Manna Monday: So Long Selfishness

Good Monday Morning JT friends!!!

It's going to be a great Monday! Be encouraged this morning!

Today we turn our attention to Philippians 2:3, "Do nothing out of selfishness..."

Can you confidently say that each day you are focused on others over yourself?

I am going to be honest with you all here. I have to daily reprogram my mind through the reading of God's Word to be focused on others. I don't have it in me to think of others first. I have to yield to the Holy Spirit and let Him help me to prefer others over preferring myself. I have to let scripture remind me that God instructs me to think of others before thinking of myself.

Selfishness shows up in everything:

our marriages, parenting, work, friendships....

• We want to always be right in our marriage.
• We want to have more "time by our self" over biblically parenting our children to the end of each day.
• We want our work to be appreciated and celebrated instead of being overlooked and unappreciated.
• We want our friends to think of us and encourage us before we think about and encourage them first.

Selfishness is something we fight against each day as a believer.
Even when we do something for someone else in action, we still battle in our mind having to take the time to do it. Does that speak to anybody this morning? Let me explain what I mean.

A Small Selfish Story

About ten years ago, I was in the grocery store and in a hurry. I came to the butter section and there was this elderly man staring at the butter. He wasn't moving, his eyes looked glazed over due to the various choices of butter staring back at him. Before I knew it, he asked me if I could help him find whipped butter. He went on to say that he had been given strict instructions from his wife to purchase only "whipped butter." Ten years ago there weren't many options when it came to whipped butter. I was tired from a long day at work and couldn't get home quick enough. There was no where I had to be. I just wanted to be home. At first, I didn't mind him asking, I wanted to help. But as I looked at the butter section, everything looked the same and there was no whipped butter. My selfish thoughts came rushing in ("this is taking more time than I want it to take," I thought.) 

     Even though my actions appeared (to him and others) to be unselfish, the selfish war was raging within me because I wanted to be done finding whipped butter and go home. I was being "inconvenienced" at this point when there was no whipped butter to be found. It turns out there was one brand of whipped butter that we finally found out of all the choices on the shelf.

Dear sister, this is our sin nature. Don't be discouraged. We have the victory through Jesus to walk forward (1 Corinthians 15:57-58). Selfishness is a daily fight. Be watchful. Be aware. The battle to defeat it begins each morning when you surrender your mind to the authority of God's Word.  

Consider the following verses:

Galatians 5:26

Romans 12:10

Ephesians 5:21

Why Is Selflessness Important? 

Because it points others to Christ and not ourselves. We live out our eternal purpose when we point others to Christ. Our selflessness is a witness to the selfishness of the world. Our selflessness points to a greater good because there is nothing good within us except Christ.

I don't know what selfishness you are battling in your own life, but I know that we have help through the Holy Spirt and through the reading of God's Word to overcome it. I believe the greatest way we can become less selfish is to practice being selfless.

Is God calling you to prefer others before preferring your own selfish wants and desires?

Follow His leading.

Prepare your mind through reading scripture to win the war of selfishness each day because it's always there.

Fabulosity Friday

Happy Friday JT Friends!
As I told you in earlier posts, I am sharing real examples from my own life on the blog about the the two words God placed on my heart for 2012 to live out.
They are "prepare" and "listen."

 I posted last week about being a good steward of the time God has given us in each day, so therefore organization becomes more about making the most of the time God has given us each day, not about having it altogether in the eyes of someone else.

I wanted to share my most recent way of saving time in my home. It is my jewelry holder.

My lack of getting a handle on my jewelry was stealing time away from my day. It wasn't taking hours, it was taking second which turned into many minutes.

For me, it has been the little stuff that I needed to pay attention to in my home that has not been easy to find. These little things have had a place, but the place has not been as efficient as it could be. For instance, my earrings. They were in a jewelry holder in a drawer but they were on top of each other inside the drawer. Every time I would be looking for a pair of earrings, they were all mixed up and I couldn't find the other pair.

ARRRGGG!!!!

My jewelry had a designated place but the space wasn't an efficient. Does anyone know what I am talking about!!!!

When organizing your home, get out of the mindset that you don't have the time. That's the biggest lie and deterrent when it comes to organizing. Believe me, you do. Find it. Take one day at a time or one week at a time. Write it down on your calendar and make plans to do it. You will be SOOOOO glad you did.

 I pray today's fabulosity post will inspire you to find ways to prepare your own life.

And for my bracelets

If you want to find out more about how to make a jewelry holder go to one of my favorite websites centsationalgirl.com and find out how to make one. It is super easy, super fun and the result oozes fabulosity!
http://www.centsationalgirl.com/2009/05/diy-recycled-frame-jewelry-holder/

Prepare your life so you can focus on what matters for eternity, not get bogged down in wasting precious time!

Just for Women Wednesdays: The Search for Beauty

THE BEAUTY SEARCH
Have you ever thought about how you subconsciously look for things to make you "feel" pretty like monogrammed bags, pink i-phone holders, ruffled coats or spa- like bath products? Think about your hair color/cut, nails or makeup? What lengths do you go to when it comes to finding ways to have for beautiful hair color, pretty nails and makeup? It's the beauty search dear sister! It doesn't matter if you're a high maintenance woman who constantly has to be made up each day before stepping out the door or the mom whose wearing green polka dot rain boots in carpool who didn't get a shower that morning. Each woman equally desires for and longs to be beautiful. Think about it. The hunt for beautiful things can even be something as simple as searching for pretty scrap booking paper in the clearance section at Hobby Lobby to perusing the ladies section at Target looking for something "new" to wear.
 My Personal Beauty Search
I vividly remember when the frustrating search for something beautiful to wear from my closet began. I was in college.It became my focus each morning. In those days, I felt so ugly that I would change my clothes two or three times before I walked out the door! (Not now! Praise God!) No lie, my roommates could vouch for me today! But there was something greater going on inside my heart then. I wasn't remembering who I was in Christ! My mind was more focused on what I looked like on the outside (what I was wearing) than what was on the inside (my heart). I loved Jesus but I still struggled with this search to be beautiful. No one was telling me that I was ugly in college. But I felt it. Where did that beauty lie begin? It certainly never came from my parents or friends. With much prayer and reflection, I came to see I had let the things in the world like magazines,commercials, movies persuade me to believe that beauty really was skin deep. I knew better!
I have come to a place in my walk with the LORD that I embrace who I am in Him, not who I am "not" according to the world. When I start to feel low on the world's beauty index, I pray. I count my blessings. I thank God for "wonderfully" making me (Psalm 139:14).
The Beauty Search: Then and Now
As I was thinking about the hunt for beauty, I wandered how women searched for beauty years ago. So I went back a few decades and found the following. Guess what? It's still the same search. Searching for beauty transcends all generations.
Notice how magazines in the 50's appealed to this inner desire women have:

                                                        The search for beautiful things (1001 gifts)

                              The search to be beautiful (ways to improve your outward beauty)
Things today haven't changed! The search for beauty continues:


 It's not wrong to search for beautiful things. It's not wrong to be presentable for each day. It's not wrong to take care of the body God has given you and read magazines that promote healthy living. It is wrong when outside beauty become your sole focus. The Bible tells us true beauty in the LORD is timeless (Proverbs 31:30). True beauty is fearing God. It's what we become when we place all our devotion in Him. Placing our hope in beauty on the outside is deceitful because it fades. We all know that beauty fades! But we still need to hear it and have a healthy reminder of the truth. I say it because even though we all know it, we still think it and battle with our appearance daily! 
 
God sees the place where your true beauty lies- He looks at your heart.
What does your heart look like? Is it filled with a continual worldly pining for things you wish you were or had? Or is it filled with Scripture about who God is and who God says you are in Him?
Consider what the Bible has to say about the inward man:
(Place your mouse over the Scripture and it will come up)
• Romans 7:22
• 1 Peter 3:4
• 2 Corinthians 4:16
Most importantly above all we are made in God's image (Genesis 1:26). His image is the one that makes us beautiful, not our sinful nature.
You are beautiful in Christ.
God's grace in your heart makes you a timeless beauty. If you place more time focusing on the inside instead of focusing on the outside, you will become a woman who is greatly to be praised, not because of her outward beauty, but because of her character founded in Christ.
Dear sister, I am praying this for you today:
"that...he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,..." Ephesians 3:16

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Manna Monday: Are you Demanding Towards God?

What is your daily tone toward Almighty God when you pray?

 Is it one of selfishness or selflessness?

What are the first words that come forth from your mouth when you bow your head in prayer?

Do you bolt out of the gate with with a bunch of demands that you would like for Him to accomplish for you or are you daily humbly bowing before Him giving all your wants and needs in surrender to His will and authority?

The opposite of being demanding is being humble. The Bible instructs us to be humble, not demanding
(James 4:10; 1 Peter 5:6). When we are demanding, we are acting like we are in charge and treating God like He is supposed to "do" things for us. He is God. He is in control.Sometimes we don't even mean to be demanding. It may be that we have so many burdens and are in need of God's touch in our life that we fail to come toward Him with an attitude of humility.

Wherever you may find your attitude toward God, take a little time to examine your view of Him.
If you come to a place where you find your tone toward God demanding (be it out of a low view of who He is OR be it out of so many burdens that you are coming to Him irreverently), consider the following truths:

1.  God knows what I need (Matthew 6:8; 32)
2. God will take care of me (Matthew 6:31)
3. God answers prayers (1 John 5:14)
4. God is worthy of my praise and worship, not my demands (Psalm 8:1; 29:1; 92:1; 104:1)

I am praying for you this Monday.
I am asking God to use today's post to be a blessing in your prayer life. We have such a great God! Give Him ALL the praise and glory and get rid of a demanding attitude towards Him. Instead, come humbly before Him in surrender.

Being a Good Steward: Preparing Your Life

As I blogged about the other day my words for 2012 are "prepare" and "listen." You will be hearing me journey through these two words this year on the JT blog. When we think about being prepared we think about people who have it all together, sometimes they are the ones that you don't enjoy being around because it seems like they never drop the ball and it makes you look bad! I am not talking about being prepared like that when I talk about the word "prepare." I'll explain.

A Good Steward

In the Bible, a good steward is simply a manager. It was to manage a household or palace (Genesis 39:4-5; 44:1). I am the manager of my palace (he he!) as a stay at home mother. I am the one who is here and knows more about the "in's" and "out's" of the schedule, meals, laundry, engagements etc. I have been prepared, inside my home, but as I asked the LORD this year what He wanted me to work on, it was so clear, "Prepare your Home. Quit wasting time."

Ouch!!!!

It cut right to the marrow.

Now let me say this, my home is clean. If you walked in, you would think that I was prepared! But I knew in my heart of hearts that I could be better prepared in the places that are unseen. The junk drawers and laundry room. My closet. The attic. Organization for me is difficult because I am an artsy, creative person by nature. We creative persons don't like watches, schedules, or anything that has to do with everything finding a place. We can work with a messy desk and know where everything is. It has been easy to use creativity as a crutch to justify to myself my desk being a mess or my art studio being in need of some organization.

So here is where I am going.

God reminded me that HE is the giver of TIME (Genesis 1:1; Psalm 90:4) HE is in the business of CHANGE. When I yield to His leading and act in obedience to what He would have me do, blessings come. Since January 1st, I have daily committed to one area of my home to organize and get rid of the "extras" in my life that have been weighing me down and causing me to waste time in my day.

Loving the Laundry

The picture above is about laundry. My laundry room is little, but I wasn't using it properly. I had wasted space and would say to myself, " It will take a lot of time for me to get it in order." I didn't want to do it. But the more it rocked on, the more it was inefficient. So now, it's not. YAY!!!! It took me a few hours to get through it, clean it really good and organize the wasted space. WE Love our laundry room now!! I am working on a picture to paint to place on the wall above my washer and dryer to remind me of my blessings found in Christ as I fold clothes. I want the laundry to even be a great place where I can use the time God has given me to focus on him and not on how unorganized my laundry room is. This spring I am going to repaint it, but for now, I am working on the organization part.

                                                                          Before

After

Being prepared for me this year is about not wasting time. I am not talking about hours of wasted time. I am talking about minutes of wasted time that if things were in its place would make a huge difference in a day.

For me, it was looking for a stamp, a sharpie, etc.

God has given us an allotted amount of TIME for each day. To be prepared is NOT about being the person who never drops the ball. It is NOT about being the best person at being organized. It IS about preparing your life to be a good steward of the time God has given you in each day.

This is painful for me to admit, but I pray it encourages you to be prepared for each new day. To not waste time huffing and puffing about trying to find a sharpie, or a pair of jeans. Organize your life not to be super woman, but to be a good steward of the time God has given you in each new day!

                                                                            

Monster Trucks and God

What do monster trucks and God have to do with each other?

That is what I thought about when my husband said to me a few weeks ago, "I just bought us all tickets to so see Monster Jam." My son is in preschool and he is all boy-loves trucks, trains, anything outdoors, etc. This is the reason the tickets were bought in the first place.

Back to the conversation with my husband.

     ME: "Ohhhhhhhh!!!! OK!"

     HIM: "You will you go with us, won't you?"

I paused.

I waited before I replied with an answer.

Then I thought some more. (My thought was really this: "I hate monster trucks, I don't want to go.")

In the matter of a few seconds, my brain swiftly ran towards what I was going to do. I had to make a choice.

It was an obvious choice, right?

Do things for the kids!

Ummmmmmm..........really? Do I really have to go?

Thinking of Others over Yourself

Let me tell you how far a stretch this monster truck thing was for me. It was a stretch!!! A monster kind of a stretch!!!

I am not a monster truck attending kind of girl.

I like art.

I like music.

I like the color pink. (I REALLY like the color pink!!!!!!!)

I like christian concerts and conferences.

I DON'T like dirt or mud or loud noises. VERY LOUD NOISES say for instance, Monster Trucks!

Letting God's Word Guide Choices

It would have been easy for me to let the guys go to the show and love the loud noises and trucks all by themselves. Convicted, I knew I needed to attend as a family and support my son's excitement about monster trucks just by being present with him (moral support if you will!!!). My mind quickly recalled Romans 12: 10 and Philippians 2:4 which encourages believers in doing things for others and honoring others.

Monster Trucks was simply the avenue in which yielding to the LORD to do things for my husband and son was testing my heart to think of them over thinking of myself. If I had let my emotions and opinions guide my choices, I would have stayed at home on the sofa in my pink pajamas. But I was not going to consider myself and my wants above my family's excitement about monster trucks.

One More Test on Thinking of Others

When the day came for the "big show" I woke up with an awful migraine. My first thought ran to being able to stay home and not have to go to the monster truck show because I felt so bad. Then when I considered the Bible and what it said about thinking of others, I took my medicine and decided to rest up that morning in hopes that I could weather the migraine storm and be OK to attend the show in the afternoon. By the time it came to leave, I was good enough to go. I still had a slight headache but it was nothing like it was when I woke up that morning. Off to the show!!!!

Monster Truck Delight 

Can I tell you how much I enjoyed the show! I did!!! The reason I did was because I took an interest in what was important to my son instead of what was important to myself. I didn't place my thoughts on my headache or that I hated mud and loud noises and ugly trucks!!! I placed it on their delight. I found out what JOY I would have missed in watching my son attend his first monster truck show if I had given in and stayed at home.

The Christian life is about loving others and thinking of others before you think of yourself (John 13:34-35; 1 John 4:7)

Are you thinking of others before you think of yourself at home?

At work?

At church?

At Wal-mart?

On the Highway at a yield sign?

In the grocery line with a buggy full of groceries when another person behind you has only three items?

Are you yielding to the Holy Spirit as He prompts your heart to consider others before you consider yourself?

Don't miss the joy life that awaits you in Christ. Consider others before you consider yourself. Even if it's having to attend a monster truck show. You will be so blessed! I promise!!!

 

Words for 2012, not Resolutions

Drawn by Ashley, that's me! 2012

Hey Joy Treasure Friends!

 I am BACK!!!!

YAY!!!

I have missed my time here with y'all but I took some time off to enjoy my family during the Christmas season and take time to reflect on the new year.
New in Christ

Every year when the clock strikes midnight, I am reminded that in Christ I have a clean slate. For many people around the world, New Years is simply a time where everything bad in their life can be closed like a suitcase. It's a celebration of the life yet to come. For the world, there is a renewed hope in everything else but Christ. For me, just like the old year is gone and a new year has come, I don't have to wait for a new year to come to celebrate new opportunities and a renewed hope. In Christ, all things are new (2 Corinthians 5:17; Revelation 21:5). All things are new through Him every day, not just every year. It doesn't have to be a new year for you and I to know that we have a clean slate through Christ everyday. Let us really meditate and consider this wonderful truth!!!!

Getting Rid of the OLD

Three year ago, I began asking the LORD to give me a word or two for each new year, not a resolution. I asked Him, "What do You want me to focus on in my relationship with You, God? What is holding me back from growing in my relationship with You? What is something I need to change in my life as a wife and mother that I need to change that will benefit my family?" He began speaking to me through Scripture.

This year there are two more words for 2012. They are:




Drawn by Ashley, that's me!, 2012.

 

For my home life, the word God placed on my heart was PREPARE. I can't tell you how much time I have wasted trying to find sharpies, clothing, and different house ware items in my home. That's just a few of the things I have wasted time trying to find in 2011. The word PREPARE connects to being a good steward of what God has given me every day- my time, and my home. Preparing my home in a way that is organized makes being prepared for each day blossom out of an attitude of joy, not out of frustration due to wasted time looking for an "item." For instance, I had a junk drawer that was full of everything I needed, but the problem was, I couldn't find it!!!!! I had been looking for sharpies I don't know how many times in the same drawer to use for my son's school stuff. I never could find one. When I cleaned the drawer out, I found 12!!!! Yes, 12!!!!! They were there all the time and I had wasted time trying to find what was already present. So this year, I am focusing on changing the way I organize our home so that it makes sense for us. It is changing things for the better in our home!!!

God's second word to me was LISTEN. 

God speaks to me through His Word, my pastor and other believers. He speaks to me through life situations. But this time, God was asking me to listen more to what He was saying to me than to talk. He was asking me to be still and listen more. I thought I did a great job of listening to Him already. I really have learned how to listen to Him more, through the years, but this was a call for me to listen even more intently when I don't hear an answer. When I am confused or frustrated to make more time to listen to Him than to speak first. I guess you could say He was asking me to be listen before I speak to Him so quickly.  To look at each life situation before I start talking and telling Him what I want, what I think is the best answer. To seek His Word first and just listen.

So there you have it. These are my two words for 2012. So far, they are going GREAT! I have been making my way through my home organizing drawers and closets to be better prepared and know what I have in my household. And I am shutting my mouth first when I come before God and seeking to listen to His Word before I come at him through prayer with petition.

What are your words for 2012?

Do you have any?

I would love to hear!!!!!!

So glad to be back. Until next time!!!!!