Wow! What a week!

I. love. this. man! And I'm so very proud of him and the way God is using him!

So many things have happened since last week at this time! The BMA National meeting in Fort Smith, AR last week will forever be a special time for me. We missed the Monday night meeting because Turner had a ballgame and mom and the coach can't miss the first game of the season! :) The Oregon State Beavers (yes, that is his team's name!) lost in a nail biter and then we were off!

Tuesday morning I actually went to the WMA meeting at 8:30! I know, right?!! Who would ever think that! I had three precious young ladies taking part and they had asked me to go, so I went. Courtney Jordan said a prayer and Molly Bowman brought and amazing devotional on transparency. Molly and I have talked so much about that over the past few months and how others need to see that we don't always have it together. Christians mess up. Christians aren't perfect. Christians aren't always even happy. The thing is to be honest and open and allow God to use the things in our lives to point others to Him. She was awesome!

Then Courtney Luck shared about GMA Retreat this year....can I just add right here that I love these girls so very much??!!!!

haha!! we're so cool!

We left the meeting early and then sat around and visited with our future BMA missionaries...3 of the 4 that were elected. WOW!! I'm telling you, holy ground, folks! There are some amazing young ladies God is raising up in our midst and I was humbled to be sitting there talking with them all.

I then spent time down on my knees, literally, for the Missions Advisory Board and those ladies going through their interviews. My heart was full when I got the text that "all went great! unanimous...all approved!" God is so good!!

Tuesday night we had CHURCH!! It was awesome!! Antioch's praise team and choir led worship and then my man preached! There wasn't a prouder person in the place than the one sitting middle seat, second row center! God's Spirit filled the place and we were all challenged to never give up! don't quit! Run the race well til we run into the arms of Jesus at the finish line! Won't that be awesome...to look and see Jesus waiting with arms open wide telling us to "come to me"....aaaahhh!! To be held in those mighty arms!!

Afterwards it was awesome to watch folks that are so special to Jason stand in line and hug his neck. Many tears were shed by lots of men that night (and yes, of course the ladies too!). It was so cool to have Bro. Horton introduce Jason as the speaker and then Bro. Grady Higgs to thank him for a job well done. Two very special men that Jason has had the blessing of working for and learning from. I went to bed this night with my heart very full!

Wednesday I was actually up and dressed and at the meeting at 9 to go hear the Lifeword report. Then snuck out to go eat some Cracker Barrel with Sarah, Jan and Margaret...yummy! I then spent the rest of the morning/early afternoon relaxing and visiting with my precious friend....listening to worship music and praying! A very special time!

the big night!! I'm such a proud friend!!

We got word early afternoon that Jason had been elected as the 2nd VP of the BMA....haha!! He was thrilled! He will be great serving as an officer! Super ideas and a heart for people! Yep! That's my man! :)

We made it back over to a little bit of the meeting...okay, actually we had to be there to win an Ipad if our names were called...they weren't! :( Oh well....then the emotions of the day hit! I dropped Sarah back off at her room and I knew she was nervous about the commissioning service and having to speak, but I knew God was already using her....has been for a long while! I made it back to my room and then cried and prayed and prepared myself for the evening.

Jason introducing Sarah: "Its been my privilege to be her pastor at her second home while she has been at Central Baptist College...we are fortunate to have this young lady going to the Philippines to serve in our behalf...she will do an amazing work. Sarah has a commitment to the Lord, a devotion, a surrender, a love for the Lord that is an encouragement to others, a blessing to others and quite honestly sometimes even convicting to others. She has endeared herself to our church and on a very personal note she has endeared herself to my family. We love her and we are very very proud of her!" Yes, I was crying by this point! So very true...all of it! He did a super job!

Sarah then shared her heart, and oh how I love that heart! She has a relationship with the Lord that few have these days and her desire is for everyone to really know Him! To seek Him, to love Him, to surrender to Him. I am so challenged by her walk and I thank God daily for putting such an amazing young lady in my life; not only as just another college student, but as a very dear and precious friend!

Jason and I were able to stand with her and her parents while the commissioning prayer was said and wow! It just blessed my socks off! As I was standing there, I thought of last years meeting and standing there with two other young ladies we were sending off to spread the gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth and my heart just about burst!! I'm so very thankful and grateful and humbled to have had the blessing of knowing these girls! It was a very special night with many tears...tears of sadness because of the one who would soon be leaving us, but also tears of joy because of the ONE she was surrendering to and giving her life up to serve!!

Thursday morning Jason had a meeting....oh to be an officer! We then headed back home to see my kiddos!! :) Oh they make me happy! We had a fun evening together and grandmama and granddaddy came through and spent the night and went to Turner's game....the Beavers won!! oh yeah!!!

Friday and Saturday was busy with a sleepover for Turner, friend's house, Pizza Inn and birthday parties for Landri; and I rode to Springhill, LA with Sarah so she could speak at a GMA district House Party....yes, she is now the missionary that all these young girls will look up to, study about and pray for! That's just awesome!! We made it back to the house about 1:45 a.m. and then went up to Damascus for a WMA breakfast Saturday morning...she spoke there as well and did a fabulous job! Spoke for 40 minutes! :) It was fun to see those ladies respond to her, they just loved her....fun times!

Sunday was another Antioch Sunday! They're always fun and always a blessing! CrossTraining and the sermon went along with the whole week I had just experienced....out of Luke 9:23 "Then he said to them all, 'If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.'" Not that we daily take up struggles, but they we daily lay ourselves open to Him for Him to work in our lives that His glory may be seen. Its easy to deny ourselves when all we want to do is please Him and seek Him and give all glory to Him! Its not without tears and hurts, but knowing the "will of God will never take you, where the grace of God won't keep you" is always such comfort! He's always there! He's always trustworthy! He's always faithful! and HE is ALWAYS ENOUGH!! Oh the blessed assurance of His promises!!

so very thankful to God for blessing me with an amazing godly husband that always seeks God first and foremost in his life and his daily walk! also thankful he blessed me with a friend that has encouraged me in my walk with him like no other friend ever has! talk about accountability...this chick will do it! :)

"I'm praying!"

Why do we look to get from others what only Jesus himself can give us? Why do we need words of affirmation and encouragement from them when we hold His love letters to us in our hands? Why do we want others to really get it, when He already knows it all? Why do we give Him our problems in the morning only to pick them up again by lunch? Why are we so stinkin' needy??

Well, I don't know the answers to all these questions....they're just ones I've asked! I do know that He tells us in Ecclesiastes 4 that He never intended for us to be a lone ranger, we were designed for relationships. A friend increases your yield, helping you to reach the potential He's destined for you. We we fall, a friend can be there to help you up. We should pity the person who doesn't have anyone to stand with them. He goes on to tell us that a three cord strand with Him at the center is not easily broken...not even during earth-shaking trials.

So maybe in those verses lie some of the answers to the questions...He doesn't want us to do it alone. He created us to need each other. He created in us a void that only He could fill and many times those friends point us to Him. We've all heard the verse that there is no greater love than this, that a man lay down His life for His friends....that's how much He loved us! He died for us!

Did you also know that He prayed for us??? Yes, Jesus prayed for us! In John 17:20-21 "I pray for these followers, but I am also praying for all those who will believe in me because of their teaching. Father, I pray that they can be one. As You are in me and I am in You, I pray that they can also be one is Us. Then the world will believe that you sent me." Do you know when He prayed this? The night He was arrested! The night he took His three closest friends away to be near while He prayed...and they slept! That's the love He has for us....He was praying for us while facing the greatest death in history and His best friends slept...that's love folks!

Oh, how I thank Him for loving me....even when I'm the one who might be "sleeping". I thank Him for giving me the gift of His word that encourages and uplifts and tells me in every page just how much He loves me! As for friends, those who you are bound to with Him as that center cord, what more do we really need to hear from them at times than the simple words, "I'm praying!"?

I know this has been a rambling post, but I'm just typing as I'm thinking and trust me this head is in chaos! :)
I'm humbled this week to be a part of a meeting where my husband is preaching the big message of the week and one of my dearest friends ever is giving her life to missions...just like the love of God, I did nothing to deserve their love or friendship, but I'm glad He decided to bless me with both of these marvelous folks in my life! He KNEW I'd need y'all!!!

A Fuzzy Focus

A Fuzzy Focus, I think that is how I can describe my past few weeks, if not past couple of months. I mean, I know all the Sunday School answers for things....
*Yes, God is faithful! Matthew 28:20 tells us that...."I will be with you always, even until the end of the age." Can't get much more faithful than that!
*Yes, His grace will see me through...as he tells me in II Corinthians 12:9 "My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you."
*Yes, He will comfort me...II Corinthians 1:4 "He comforts us every time we have trouble..."

This list could go on and on...He IS my Faithful God! He pours His grace out in abundance! He comforts me like no one on earth can! He is my forever friend! He is where my rest and peace is found! So why the "fuzzy focus"???

Well, it hit me last night, I said I got a "holy kick in the booty"! I've been doing my Bible Study, praying, listening to praise/worship music, but my focus was not on Him entirely! There's this "huge purple horse" that is kind of sitting in the middle of the room, or the car, or wherever I am these days. A day I dread that is rushing upon me faster than I care to even imagine, but its coming and I've let worry and dread over that take focus off of Him. I've failed to worship Him and have allowed fears and insecurities be worshiped instead....OH but praise His name! He can take failures and cause us to fall forward!

How I thank Him for verses like Psalm 37:5 "Depend on the Lord; trust Him, and He will take care of you." and Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest." Yes, there may be days ahead that are very hard, but oh what blessed assurance knowing that I can trust Him and He will care for me (and those I love so dearly!) and that if I just give it all to Him, He WILL give me rest and hold me in those ever-loving, ever-gracious, ever-merciful, ever-caring, never-ever-ending arms of Love!

Oh, God, I'm thankful for Your promises and I'm counting on them!

What a weekend!

God showed off!! (picture taken by Molly Bowman)

What a blessed weekend I had! I went up to Solgahchie (I have no idea if that is spelled right!) Retreat center with around 100+ of our youth and had an amazing time. God showed up and showed out and we loved it!!

The whole retreat was centered around the word "abide" based on the Bible verse John 15:4, "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me."

A few things I took away:

*Trust: often means that I may have to say, "God, I don't understand, but I WILL trust You!"

*For others to be impressed with our life-styles or good deeds those have to be consistent!*Abiding in Him is a disciplined marathon, not a sprint!

*Discipline is that determined effort on our part that corrects, molds, and perfects the character of a person. Holy character does not come all at once, but over a lifetime.

*Abiding in Christ has to be more than a Sunday/Wednesday routine, it must be a daily desire.*Disciples are hand created, not mass produced.

*Our responsibility it to make ourselves available to Him.

*God is the God of second chances....and thirds! and fourths! and fifths! etc! Thank goodness!!*What areas of my life fail to glorify God? oh wow! tough question!

I also took away memories I'll treasure forever. For the past few years I've taught high school girls Sunday School (Cross Training) and I will have to say that my class of Seniors and Juniors this year is absolutely amazing!! Shawn had all the seniors come up and wow!! What a crew!! These are young ladies daily abiding in Christ and they encourage me in my walk as they humble me by watching theirs. They have a trust in God and a love for others that is so much fun to watch! They are a special group and Shawn already had me crying....oh how I hate to lose this crew!! You all are so very special to me and a HUGE reason that I don't live my life just going through the motions anymore, but really desire to follow His plans for my life! I will miss you all so very much, but am SO excited to see how God is going to use you in your college lives! I just know He has big plans for you all and His plans are perfect! LOVE YOU ALL TONS and thanks for the ride the past few years!

The amazing Jr/Sr Girls of Antioch:

Maddy Smith, Courtney Luck, Mackenzie Yates, Andrea Thomas, Kim Graddy, Katie Hansen, Rhiannon Beard, Courtney Malone, Sarah Hebert (teacher), Beatriz Novais, Molly Bowman, me :), Lizi Arnett, Marissa Brantley, Sydney Stoner, and Megan Helms

Precious People!

Have you ever just known someone that is such an encouragement in your life that you cannot thank them enough? (Philippians 1:3 "I thank my God every time I remember you.")

The type of person that knows way more about you than you would want anyone else to ever know and yet somehow loves you anyway. (Colossians 3:14 "...most important, love each other.")

The type of person that when you are down, doesn't point you to anything of this world for help but always points you directly to the answer to all problems...our Father above. (Psalm 121:6-7 "The sun cannot hurt you during the day, and the moon cannot hurt you at night. The Lord will protect you from all dangers; He will guard your life.")

The type of person who, may not always be smiling, but always has the joy of Jesus Christ shining in their life. (James 1:25 "But the truly happy people are those who carefully study God's perfect law that makes people free, and they continue to study it. They do not forget what they heard, but they obey what God's teaching says. Those who do this will be made happy.")

The type of person who is always the first to serve....anyone! (I Corinthians 12:4-5 "There are different kinds of gifts, but they are all from the same Spirit. There are different ways to serve but the same Lord to serve.")

The type that have more humility in their little finger than most of us will have in our entire lifetime! (Proverbs 29:23 "Pride will ruin people, but those who are humble will be honored.")

The type of person you just know that if God has a refrigerator their picture is on it! If He carries a wallet, a picture is there too....just because they make Him smile! (John 15:15 "..but I call you friends...")

The type of person that their walk talks MUCH louder than their talk talks! (I Samuel 16:7 "God does not see the same way people see. People look at the outside of a person, but the Lord looks at the heart.")

The type of person that is always at church, not to be seen, but to honestly worship Him with their fellow believers. (Psalm 100:4 "Come into His city with songs of thanksgiving and into His courtyards with songs of praise. Thank Him and praise His name.")

The type that no matter what the call of God on their life is, they will go, they will serve, they will love and they WILL make a difference because of the Light in their life. (Romans 11:29 "God never changes His mind about the people He calls and the things He gives them.")

The type you just love to love.

Well, I know a few...and I want to thank them for being in my life!

Jason.....what an amazing husband and daddy, but most important He is a man who seeks God in every decision made. This June we will have been married 21 years and its been an incredible journey through the ministry and I praise God for the trip!! I love you more than words can possibly say and am so thrilled to see God blessing your socks off!!! :)

Lisa Martin (aka "Tia"), has been a friend of mine for almost 17 years. An amazing picture of the word "servant". She is one that knows so very much about me and chooses to love me anyway! :) Thanks for being such a wonderful example to me! I love you!

Glo Jensen, another amazing servant of God! Glo is one of those precious people that you just fall in love with when you first meet her. She is TRULY a sweet person, not for what she can get from someone, just because God's love fills her and she just pours it out! I'm so very thankful that my family has been in that "splash zone" of her pouring so many times!! I love you, "Gigi"!!

Last, but not least, Sarah Hebert. Sarah is a remarkable young lady eagerly trusting and following God's will for her life. She is one of the most humble people you'll ever meet and its been a blessing to have her in my life to encourage me in my "walk" with Him!! And though she leaves us soon for the Philippines, she'll forever be near in our hearts! I love you, dear!

These are just a few that touch my life daily at this point in my life...there have been so many family and friends that have touched my life over the years....its seems God always puts someone there at just the right time! Isn't He just awesome??!!!!!

Who's your encourager in your walk? Who's that person that knows all about you and loves you anyway? Who's the one that is the epitome of God's love and a true servant and example to your life? Go thank them....NOW!! :)