Be Raw!

These facial masks feel so good! This one feels cooling on your face…a little mini-spa experience does a body good:).

Don’t be afraid to show your “raw” side.
(Sometimes looking like a Smurf feels good:).)
Smile at yourself and never feel like you have to put on a show for those around you.
My personality is pretty open regarding this as you can see above…lol…it is what is.
I like people, and you can see the good, the bad, and the ugly with me.
It’s freeing.

Women, don’t subconsciously be competing with other women around you, and in turn, be jealous or envious.
If another woman has reached out to help you in good faith – then accept their help.
It’s ok to let your walls down.
Why not build on the help of others?
You shouldn’t want to “do it all on your own” unless you want the “woe is me” attention.

Men, don’t subconsciously puff up your feathers and be “one-uppers” with the men around you.
If another man has more than you, be happy for them.
Look at the blessings you already have in your life, and celebrate with those around you.

I think the below verse says it all.

Philippians 2:2-4
“Complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (ESV)

Offended?

We were reminded at church yesterday that humility is an action.
It’s something we do just as Jesus did when he washed the disciple’s feet.
I mean who should have been washing who’s feet in that scenario, right?!

When someone offends you with words…
When they insult you with words…
When they use passive aggressive behavior towards you…
Heck, when they use plain aggressive behavior towards you…
…and whether they do it in a way where they actually feel “right” and “justified”…or don’t even “get it”…
DON’T BE OFFENDED.

Yea.

Don’t be.

We don’t have to be doormats of course, but…
…show compassion by speaking kindly to them.
We don’t have to agree with them, but in humility pray for them.
We don’t have to jump on their bandwagon, so, be patient with them – (they’ll fall off eventually).

It’s hard doing these things with just our human nature,
but when we clothe ourselves with what the verse states above
WITH the help of our loving Savior, Jesus Christ,
you begin to see the heart of those who are hurting you.

You see their insecurities, their brokenness, their anger, and a life they are not happy with.

When you see that through the eyes of compassion you can pray for them…
…you can speak kindly but firmly to them…
…you can stand with Jesus through all their insults and offensiveness…
…because He will never leave your side and will see you through the end.

Look up when others try to tear you down.
It’s not easy, but it is possible.

Happy New Year’s Eve!

Nothing beats Skyline Chili:)  Splurge and Splurge Big…lol:)

As we end the year today, I say ENJOY this last day!
This day counts.
I think of the below verse:

Romans 5:5
“And hope does not disappoint us,
because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit,
whom he has given us.”

Look towards tomorrow with renewed hope from the Lord.
A hope for a new start.
A hope to finish what you started.
A hope for healing.
A hope for not giving up.
A hope for taking on a challenge.
A hope to love those who are not easy to love.

Pray for your friends, family and enemies –
that they too may enter the New Year with the hope that only the Lord provides.

Don’t think you can do this life on your own.
Rest in the arms of Jesus.
Latch onto the love of the Lord.
Seek Him continually with every decision.
Seek Him continually in how you react with every person you come in contact with.

Go BIG or Go Home!
Tell others about His Grace today, tomorrow, and the next.
Jesus loves you – in a major way.
Happy New Year’s Eve!
Love, Sarah

God Moves!

I am so glad Rob’s mom and step-dad let me play on their toys:)

As I reflect on the past year, I know one solid for sure thing.
God moves.
He moves in BIG ways.
He moves in small ways.
Just like the equipment above can move earth so easily-with seamless effort,
our Lord Jesus Christ,
moves obstacles in our lives…
He moves hearts…
He changes hearts.
He changes lives!
If you have only one thing to look back on in 2014 –
I hope you see the Lord’s love in your life (even in the dark or sad times).
As you look towards 2015 –
I hope you feel His love with you now going into the New Year.
Ephesians 3:16-19
¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

What Are You Looking Through?

Window on old Coast Guard boat in Muskegon.

Have you been looking at your life through a broken perspective?
You feel you’ve taken hit after hit…
…gosh, you know no one understands you and your circumstances…
…so, you keep staring at the same set of circumstances…
…blaming the circumstances…blaming people…blaming God.
Well, maybe it’s time to turn around and look out a different window.
When you do you might just see you are not alone.
You have people who want to help.
You have people who have gone through similar, not exact, but similar circumstances who can shed light on new ideas…new thought processes…new direction.
At the very least you may find a little more joy in your life…true joy…and it not be temporary.
Let’s put it this way.
If you were wearing sunglasses with a chip in the middle of the lense it would cause headaches and irritation.
If you were driving with a chip in your line of vision in your window it would cause the same thing.
Would you not get both replaced or fixed?
It’s the same with your life.
You are the ONLY one who can turn and look through another window to see clearly.
Pray the Lord replaces your perspective, your vision, your view with His new plan for you!
                                                                               He will!

Psalm 18:28
                                                                              “For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.”

Straight Up!

Gracie – Park – August 2014

Do you ever just need straight-up prayer?!  I mean you be the one doing it!

As in…”I just can’t see the end result of what I want or need,
and I seriously need to lift up every ounce of breath I have to the Lord above”.

As in…”Well, since I’m burying my head in pure frustration I might as well also lift up my requests to Him,
and turn that buried head into a bowed head in reverence to Him.”

Or in a more “positive view”…
“Man, I should be thanking the Lord above for ALWAYS bailing me out
and being there for me whether I’ve been giving Him the credit or not.”

See, sometimes we just need to stop and pray…lifting up requests and thanksgiving BOTH.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 says it best, “…pray continually…”.

Yep…all the time…about everything…every decision…every choice.
So, stop for a sec…say a prayer (and don’t close your eyes doing it if you’re driving;)).

Do You Have a Potty Mouth?

I’m not admitting this is me in a porta-potty…:D  Lol…when you’re fishing the accommodations are not all that great necessarily.  I’d rather be in the woods sometimes.  Dirt is cleaner than some of these:).

I think we all can be guilty of using language that does not flatter us or lift up those we speak to.
When angry, upset, and hurt we can use words that are, plainly and simply – mean.

Do you cuss when you get mad and rationalize that it’s ok because you feel “wronged”?
Are you passive-aggressive, so, you really never say a nice thing to someone who upsets you?
(You’re going to make them suffer the way you feel you have suffered.)

When you say thank you to someone are you being sincere or are you really thinking “I told you so” on the inside?
Do you look pretty on the outside, but get nasty and look ugly after you just spoke angrily to someone (someone close or a stranger)?

Do you always feel you have to be right, so, you stink of resentment, anger, and bitterness?

There is a really good fix to the above – it’s in the below verses:

Ephesians 4:26, 27, 29-32
“²⁶ “In your anger do not sin”^[d]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
²⁷ and do not give the devil a foothold.²⁹ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths

(don’t say the “F” word at someone, don’t push their buttons),

but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
(That kind of covers it – wouldn’t you say?)
³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
(If God can forgive us, then how dare we not forgive others.)

Now let’s flush the potty mouth and be a breath of fresh air to those we speak to today, tomorrow, and the next and the next.

Yum Yum!

She’s lickin’ her lips cause she got to have a cheeseburger…she was very happy…:) – July 2014

As you get into the Word of the Lord you begin to crave it.
I find that I do.
I would say if you haven’t craved it then open the Word today!
Start with one verse a day.
The Word of the Lord IS sweet!
It satisfies.
If you feel like your floundering in life…pick up the Bible.
Open it.
You will find direction…
You will find purpose…
You will find peace…
You will find His will.
Not your will.
His will.
And His will is good.
Plain and simple.
Good.
Taste some of the honey!
Feel as good as Gracie did above:)
Lick those lips and taste His goodness.

Which Way?

Muskegon State Park – Gracie loving to explore:)  This park truly is one of my favorites!

I love these verses!

A couple of key points which stand out…

1)  THINK IT THROUGH – SEEK THE LORD (give careful thought to choices you have to make)
2)  With careful thought be then STEADFAST (be consistent with your decisions)
3)  During the journey of making decisions about life the Lord REFRESHES us!  Who doesn’t need that every now and then?
I know I do. 🙂
4)  And, finally, HE’S GUIDING us as we seek Him and keeps us on the RIGHT path.

I think the above pic illustrates just that.
If you stop and look at your path it may seem narrow, precarious, a little scary or even downright scary, but
if you are seeking Him, being steadfast,
you’ll be walking along that path just as sure as can be knowing HE is leading you and that the path is RIGHT.

And, you can walk it with ease like Gracie above…carefree with a joy in your step:).
Keep your focus…she is.
She’s on a mission and we should be too.

A mission to love the Lord with our whole hearts.
A mission to be a blessing to others.
A mission to love our families.
A mission to be kind to those around us.
A mission give credit where credit is due.
A mission reach out to those who are hurting.
A mission to reach out to those who are floundering.
A mission to be a better person.

You can do it!
He will help!

Perspective and the Big Picture

I love my babies…in real life I’d never get away with dressing them:)

The way we look at things in life really determines our day to day joy level.

How far we see into the future (the big picture) affects how we look at the day to day trials we come across.

I created the illustration above to give a visual of just that, and hopefully make you chuckle, but it illustrates a pretty deep message too.

The “Whoa is me.” perspective (see cat…lol), and the “By golly, it’s not great, but I’m going to see the positive in this.” (see dog…lol).
(By the way, their personalities are really like this:).

The better we see the big picture and not microfocus on the day to day frustrations, well, the frustrations really won’t feel so big.
Granted, I know we all go through various degrees of stressful situations, events, relationships,  etc. which can feel very overwhelming.
I am not taking away the fact we all feel stress, frustratation, (fill in the blank of whatever emotion you are feeling),
but it’s important to read the verse above when feeling those emotions.

Do you have a heavenly perspective?
This “stuff” we go through now…man, it’s going to be nothing when we see the glory of the Lord!

I ask you this then…
Since we do not know when the Lord is coming back (to heal this broken world but He is),
are you going to have the cat’s perspective or the dog’s perspective?

Look at yourself in the mirror.
Seriously look.
Let’s face it.
You can only control you.
You can only control how little or much you go to the Lord and ask for Him to give you strength, peace, comfort, etc.
You can only control how much you ask Him to show you the big picture.
You are the only one, with the Lord’s help, who can make you see the positive in whatever stress, worry, and frustration you feel.

The big picture is really bright even if you don’t see it just yet.
What happens today as life throws you curves?…
Well, I bet we will have wished we smiled a bit more when we look back a year from now,
five years from now, on this particular day or tomorrow, or the next day.