke much of her self and her accomplishments but I wasn't impressed by it; it wasn't spoken out of humbleness; but out of "look at me."  She constantly brought the attention back to herself and it really made her "heart" seem shallow.  Don't get me wrong, achievements in this world are Great and I have a small few myself; but I consistently seek to be humble before God.  All my possessions are only here for a short time and just like Job you can lose everything in the blink of an eye.  What does your heart hold?  The world or Christ?  Short term or long term?

    I also know someone who has what I would consider a great deal of wealth.  They could pay cash for their home and have anything they want.  They were very wise about their finances BUT you never heard them say a bragging comment and are the most of humble people I know.  I love that!  They never flashed their success around and never talked about themselves that would have made you feel inferior to them.  They weren't storing up earthly treasures.  In both cases God is the ultimate person that allowed them to have their success yet they choose 2 completely different ways in which to express it.  I want to always be like the latter; I want my accomplishments to reflect Christ and His ultimate Glory!! -CiCi-

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...

    I hate making decisions that will hurt some but be beneficial in the long run.  Mainly, when it comes to my children.  So we adopted a dog about a month ago and it still is having accidents in the house and digging in the trash and the cat's litter.  We move in to a new house this coming weekend and I just can't have this happening.  The kid's wanted the dog really bad but often complain about how often you have to take her out.  Only 1 child has fed her and that's been a handful at that.  And a bath?  Forget it; I had to do that as well.
    I told my husband today that he couldn't tell me "I told you so".  I can't do it all by myself and the dog was for the kid's.  The only thing they think is required though is to throw it a ball and play with it.  HA - wouldn't that be nice.  So, once again I'm going to be the bad guy because the dog has to go back.
    Lesson learned here - husbands are right more than we give them credit for.  My husband was nice enough to say yes and just let us deal with everything and not say anything.  Thank you Lord for the Best man you could have given this crazy family! -CiCi-

Failing as a Parent...

    Do you often question your parenting skills?  I've talked before about how we are given the Bible as our guidance on raising our children; but what happens when you've tried your best and something occurs that you could have never been prepared for?  That happened to me the other night.  It had me in tears for quit awhile and I was sick to my stomach.  I then began questioning my parenting and where all did I go wrong; this regarding my twins who are 6 years old.
    I started telling myself things like "I'm not spending enough time with them" and "maybe I should just unplug the television."  I told my husband I don't know how much longer I can be both parents (he works out of town).  I started thinking of how I need to maybe re-arrange some priorities and then this might not have happened.  I know children get curious; but I still feel I have failed somewhere.
   I got on my knees in tears just seeking for the answer.  Maybe there isn't one.  God is our center; but maybe not enough.  All those 'should have's and shouldn't have's' played in my mind over and over again.  How about you?  Do you ever feel this way?  Let's not let Satan get the best of us - we can only trust that God will get us through it. -CiCi-

   
  

Something to be Thankful for...

    As I read this saying, sometimes it's hard to believe it; but it is true.  Yesterday was just cRaZy for me!  The weather was horrible as you know already....I went to our new house to deliver another load of stuff and do some more cleaning and discovered our first leak.  I took the dog with me so she wouldn't be alone and she managed to mark her territory in the kitchen.
    Let's see, next I had to put the trash cans out in the rain - I backed into the garage, because of the rain, to unload stuff and hit a box; therefore knocking of a piece of molding that WAS on my car.  THEN I managed to spill my milk shake all over myself in the car.  YEP - it was that kind of day!!
    As I look back though, I must be thankful for the new house God has provided us with; thankful I have a car to get me from place to place and of course money to buy that milkshake that I got to drink only about 1/2 of.  So, no matter how bad it gets; you CAN find SOMETHING to be thankful for!  I sure hope you're having a better week than me - it can only get better right? -CiCi

Just Another Manic...Tuesday

   Yep - that's right; it's not Monday anymore; but lately every day seems manic to me.  We're in the process of moving which is manic in itself.  Packing, changing utilities and trying to keep up with 2 locations right now is enough to drive anyone into a frenzy.  On top of that there's every day life that occurs with children and the pets. 
    Yesterday we spent all day at MD Anderson with my oldest for her 3 month scans; which still show she's clear of cancer - PRAISE!  So today almost feels like my Monday.  The start of the week where I've got things to move to the new house and continued chaos with the kid's.  As we are just returning from Spring Break as well, the children do not want to get up; of course neither do I.
    As I go through this upcoming crazy week ahead; which calls for us to get fully moved into the new house - I will remind myself to be Thankful for the many blessings God has given us.  Everything we have is a gift from Him and I want to make sure I cherish every crazy moment of every day; which is not always the easiest thing to do.  I pray for each and every one of you reading my blog; that you would have a crazy week ahead as well - WHY?  Because then we know we're alive and we can have peace in the fact that Christ is walking with us in each crazy step! -CiCi-

A Prayer for Today...

    Well today is another day we anticipate; it's scan day for Maddison.  We have a full day a MD Anderson with blood work, hearing tests and her CT scan.  Every three months this comes around.  As a Christian I have faith God is in control; as a mother, of course I have some worry.  Today I will just share my prayer with you:

Father, I come to you today and just ask that you give us strength as we head out to an all day affair at the hospital.  I pray that you continue to give me peace as a mother to know my baby is in good hands; Your hands!  I pray you give Maddi peace; as she always wonders if the cancer will return.  We would be no where without you Father and we would have not made it this far without your peace and strength guiding us.  I can only ask that things go smoothly and timely today and that we just give thanks to you no matter what the outcome is.  I ask this in Your Almighty name, Amen

So from those of you reading this - we would also just ask you to say a little prayer today that things are still clear.  Thank you for following us in our journey called 'Life' -CiCi

Spring Cleaning...

    Well it's about time for summer and the Spring fever is sinking in for many.  You begin cleaning out closets and drawers and the garage and attics.  You clean the house from top to bottom with things like the window's and base boards.  And oh doesn't everything just feel nice when you're done?
    Well how about doing a 'Spiritual Spring Cleaning?'  Have you done that before?  Look around at the things you could clean up or clean out that effect your spiritual life.  Maybe tv shows you watch or certain movies you allow in your home.  How about the type of music you listen to or books you read.  Maybe there's an activity you do that is probably not something God would like or maybe it's just getting your priorities in a different order.
    How about for the next couple of weeks you start making a list of what you could clean out in your spiritiual life and start April off with a Bang!  If you need to start small; that's no problem.  You'll be amazed how clean you will feel; not only your house! -CiCi-

THAT Kind of Woman...

    Can you say this is you?  Can you say that your faith is powerful enough to shake the ground above Satan's domain?  Well this is the kind of woman I'm striving for and it's going to take a lot of sacrifice on my part; letting go of the selfishness and allowing the humbleness of the Almighty to take over.  There is a short list of things that can help us women achieve this kind of Power over the devil and it's found in Psalm 15.  My version will have some slight 'tweeking' to it so you can understand the heaviness of it:

LORD, WHO may dwell in your sacred tent?  WHO may live on your holy mountain?

THE WOMAN whose walk is blameless, THE WOMAN who does what is righteous, THE WOMAN who speaks the truth from her heart; THE WOMAN whose tongue utters no slander, THE WOMAN who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others; THE WOMAN who despises a vile person but honors those who fear the LORD; THE WOMAN who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change her mind; THE WOMAN who lends money to the poor without interest; THE WOMAN who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.  THE WOMAN that does these things will NEVER be shaken.

(Psalm 15:1-5 NIV)

    Maybe you need to personalize this in a way where you say "I" instead of "THE WOMAN" - do whatever it takes to soak this in and Christ will give you the instruction and wisdom to be this type of Godly woman.  The type of woman that other's respect and admire and the type of woman that makes Satan shake in hell! -CiCi-

 

O Happy Day...

    Today's post is just a personal one - one of tremendous joy I'm thrilled to share with you.  This morning we will be signing paperwork to our new home!  This has been year's in the making and throughout the last few years God has blessed us and He continues to do so.  With 6 of us we need a spacious house and yard and God has provided exactly what we need.
    When we first began looking at houses a little over a month ago; this house literally brought tears to my eyes.  As I walked through it I knew this was the house God had for us.  I could feel it in my heart.  The kid's loved it and it was a great price for all the house we would be getting.  We've had some scares regarding getting to this final point; but today is THE DAY! 
    I can't wait to begin filling each room with love and prayer and may our home be a safe haven to all those that enter.  After 2 years of being in the wilderness with wondering if we'll have enough money for food and having a child battle cancer - we just continue to see the blessings God bestows on us! -Cici-

Self Talk...

    Do you ever realize how often you talk to yourself?  It's more than 3000 times a DAY!  So what do you tell yourself?  I'm sure if you wrote it down a majority of it would be negative.  "I'm not a good mom", "I wish I were a better wife" or "That was so stupid of me".  How about our past - "I'm not good enough; look at my history."  Any of these sound familiar?
    We need to learn to replace our negative thoughts; which come directly from Satan; with positive thoughts from Christ.  He tells us we are loved just how we are and He forgave us a long time ago!  So why do we keep beating ourselves up?  Why would we WANT to believe the negative garbage?  I sure don't. 
    We constantly question ourselves around other's as well.  "Will they like me", "Will they judge me" or "What if I say the wrong thing?"  We need to be confident in the ONE who created us.  He didn't make anything less than perfect just the way we are.  He created us to be different; to have our own individual abilities and talents and for us to come together with them.
    I want you to really start paying attention to the negative talk you give yourself and try and turn it into positive self talk!  If you have to write them down; do so.  But start believing what Christ believes about you - "You are worth my blood" and "You are beautiful just as you are; inside and out; faults and all." -CiCi-

Patience in Suffering...

    What kind of hurt do you have today?  Is it an ill relative or good friend?  Are you in a finacial drought or unemployed?  Are you in a spiritual wilderness and you feel you can't quit reach God?  Every one of us has faced some kind of trial and suffering in our time.  Some of us are in the midst of one and some of you may be soon facing one and you just don't know it yet.  Whatever your circumstance you should always be ready.  How, you say?  By staying in God's word and in communication with Him in prayer!  Then, when that trial does come, you will be able to handle it with the strength of the Almighty.
    Every 3 months my oldest daughter has to have a CT Scan and that time is due this next Monday.  We may be out of our wilderness; but at these times I am reminded of where God brought us from.   We persevered through the storm with strength that only He could give us.  However, we still must stay strong in the faith to overcome what could lie ahead for her future and for even the future of any of my children or husband.  God's love is never failing and just remember what He did for Job!  We can endure anything with Christ on our side.

"Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered.  you have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about.  The Lord is full of compassion and mercy."

James 5:10-11 NIV

 

Press on towards the Fullness of God's Glory! -CiCi



White As Snow...

Today's share is a devotional from "At the foot of the Cross"; a devotional book I am a co-author of that was published in 2011:

"Come now, let's settle this", says the Lord.  "Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow.  Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool."

Isaiah 1:18 NLT

    When my oldest son was six years old, he wrote on the entire side of my vehicle with a Coke tab!  He didn't even tell me he did this; I just discovered it one day when the light hit it just right.  He had written his name and his older sister's name and then finished off the masterpiece with some squiggly lines.

    A few years later when he was eight, the same child started a fire in the kitchen trash because he wanted to see what would happen.  Luckily he screamed before it got too big and I was able to put it out without any damage or anyone getting hurt.

    Parents are often caught off guard like I was, by our children's "experiments," and most of the time our first reaction is to respond in anger:  Maybe we yell.  Maybe we give the silent treatment.  Maybe we throw an adult version of a temper tantrum.  We know we need to forgive, but most of the time that step comes later - almost as an afterthought.

    I love that Christ does not respond to our sin in the same way that we respond to that of our children.  His first response is love.  He forgave us for all of our sins when He died on the cross and His blood washed us white as snow.  Of course He still disciplines us when we sin and He still allows us to face the consequences of our actions.  But He never responds in anger.  He doesn't yell.  He doesn't give the silent treatment.  And He doesn't throw His own temper tantrum when we go astray.  Instead He just loves us and waits for us to turn back towards Him.

    The next time someone sins against you, stop and consider what Christ did for you on the cross.  Remember that He paid the ultimate sacrifice to cover not only our sin, but the sin of others as well.  Before you respond in anger, ask yourself, "If God can love and forgive this person, why can't I?" -CiCi-

Folly Among us...

    Do you feel you are a good person?  You take care of your children and your spouse; you are at work on time and you tithe your 10 percent each month.  Maybe you randomly give a few dollars to the homeless person on the corner or offer your seat to an elderly in a crowded waiting room.  Yep, you sound pretty good to me.  Let's go tot he next level though.  Do you hang up with a friend only to turn around and call another friend to let her know the latest gossip?  Or do you try and find a way to retaliate against that mother who cuts you off in the car line every single day?  What about making sure everyone knows about your newest, expensive purchase?  Don't see anything wrong with these - well God does! (and I am just as guilty)

    "There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him:  haughty (arrogance) eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community."

Proverbs 6:16-19

      Next time you do something questionable, ask if it would be pleasing to God or just pleasing to yourself. - CiCi -

First Love...

"You of this generation, consider the word of the LORD: "Have I been a desert to Israel or a land of great darkness? (the answer here would be 'no') Why do my people say, 'We are free to roam; we will come to you no more'? Does a young woman forget her jewelry, a bride her wedding ornaments? Yet my people have forgotten me, days without number.

Jeremiah 2:31-32

  Do you remember who your first love was?  Mine was second grade; a boy named Aaron Carpenter.  I still remember his face and the gift he gave me on my 8th birthday; a smurfette necklace.  Okay, so it wasn't really 'love'; just puppy love; but I still have not forgotten him.  My first day as the new kid and he was the one who smiled at me and made me feel welcomed.
    Why can we remember moments like this but we fail to remember Christ's faithfulness and goodness to us ALL the time?  We're really good to remember Him when things are going bad; but what about when they're going good; He's still there waiting for us to call on Him and to just thank Him for the life we are blessed with everyday.  We too often lose focus that He is the reason things are going good; just as He is the one we draw our strength from when things are going bad.  Remember ALL the times Christ is there for you; which is every second of every minute of every hour of every day! - CiCi -

Lead Me...

   

    We were created to be "like" Jesus; created in His image.  It didn't say we were created to be "perfect" in everything we do but that we are to strive to be Christ-like.  The best part about this is God already knew before he created us that we would mess up; more than once too.  His love takes our mistakes and turns them around into love; it might be love with discipline; but it is definitely LOVE.
    We should lean on this more instead of telling ourselves what failures we are.  I tell myself many times that I'm not good enough.  Not good enough to be a writer, not good enough to be a mother or a wife.  The best one is that I tell myself I'm not good enough to be a Christian.  Whoa!  Anyone else ever talk to yourselves like this?  Well, that's Satan trying to feed us lies so that we will turn our backs on Christ and say 'oh well, I'm never going to get better I might as well go back to the way I was', or something similar to this.  Satan is always planting small seeds of doubt where he knows our weaknesses are.  Well don't buy in!  Christ tells us that no matter how many mistakes we make He's there ready to pick us up.  He's ready to dust our pants off; wipe our tears and say 'Let's try this again; but how about you let Me lead'. 
    Below is a link to another song that I just love to listen to daily - it's about us letting Him take the lead because he can do a much better job than we can alone! -CiCi-


http://youtu.be/JFmSzL2ppvg

Beautiful Chaos....

    Life can be full of chaos.  Our children spilling their drinks in the car or throwing their food across the table.  The child starting a fire in the kitchen trash or writing on your car with a coke tab.  You spill your coffee on the way to church or realize you wore 2 different color socks; black and navy are so alike in the dark.
    Chaos is everywhere; not just in our lives but in our world.  Christ can always take something ugly though and turn it in to beauty!  We should just be willing to find that beauty in the midst of that chaos.  He will then give you understanding, discernment and wisdom through those moments of total and complete chaos. -CiCi-

'Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you.  The beginning of wisdom is this:  Get wisdom.  Though it cost all you have, get understanding'

Proverbs 4:6-7 NIV

It's Never Too Late....

    NO IT'S NOT!  It is never too late for anything!  I am 37, soon to be 38 respectively, and I've changed things I never thought I would.  Anytime is a good time to eat healthy and be fit, to cross something off your bucket list and to have a close relationship with Christ.
    Let's start with being fit.  In January 2011 I was tired of my clothes being snug.  I joined a boot camp and then joined a gym as well as changed my eating habits.  Since the start of that I have lost 20 lbs., dropped 3 pant sizes and 15% body fat.  I feel Great!  It took me actually starting it and persevering through it.  Once the results were there, it drove me even harder.
    Let's look at spiritually now.  I try to read scripture before my day gets started and when it comes to an end.  I had to start out somewhere though and what started as 15 minutes eventually turned into having to get up at 5am instead of 6am.  A hunger grows in you; the Holy Spirit takes over and it's awesome what is revealed to me.  As with physical changes when exercising, you begin to see spiritual changes.  God moves in and pushes the "gunk" out.
    Now how about that bucket list.  I would love to hear some of the things on yours!  I have learned to design cakes, cut stained glass, be a certified wedding planner and I ran a 1/2 marathon in December.

    IT IS NEVER TOO LATE - Get out there and do something instead of sitting around and saying 'I wish I had'. - CiCi

Love Them All...

"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.  He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Matthew 5:43-45 NIV

    The first thing that comes to my mind when reading this is the most recent incident involving a school shooting.  A boy killed 3 kid's and wounded others.  The mother of one of the those killed has said that she already forgives her child's murderer.  WOW!  I'm sure many of you are thinking that is just crazy.  How could someone forgive someone else for this kind of act?  Well, if they walk with Christ they have stood by His word just as in Matthew.  We are to love them all; God is the one who will bring justice about and not always in our time.  We never know what is going on in someone else's life that brings them to horrific acts such as this.  It's not our problem to understand it; it's our job to pray for them and love them and to trust that God's Will is in motion.  Before that child was even born God already knew the day he would be called home!

    I see so much un-love on facebook it's such a shame.  The really sad part is that one day I'll see an individual post something spiritual and then the next day they're angry at the world and someone who did them wrong.  I am so glad Christ does not treat us this way.  We can stand firm on His promises because they don't change with the wind. -CiCi

    

Bite Thy Tongue....

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this:  Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

James 1:19-20 NIV

    Let's get a little un-spiritual:  shut your mouth, open your ears and bite your tongue until you are calm enough to handle the situation.  Believe me - my foot ends up in my mouth way more than I'm pleased about!  Especially when it comes to my children.

    We should not be preparing the speech in our mind as they are talking; we should hear everything that needs to be said and then wait a good 60 seconds before we respond.  Your response might even need to be, "I hear what you are saying and I would like to be in a rational state of mind before talking about this any further."  Then, just step away and do what's necessary to calm down.

    When we do things out of anger and immediate response, our actions and words can be extremely hurtful and they can't be taken back.  If you feel your blood pressure rising, so to speak, take 10 deep breaths - it does wonders for the both of you.

    Be attentive to the converstion at hand and remember; let them finish everything they need to say first, before you pounce in; I am totally guilty of this myself. - CiCi