CHRISTmas TIME!!!!!!

This is I have to say one of my fav times of the year.......However I have to ALWAYS be soooo very careful not to get caught up is all the HUSTLE and BUSTLE !! Do you ever find yourselves at the end of your rope right after the Christmas holiday has past wondering to yourself where in the world has this year gone and especially CHRISTmas?? It seems as though we keep our schedules so very busy that CHRISTMAS seems to sneak up on us and in a flash it is gone!! Well friends we only have 13 MORE days LEFT yes 13 and how busy are your schedules in the next 13 days?????? I want to encourage everyone to please STOP and remember WHY we are even celebrating this CHRISTmas for anyway and to reflect on the CHRIST in CHRISTmas and in that I encourage you to be in HIS word for those of us who went to tea I encourage you to start the seven day Christmas Devotion we were given in our gift bags "Christmas Joy" my girls and I started day one today the focus was concentrating on the reason for CHRISTmas Joy. May the rest of this season be filled with JOY ..............HIS Joy and may you find the time to be with Family and Friends and remember the TRUE REASON FOR THE SEASON !!!!!

"I BRING YOU GOOD NEWS OF GREAT JOY FOR EVERYONE! THE SAVIOR- YES, THE MESSIAH, THE LORD- HAS BEEN BORN TONIGHT IN BETHLEHEM, THE CITY OF DAVID!" lUKE 2:10b
until next time,
Merry CHRISTmas and God Bless,
Love, Cindy

WHY M.I.A. ????

Well I know I have been M.I.A. for a while now so much has gone on we truly are BUSSSSSSY!!
I now have EIGHT yes eight children living in my home. My 15 year old niece came to live with us and it has been a bit CRAZY however it is going well and she is becoming comfortable and adjusted so that is a praise report!!! I do ask for many prayers to continue to go up I have been homeschooling her and will continue to do just that so adding another to our classroom is a bit of a challenge but "ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD" thank goodness for that I have been clinging to His word alot lately!!! Anyhoo the holidays bring many things to our schedule as well as trying to find some MUCH NEEDED family time so I will continue to be M.I.A. until the first of the year I cant believe I just said that it is almost 2010 wow crazy to even see that date on paper or typing it for that matter............. yikes ok I hope to post more frequent after holidays
and if I dont post before than may you all have a HAPPY THANKSGIVING, A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS, AND A VERY HAPPY HEALTHY NEW YEAR IN WHICH TO GROW MORE CLOSE TO OUR KING!!!!! GOD bless you all!!!

Until next time,
Cindy :)

Best Day Ever!!!!!!

Ok so there has been alot of other best days too however today was the BEST family day in a VERY LONG TIME!!! We have not ever had a chance in last four or five years to all ride along in the same vehicle at once therefore making going places nearly impossible as a whole family or having two travel in seperate cars using twice as much gas so that was only a very rare thing we would do. Today we were able to ALL travel to the Gilcrease Orchards to have a fun time of picking pumpkins , apples, and eggplant it was a real treat and daddy was able to join so even better thanks to our big ol' 1986 Suburban yeah Jesus. After that we headed to lunch at good ol '
Taco Bell where we O.M.G. SAT INSIDE AS A BIG GROUP it was so nice now off to home we travel , once arriving home Bella and I put on our aprons and bake our VERY FIRST HOMEMADE YES FRIENDS I did say homemade apple pie oh my!!!! Can't wait to dig my teeth into that pie it smells wonderful in my home right now mmmmmmmmmmmmm yummo!!! Well I am going to go for now to finish spending my Saturday with my family just wanted to stop by and share it has been a while I left pictures of our day in side bar!!
until next time,
Cindy

First Week of Homeschool For 2009 School Year

Hello friend's, it has been awhile but with V.B.S. and now school starting I have had no time to even sit for more than 5 or 10 minutes REALLY I need more time lol!!! I have made it through one week of our homeschool year now 35 more weeks to go hee-hee who's counting right?????
So I am really feeling OLD as I was teaching my daughter how to start a car and all the things you do check horn, lights, mirrors and so on WOW I cant believe she is taking Driver's ED. O.M.G. RIGHT??? I remember as though it were yesterday I was teaching her to tie her stinkin shoes and now her DAD will be taking her to drive HIS car I so dont even know what happened to the time it is sooooooo frightening to me. So I was very convicted to not complain to count my EVERY blessing and to CHERISH EVERYDAY as though it were the last cause really friends it very well could be we just will not know when the day or hour may come. I am so blessed to homeschool my kiddo's I cant imagine life without them and this is huge for me I USE TO DREAD homeschool the last few years and could not wait for years end and now I am blessed and desire to teach my children all I can as long as I can and the time really does go by in the blink of an eye we have such a limited window with our kids and we can either be effective in that window or let the opportunities we have with them slip right through our very hands because of our own selfish desires: So I encourage you today if your kids are homeschooled go to public or private schools be involved in their lives make it a priority to put them above your selfish desires, wants, and ambitions there will be plenty of time for those (Lord willing)when our kiddo's are all grown up however the time we have with them as children is fleeting and gone in the blink of an eye so remember the next time you are VERY tired from a hard days worth of work and your child asks you to PLEASE read to me MOMMY OR DADDY and you say NOT NOW maybe LATER that there may be very few laters if any at all really keeping that mind set helps me to grasp EVERY MOMENT I can with ALL my 7 kiddo's....................
Just something to ponder I pray all of you Homeschooled or public schooled have had a blessed first week or week period may God continue to bless each of us and multiply our efforts........

Until Next Time,
Cindy

ARE we COMFORTABLE with Surface RELATIONSHIPS???

Surface relationships: What does that mean and is that the picture of the relationships in our lives? Well as I have been reading and studying on this topic "FRIENDS" for well over a year now a surface friend is really not a friend at all but an acquaintance. Surface friends are people we may like to a point we say hey to them know somewhat about this person however all we know about them is on the exterior level , for example they are married and yes have kids and live here or there but do we know any of the INTERIOR level this is when true intimate relationships happen. Knowing the interior of another is knowing their struggles and weaknesses and not for our benefit but to be curious and take the time to get to know and encourage them to be restored to Christ and to build one another up for HIS kingdom purposes not that of are own.
As I was looking into this more today I came across this scripture:
"A MAN WHO HAS FRIEND'S MUST HIMSELF BE FRIENDLY, BUT THERE IS A FRIEND WHO STICKS CLOSER THAN A BROTHER." Prov. 18:24
Now I will share the commets again found in my husband's Life Application Study Bible NKJV:
Lonliness is EVERYWHERE- many people feel cut off and alienated from others. Being in a crowd just makes people more aware of their isolation. WE all need friends( my adding of this : God was a relational God and we were created for relationships) who will STICK CLOSE, LISTEN, CARE, AND OFFER HELP WHEN IT IS NEEDED- IN GOOD TIMES AS WELL AS BAD TIMES. IT is better to have ONE such friend than dozens of SUPERFICIAL ACQUAINTANCES. Instead of wishing you can find a true friend , seek to become one YOURSELF. There are people who need our friendship. Ask God to reveal them to you, and then take on the challenge of being a true friend yourself.
The sentence above which says instead of wishing for a true friend you yourself seek to be one,
that has spoke profoundly to me over the last 6 months or so I have for the past 7 or so years been desperate to find one good friend a best friend so to speak. SO many people I know have ALL mentioned whom their "best friends" were and I became jealous/envious and longed to be known as someone's "bestest friend" ever. However I have just discovered in the most profound and convicting way that I was going about it ALL WRONG and for VERY SELFISH reasons indeed.
Let me explain : I have had people in my life ok I am about to get REAL with ya'll even up until this VERY MOMENT in my life whom I have expected to fill a certain hole within my heart and when they of course could not do this I have found myself frustrated with them and even mad,
and in the midst of dwelling in this disappointment of my needs not being met I find that the hole gets bigger and bigger because I have not ALLOWED GOD ALONE TO FILL THIS HOLE WITHIN. i THEN DO NOT ALLOW MYSELF TO TRULY OPEN UP TO THE PEOPLE IN MY LIFE BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT PROVIDING WHAT i IN MY FLESH "THINK" THAT THEY SHOULD BE PROVIDING ME. Until I allow God to come in and truly fill EVERY PART OF MY HEART so that I may say: I truly have "surrendered it all" to Jesus then I will not be able to enjoy the blessings of true Godly relationships wow. See I have been seeking a best friend not seeking to be a best friend yet selfishly seeking a friend to call my own best friend that is super selfish. My focus has now changed from self to how may I be a better friend how may I serve another. I believe we ALL need friends we were created by a relational God to be in relationships with others. I BELIEVE IN "best friend's" however not all can be best friends I believe these are few and are the ones in which we are the most intimate with that truly know us externally and internally they know our good points and bad points they are there to listen and care and help in time of need I also believe we can have this with just a friend too however we cant have it with more than a few these types of friendships require work my friends they are like a marriage and we all know A MARRIAGE ONLY WORKS WHEN BOTH parties put in the effort in the marriage this is also needed with our friendships time and effort on BOTH SIDES IS REQUIRED IF WE WANT TRUE FRIENDSHIPS TO EMERGE. I know we are ALL very busy however I also know the importance of having friends with other women, Yes God should be our BEST friends over all and husbands next however I believe God gave us girlfriends so we may relate with each other to help each other along with issues MOST males do not understand. It is a blessing to have someone come along side of us whom has gone through or is going through what we are to help encourage and get one another through it this is a true blessing to have that kind of girlfriend. My focus has changed now to not who can be my friend to meet all my thoughts and desires but to HOW can I bless another with MY friendship to them how can I be a better friend. I encourage each of us to (if we already dont know who they are and if we do thank God for them) pray for God to show you who those gals would be for us to have CLOSE friendships with and then dont wait for them to seek you out but you seek them out to serve and bless them and allow God to do the rest, and for those whom have those friendships already let those friends know how blessed you are for God placing them in your lives for a time such as this and seek to be that persons friend in an even more powerful way and watch God do amazing things. Dont get me wrong it is not bad to have dozens of aquaintances God puts many people in our lives for seasons for them to learn from you or visa vesra and maybe we are to mentor or many other reasons and that is ok however I dont believe we are called to be intimate with all we meet in fact it is truly impossible to put that much time into so many other people and thus is why they say you are TRULY BLESSED TO BE ABLE TO HAVE A FEW FRIENDS" or A HANDFUL OF FRIENDS because again it requires effort and time on both parties part.
May God bless each of us on our journey to be a good friend to those He places in our lives and may we allow the walls to come down and let them in to the most difficult parts of our lives and not just be "SURFACE FRIENDS" something to "ponder" our verse says: there is a friend whom sticks closer than a brother" well brothers know us in and out they know ALL our weaknesses and love us anyway. If a friend sticks closer than a brother than HOW MUCH MORE SHOULD WE KNOW OUR FRIENDS make an effort to know REALLY know your friends today and to let yourself be made truly known to them as well.

Until Next Time,
Your Servant,
Cindy

Wednesday July 29th 2 Peter chapter 1 and 2

WOW the Lord is speaking mighty thru His word and I pray as I share it touches and convicts us all to not just get by as a Christian but to continually grow.
In todays verses again we see the importance of loving others' and of growth in fact growth is essential. It begins with faith and culminates in love for all others', to keep growing we must know God we must keep following Him and to remember what He has taught us and is teaching us. We also need to know His word well so we have discernment to be able to resist false teachers among us.

2Peter chapter 1 says starting in verse:2) Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3) as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the Knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4) by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Many believers want an abundance of God's grace and peace, but they are unwilling to put forth the effort to get to know Him better through the Bible and prayer. To enjoy the privileges God offers us freely, we have "the knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord".
speaking about ch.1:3-4 The power to grow doesn't come from within,(that is for sure) but it comes from God we in and of ourselves cant we are not capable. Because we dont have the resources to be truly godly,
God allows us to be "partakers of His divine nature" in order to keep us from sin and to live for Him alone. When we have accepted Him into our hearts He then empowers us through His Holy spirit to be able to do as He wills.
2 Peter ch.1 5-9 reads as follows: 5) But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6)to knowledge self- control, to self- control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,7) to godliness brotherly kindness ,and to brotherly kindness love. 8) For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9)For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
speaking about ch.1:5-9 Faith must be more than belief in certain facts; it MUST RESULT IN ACTION, growth in Christain character, and the practice of moral discipline, or it will die away (James 2:14-17) Peter lists several of faith's actions: learning to know God better , developing perseverence, doing God's will, and Yes again gang LOVING OTHERS'. These actions do not just come automatically, they require WORK. ALSO FRIEND'S THEY ARE NOT OPTIONAL; ALL OF THESE THINGS MUST BE A CONTINUAL PART OF OUR CHRISTIAN LIVES. God empowers us and enables us in doing so thru His Holy spirit within us, but He also gives us responsibility to learn and to grow we must allow this process.
In 2 Peter chapter 2 the one real important thing that stood out to me in all the verses was being able to discern the teaching of false teachers and as our world becomes more and more darker and wicked we see this more and more even some authors whom at one time seemed to be of sound doctrine seem to now be in question this is why it is so important to live our daily lives being in the word of God so we know His truth for ourselves and will be able to say hey wait a minute this is not what God says. Please dont misunderstand there are still many good authors out there in which the Lord uses to minister to even myself however I am saying dont live your life soley by what a book says and always go to the word of God first then use discernment in reading others' books.

Prasie God for your word and for the fact that you do empower and enable us through your Holy spirit may we allow ourselves to be guided and directed by that very holy spirit within. May we take every step in obedience to you Lord.
In Jesus name amen

until next time,
faithfully yours,
cindy

1 PETER CHAPTERS 4 & 5 TODAY'S THRU THE WORD

HELLO FRIENDS!!!!! I have decided to share with you all some thoughts, insite, or things the Lord is speaking to me on as I go thru the word daily. Today we were finishing up 1 Peter chapters 4 and 5 while reading 4 I again am drawn to verses speaking of Loving one another..................... beginning with verse 7 which reads as follows:
7) "but the end of all things is at hand; therefore be SERIOUS and WATCHFUL in your prayers. 8) And above ALL THINGS have FERVENT LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER, for "LOVE WILL COVER A MULTITUDE OF SINS." 9) Be HOSPITABLE TO ONE ANOTHER WITHOUT GRUMBLING. HERE IS THE DEFINITION I found on fervent: having or showing great warmth or intensity of spirit, feeling, or enthusiasm also passionate or impassioned. SO FRIENDS THIS IS HOW WE ARE To LOVE ONE ANOTHER not with a fake love or a forced love(see 1 Peter 1:22) but with enthusiasm and warmth and again to ALL with intensity can you imagine if we all do this how amazing the body of believers could truly be something to ponder.
Again in my husbands bible I would like to share the study part of what it says at bottom of Bible (his bible is the Life Application Study Bible NKJV) :
this is what is said about verses 7-9:
We should live expectantly because Christ is coming. Getting ready to meet Christ involves continually growing in LOVE for God and OTHERS' (see Jesus' summary of the law in Matthew 22:37-40) It is important to pray regularly, and it is also important to REACH out to NEEDY people. Your possessions, status, and power
will mean NOTHING in God's kingdom, but you will spend eternity with other people. invest your time and talents where they will make an eternal difference.
(for more about hospitality see Romans 12:13)
Again we are seeing how LOVING EVERYONE is really not an option it is however a command
it is in countless scriptures and we see it yet again in todays' verses and when we are loving as God has called us to be doing... not suggesting it says here in todays' verse 4:8 that love will cover a multitude of sins. we were shown by a gracious God that same Love in which our many sins too were covered in LOVE so we in turn have a duty to do the same for ALL Jesus paid to high of a price for us to pick and choose whom we will love and not love or accept and not accept if they are a child of God we must accept them all each one with all their differences... following this verse we are called to be hospitable to one another and without grumbling. It says to one another not some not the likable people not our FRIENDS but to one another. I would like to encourage us all (myself always included) to be hospitable to a new face we may happen to see at church this week because I know there are many new faces gang and if we all do it to just one person we see wow can you imagine the possibilities amazing to think about.
I am now brought to chapter 5 of 1Peter and the verses that stood out to me were as follows:
5)Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, ALL of you be SUBMISSIVE to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "GOD RESISTS THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE." 6) therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7)
casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. I love that we can go to God with anything simple or huge and if we cast those cares and burdens onto Him He will care for us and see us thru whatever we may find ourselves in at that very moment if we are faithful in laying it down and not picking it back up again (easier said then done however "with God all things are possible") now in the verses to follow we are warned so to speak to: 8) be sober, be vigilant because your adversary the DEVIL walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour 9) RESIST him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. 10) but may the God of all grace who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus after you have suffered a while perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. Praise God gang and the only way to resist the evil one is to be in the WORD of God daily
seeking God's face for our lives and being doers' of the word and not just hearers' only we must walk the walk as we talk the talk. May we be encouraged by the word of God knowing He cares for our every individual needs and desires may we humble ourselves in the sight of our Lord that He may exalt us in due time. May we also just be on guard friends that there is a very real enemy out there waiting to destroy us and to be on the look out for his smooth ways however remembering he has only the power we give him so may we not even allow him to get a foothold in our lives. May God bless each one of our lives and multiply our efforts as we serve Him.

Until next time,
cindy