HALLOWEEN...................

It is a huge debate:

Christians and Halloween.........

Christians must decide for themselves

and follow their own convictions about regarding the observance of Halloween.

When my girls were little, I did dress them up and take them door to door for candy. But now that they are older it isn't an issue anymore.

I can truly see both sides of the issues. Something strange happened to me a week ago. I have this witch that I have had for at least 10 years. She is big and scary. She has a wart on her nose and she sits on a broom. You can clap your hands etc and she will laugh this horrible laugh and her eyes light up this bright red.

Last week my middle daughter and I were having an argument. It got out of control and I started yelling. Yes yelling... and the witch was in the next room and started laughing so loud on her own...and wouldn't stop. I was very concerned. I even asked a few friends what they thought and they told me to pray about it. I never felt like I had an answer from God or anything but the next day when I looked in her eyes, I had this fear come over me. This certainly could have been all in my head.. I know that fear is not from God. We are to stand on His word.

So.....the very next day I opened the front door and said Satan get out of my house in the name of Jesus and I threw her out as far as I could throw her....lol

My husband came home the next day from being out of town and he saw the witch upside down on the front porch. He could instantly tell that she must have had a quick exit from the house...lol

And yes... He thinks I am crazy..... I tried to explain to him what happened. But the more that I talked the crazier I sounded. He did pick her up and put her somewhere and told me she was gone. My hope is to find her a new home before next Halloween...(just a little side story)

I can't help but think that we have to get out of our comfort zone for God.

We are called to reach out in a world that is filled with danger and be the light that Christ calls us to be..

Halloween brings people of the world to our doorsteps and our neighbors out in the streets.. Maybe we should think of creative ways to use this time to seize this opportunity for developing new relationships and sharing our faith. God calls us to be in the world but not of it....After all these could be actual people that we need to seek and reach.......

I truly believe there is no right or wrong answer. One's convictions about Halloween must be individually sought, individually found and personally followed. We should not judge!!!

I would love to hear your thoughts on this matter....

Blessings,

Robbie

CONFUSION...........................

The first thing the enemy does in your soul:
CREATE CONFUSION.......
How many times has it gone through my head in the last few days?
1) Am I the person I should be?
2) I am not worthy to approach God!
My prayer on the way to work one Friday: Please God let me be like Abraham, take me out of my comfort zone. Give me the patient you want me to have today Lord. Let me be a blessing to them. Let me stand before you today Father and bear good fruit...
Right after my prayer...pure fear came over me..........I wished I hadn't prayed that prayer. Why? Maybe unbelief? Maybe lack of Trust? I have felt the enemy stepping it up with me last week. I have had confusion, which has brought fear, which then brings weakness and this is when the enemy strikes and hits you below the belt...
Before going into work I had a long hot shower. My hair was clean. My clothes were fresh and as I sat down to get report from the nurse I happened to glance in my patient's room that I was getting, and I knew instantly that this was not going to be good.
Where is my trust? Is my trust dependent on God taking me out of my comfort zone as long as it isn't dangerous???? Is it OK for God to take me out of my comfort zone as long as it is easy? The look on my face as I was getting report was painful.......
This was my report:
1st pt: 20 year old female, pregnant with her 4th child when she first came into the hospital, and unsure of a diagnosis at this point (lots of symptoms that didn't seem to fit any one diagnosis). She has been unable to be taken off of the breathing machine and now has a trach. She has had what we would call a "rough" start in life, with lots of areas and decisions that she has made up to this point that have not been the best ones (from the way we see it). She has several infections that cannot be touched with antibiotics because all of the different infections that she has are now resistant to these antibiotics (because of the multitude of antibiotics that she has already been on to try and fight these infections)..............Her kidneys are now also shutting down and this is requiring her to be on dialysis. She needed a blood transfusion because of some bleeding in her lungs which have caused her hemoglobin level to drop. She also has lupus, and her body looks like the body of an 80 year old because of all of the medical complications she has faced just over the past few months. There is a lot of blood coming out from her trach site, which is HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS!!! So I must be very careful......
2nd pt: 50 year old, heavy smoker who came in for shortness of breath, dying with lung cancer that has metastisized all over his body. At this point, there is nothing they can do for him but send him home with hospice. The wife remains at the bedside. They have just been told all of the news and they are devastated.
Hope you have a great day. See you tomorrow.
That was my report..... What am I supposed to do with this? Fear!!! Confusion..... Am I going to catch what this one girl has and take it home to my family? Am I going to get her infections that are resistant to all antibiotics.
Then the nurse says "forgot to tell you...she is on the bed pan every 15 minutes. And she is having LARGE bowel movements each and every time."
I just sat there and wanted to cry. I could feel my eyes starting to water. I thought WOW..... I CAN'T DO THIS... I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS... WHY CAN'T I BE A STAY HOME MOM!!! I want to be back in my comfort zone at this point, but I also want God to use me?????
Then the nurse (I never thought she was going to leave) preceded to tell me about her code status and how her family never come to see her. No friends, no family... she is all alone...
I looked at her through the glass window and saw this pale child-like figure. She had freckles and looked like a baby. I could not believe that this child had children of her own. I wondered if she would ever see them again. Then I thought how unfair life had been to her. No matter what she had done, she did not deserve this. Then I prayed for God to give me the strength to be a good nurse to her. Because with everything in me I wanted to run.......
Why do I want to run away from the very thing that I ask God to do in my life?
Fear and confusion are not from God..... Confusion comes when we are trying to figure something out instead of taking it to God and laying it at his feet. I just kept staring at her, thinking "I don't want to go in there". Confusion came...then fear....Fear took root and grew. This is where the enemy wants to take us. Sitting around, thinking about it, and talking about it only breeds fear... It basically drains our faith.. This is true with anything in our lives. Talking about your issues constantly only drains your faith.. Take it to the Lord and leave it at the foot of the cross. We need to start believing the Word of God. We need to memorize scripture!!! It IS the sword in this dark world. We must shut our mouths and stop our stinking thinking and stand on the word of God.
GREATER IS HE WHO IS IN YOU, THAN HE WHO IS IN THE WORLD...... Satan is roaring around like a prowling Lion waiting to devour us. If we don't know the word of God we will fall prey. The guilt that I felt for my thoughts on that Friday of not wanting to go into that room haunted me until church on the following Sunday. Pastor talked about how good we feel for God one minute and then the next we feel like we have failed him. Disappointed him again. But time and time again God is right there cheering for us, longing for us to come to him and through our weakness He is made strong. Not by my might but by His super-natural strength....
I did go in that room and for two days I was caring for this child. By the time my shift was over on that Saturday, I wasn't even wearing a mask and goggles. I was no longer letting fear grip me. I decided...I am going to trust the one who loves me. His word tells me everything I need to know. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I WILL FEAR NO EVIL.............God doesn't want us to try and fix it. He knows we are not capable... He remembers that we are dust.... He forgives us every time we repent and turn from our evil ways. Pastor said, He forgets what we remember and remembers what we forget...... We forget that we are weak, God doesn't. We remember when we fail God.... God doesn't... He forgets the sin that is playing havoc in our lives. We are giving Satan that foothold. Jesus died on that cross for us. It broke those chains that enslave us. That hold us captive to our own thoughts. Every time you have a thought that comes to your mind that is not of God, recite scripture and it will set you free every time...
Don't be afraid of the unknown, the scary situations, the uneasy circumstances that God may be placing you in. Don't FEAR the UNCOMFORTABLE. You may be the only light that those "patients" ever see, or the last one that they see...what a blessing to be able to be uncomfortable for God during these times. We don't have to know what to do. We just have to trust that He does...and be willing to walk through the doors. Stop looking through the glass window at the situation and dreading what the rest of the day holds...be humbled, grab hold of God's hand that is reaching out to you, and get in that room. You are placed and can be used for such a time as this. FEAR NOT!!! GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE!!!!
So, so tired of being a prisoner in my own mind and being stirred for the uncomfortableness that the Lord has for me,
Robbie

John Piper - Why Memorize Scripture?

MAKE SURE YOU SCROLL DOWN AND TURN OFF OUR MUSIC FIRST!!! THIS IS ONLY A COUPLE OF MINUTES; PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO BE STILL AND LISTEN...

Grace....................................

Wow I can't believe that the week is almost over. My husband is out of town tonight and the girls are upstairs getting ready for bed. Amy flew to Rome this week; yes Rome.. And Jen well who knows where she is...lol just kidding. She is in graduate school. So it is me who gets to blog...

I wanted to tell you about my church pew.. It has always been a dream for me to have one. I know I am a strange.lol.. I found one in an antique store in Matthews, NC. It came from a church in Asheville, NC. It is over a 100 years old. ??? That's what the man said anyway..

My middle daughter Gracie made me laugh because she said; "mom you can't put pillows on a church pew, it is Holy!" Then she proceeded to tell me that I am weird.... lol

Life is crazy lately and I think I am the main one who is making it crazier... I thought I would share some of what I have been learning in my bible study. It is about Father Abraham... I feel like the last few weeks that I have become his friend or something. I feel like we hang out in the wee hours of the morning. I have to admit it hasn't been fun on my part, because God is burning a few of my layers off again....I feel like I am always in the fire? Anybody else?

God called Abraham and by Faith Abraham went. The bible teaches us that man has always been saved by faith.....Thinking about this today, I wondered where was Abraham when he was called and what was he doing? Was he cleaning the house constantly? Buying groceries? Working the farm? etc. We know that he didn't have any kids yet? So what was he doing?

Abraham was called to leave his people, his country and his father's household and go to a land that he did not know, one that God had chose for him. Clearly Abraham was being called to leave his old life behind and to enter in to a completely different life; one that God had planned for him. What stood out to me the most while studying was: out of God's amazing Grace He is still issuing that same call to us.

When Abraham was called into a new life, the world around him continued on its own path, living a life apart from God. People were disobeying God and trying to build towers up to heaven so they could make a name for themselves.

It is interesting to me how much the old testament mirrors our world today. People wanted what felt good at that moment and today we want what feels good all the time. Man continues to fail by not following God and obeying him. Today in 2010, we still turn to our own efforts, and want things on our own terms.

We think; " If I can achieve enough, acquire enough, accomplish enough I can make my name great! This is the heart of Idolatry!!!

Scripture tells us that Abraham lived in a city called UR. Abraham and his family were moon worshipers. WOW......

Abraham did not know God and he did nothing special to deserve God's call. But God graciously called him and chose him. Just as God does for each one of us. It is His Grace that calls us to himself....

Abraham was called. We are called. There is nothing that we can do to earn it. It is by HIS GRACE.... HIS GRACE CALLS.... He even seeks those who do not seek him...That is amazing to me that He seeks those who do not seek him...

Abraham and his family participated in idol worship. We participate in idol worship. God in His love and His Grace continues to offer us a new beginning over and over again. When God spoke to Abraham, His purpose was to offer him a new beginning and that is His purpose when He speaks to us. Abraham was the first Jew and through His blood line God ordained the Messiah!!! Isn't that amazing? Abraham was a moon worshipper and God called him to be the father of many nations.

We need to believe, "We are who God says we are."

Everything we are studying in the old testament shows the Israelites were chosen by God for a purpose. This is huge; everything the (Israelites) went through is a foreshadowing for us the "CHURCH." Wow.....

God called Abraham to leave a place and everything he new behind. Don't miss this; He didn't call him to just leave a place.... He called him to leave a life of idolatry...and go to a new land that He would show him. A place prepared by God, where he would receive a promise by God. Where he would fulfill his purpose ordained by God.

God is calling each one of us for the very same thing. Ask yourself this question.

By Faith are you willing to go?

Even if you do not know where you are going?

Are you willing trust the true and living God to take you to a place of blessings and eternal inheritance?

That is His promise. God called Abraham out of what was comfortable, familiar, away from everything that he had grown up with all his life. God called Abraham because he knew that He had to separate him from the idols. It was a road block for Abraham and it is a road block for you and me.

What are your idols that are keeping you from moving forward with God and receiving all that He has to give?

God saw the danger of idols in Abraham's life. He sees the same danger for you and me. We may not be moon worshippers but our idols are in our heart. And our idols keep us from what God has for us.

The idols in our hearts are no better than being a moon worshipper...

Would you be willing to ask God what are the idols in your heart? What would God see when He looks into your heart?

Asking God to help me get rid of the idols in my heart>>>>

Blessings,

Robbie

Why is God so angry in the old Testament?

Last night I had my first class at Gordon Theological Seminary School. I am taking graduate courses for certification in biblical teaching. I was so nervous, I really had no idea what to expect. I listened to this incredibly knowledgeable teacher who at times spoke way over my head. I am blown away at how little I really know. God has given me such a treasure today that I had to share it. Our first lesson was on Genesis 1-11.
He talked about when Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, how they were warned. Do not eat the fruit from the forbidden tree or you will die.....Genesis 2:16; "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
We all know what happened! In Genesis chapter 3; this was the fall of man. Genesis 3: 6; When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave it to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
My professor didn't want us to miss this fact. They were told they would die, right? Well guess what they didn't die. In fact they lived very long lives outside the garden of Eden. Why do you think that is? Why didn't they die? Now they suffered greatly. But they were spared death? Why? Because of God's grace and His mercy!!!! Instead He chose this as an opportunity to show His love for the ones He created. He killed two animals instead and allowed them to cover themselves with the animal skins.
I received a phone call today from a friend who is studying the old testament. She was wondering why God was so angry in the old testament and loving in the new testament? It can seem that way until you look deeper. When you read the Bible it is clear: GOD IS THE SAME GOD TODAY THAT HE WAS YESTERDAY AND WILL BE TOMORROW!!! In other words even though the bible is 66 individual books written on two or possibly three continents, in three different languages, over a period of approximately 1500 years by more than 40 authors, it remains ONE UNIFIED BOOK from beginning to end without contradiction.
Clearly: God is NO different in the Old Testament than He is in the New Testament!!! God by his very nature is immutable (UNCHANGING)....
Because of God's righteousness and Holy character, all sin present, past and future much be judged. But because of His love for us He provided a way that would be payment for sin!! A way that we New Testament believers avoid His wrath!! He sent Jesus to die for our sins the ultimate sacrifice!!!! Doesn't that make you want to scream Hallelujah??
In the New Testament, God's loving-kindness and mercy are manifested by: For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life!!!!
In the old testament God dealt with Israel the same way a loving father deals with a child!!! When they would start worshipping idols etc. God would punish. But each and every time, God would deliver them once they had repented. This is the same way God deals with us today, New Testament believers. Hebrews 12:6; "the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son." Don't miss this nugget. Every time in the old testament when God's wrath would wipe out human-kind, He would recreate them and He would recreate them better than before. He could not help himself!! He would always recreate... This is one of God's characteristic's. His MERCY and GRACE!!! He loves us so much...
1 JOHN 4: 10; This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a atoning sacrifice for our sins......
Oh how I pray this has blessed someone like it has me. When I find these treasures in God's word I get so excited that I start walking and talking real fast. I want to share it so bad with others. It's like I want to have the world's biggest conference call.
Remembering that God does not change like shifting shadows...(James 1:17)...
God Bless you all,
Robbie

Christianity has become a very natural and beautiful complement to receive. It feels good for someone to look at you and say, "wow, I can really tell you are a Christian". But is it enough? There are lot of people who play a good "Christian" to the eyes of those who are watching, but I've noticed in my own walk that it has become something so much deeper. Sure, I love to be complemented, especially for others to see Jesus in me. But what am I like when noone else is looking? What do I do when the doors behind me are shut and noone sees me anymore? Who am I then?
I shared a week or so ago about my walk and where I am going with the Father, and some things within me that need to change...Well, just as one thing starts to soften, another comes right behind it. It was a busy weekend, as Robbie mentioned in a previous post, at the hospital. I was in charge with one patient one night, and two the next...and for anyone who does not know...in a cardiac ICU in a level one trauma center, when you are in charge you shouldn't have patients. Well, that was not the case this weekend...all of the ICU charge nurses had patients. It can be very tiring and start to become so heavy to carry this load that I want to break...and sometimes I do. A few weeks back, I had to release myself from the chaos, go to the office, shut the door behind me, and cry. Sometimes I don't know how to react so I lose it and I either want to cry or yell.
What makes us get to this point? Where does the peace that Robbie mentioned earlier come from? Where does that trust and peace and patience and self righteousness and self control and goodness and love and joy and kindness go to in these times of chaos? Out the back door?
Because I believe that if these fruits were embedded within us, within me, that they couldn't leave me in these times of trouble. Sure others may be able to see God in me when I am bathing a patient and singing Amazing Grace in their room as I clean their back or when I hold the hand of a dying patient or a family member losing someone and ask them if I can pray with them. Sure my coworkers may see that I leave work after working a hard 12-13 hour night and drag myself into church because that is what "Christians" are supposed to do. Other units may see that I will go above and beyond to help them when the hospital is as busy as it was this past weekend and never swear or curse one time. Absolutely, they may see a glimpse of Him in the way that I respond to certain things and certain situations, but what do I look like when I'm pushed to the very edge?
I'm not a nice person...I want to throw my hands up, yell at the top of my lungs and then go hide in my room, with the door shut, and cry for hours until all of the "mess" is fixed.
I have to become more than just that "Christian" for the sake of a compliment. I want to be more than an outside Christian, wearing the Christian outfit of the day. I have to have the fruits of His spirit embedded so deep inside of tissues and organs that I vomit goodness and self control, that I cry tears of love and joy and peace, that I speak patience and kindness and self righteousness. I've said this many times, but I'm being faced with more and more that God needs to be inside of me, He has to be inside of me.
I feel like God gave me a revelation this past week. If you read a previous post of mine, I mentioned the comment about beauty and having God being seen from the outside because He was living so much within the inside of me that He flowed....well, I feel that He was showing me that once I begin to care about WHAT the outside looks like and I begin to take some "pride" (and I hate to use that word, but I pray that you see where I'm going with this) in what I look like from the outward appearance, then I will begin to have to change the inward to meet up. I will begin to want more of Him on the inside so that the outward will "look better". See, I'm one that could walk around all day in a t-shirt and sweat pants and no makeup and hair pulled back. But I need to freshen up a bit...put on some makeup, at least wash my hair and comb it, and be more "pleasant" to look at. But I begin to not care about the outward because I'm so focused right now on the inward, I'm working too hard on the inward. If I were looking in the mirror I would see that the outward isn't changing because I haven't started to care about that part.
Okay, I don't want to lose you...just know this. God wants to be more than a compliment that is payed to you. He wants you to be more than just in that "Christian" group of people. He wants to know you and spend time with you, and He wants to be with you when the door is shut and noone from the outside world can see within the walls of your house.
I want to leave you with this...talk to God this week. Spend some time evaluating your walk and your inward and outward appearance (and I'm not talking about beauty). Ask yourself where you are with the Father right now. Some of us need to bring God back into our lives and let Him encompass our life and our ways. It is about more than just being complimented, it is about really knowing God and finding His will and ways for your life.
In True Surrender to the One Who Can Break the Chains off and Change the Way I Look on the Outside and the Inside and Keep me out of the Wrong Group That I Want To be a Part of Just for the Sake of Being Complimented...It's So Much More Than That...There's So Much More To It....He's Worth So Much More...
Jennifer

Temptation

Today as I strolled through walmart grabbing powerade and snacks needed for a long day at the ball field I thought about 'Candy". Knowing that if I buy something like that for myself when I have my three boys with me, we all end up arguing about" why does he get that" or " It's not fair". So usually I buy treats on the DL. ( down low) Ha Ha- I end up looking like a chipmunk trying to hide whatever I'm eating. But today was different, I only had my 9 year old with me. He rarely asks for anything. He has always been like that, just likes to look. When you ask him if he wants something. He usually tells us that he doesn't need anything. Today my "needy" sons were at baseball practice. So Josh and I strolled around walmart. As we got near the "candy" area I felt nervous and wanted to run the other way, until I realized that just Josh was with me. Yeah I can go look at the candy. Well I felt the Holy Spirit teaching me as I walked through the tempting aisle. Every human being on this earth has a temptation, a weakness, a conviction. For Josh- candy or material things are not a temptation, but my other two boys would have a " sugar rush" from just smelling the candy. We know what tempts us may not tempt others. So the ideal thing to do would be to avoid that temptation, or temptation aisle. When Noah and Andrew are with me, I avoid the candy aisle. That way no one struggles, including me. So whatever your convictions are- stay away. If you cant afford material things, expensive clothes, etc.- then stay away from the mall. If you want to lose weight, or eat healthy- then stay away from fast food restaurants. In order to conquer our weakness, temptations, etc- we must pray every minute, at first, to get through the day. You will see that God will give you strength beyond all understanding and one day there will be no turning back. Once that test is passed, God will then chose another test. It all may seem like God is being hard on us, but he is getting us ready for his kingdom. Pray without ceasing and with everything give praise. Be strong and know that God will not give you anything more that you can handle. Pray, Pray, Read God's word. And be still. He is coming soon!!!!!
Amy