I’m Nothing Without You…

A girlfriend sent this to me four years ago and I just fell upon it again…too good not to share!

 

I’m Nothing Without You…

Lord I trust you, you mean so much to me.
Lord I’m nothing without you
I give you all I say and do.
Lord you’re all I want to see
Please close my eyes and mind to the lies that haunt me.
You’re the only perfect one,
So perfect I’ll never be.
And I’m okay with that.
Lord my body is your temple
And I want to treat it that way
Lord take away the obsession
To need to control how much I weigh.
Lord, I don’t know the reasons I do the things I do.
Please make them clear to me
So I can work on them and improve
Until then Lord I offer them all to you.
Lord you said no man can serve two gods
And right now I feel I do.
I’m so concerned about food
That it gets in the way of you.
Lord, I’m sorry for disobeying
And I’m sorry for not trusting you.
You’ve brought me this far so I know you won’t leave
Lord, I give you my life and my body
I give you everything.

Question of the Day

Every day I asked my team a Question of the Day.  My team consists of 44 – “20-Somethings” that, for some, are in their first professional gig.  They are all college graduates working in advertising with me and a true delight. My questions are sometimes funny, sometimes humorous and sometimes challenging.  I thought I would share some of their answers from my latest question…they’re quite good.  Maybe one of two can challenge you…no matter the age! 

 

Question of the Day: What One Piece of Advice Would You Give to a Graduating Senior From High School Getting Ready to Venture Out?

 

• Make sure you always have a plan B.
• Major in something that’s a trade like accounting or engineering. There are a lot more jobs in demand for those types.
• Have a balanced college life.
• Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching.
• I would emphasize to them not to rush themselves when it comes to choosing what they want to do in life, don’t rush to pick a major, maybe take a year off before going to college, realize that any great success or anything worth having in life, takes lots and lots of time and hard work, so be patient and practice practice practice. Know that you’re not going to be awesome your first try, what’s important is that you keep trying and trying, and learn from every mistake you make.
• Set goals of all sizes; daily/weekly goals but also bigger goals academically and professionally. Always strive to accomplish them and you will always be working toward something you want.
• The most important thing you can do to succeed in life is to show up.  Show up to class.  Show up to practice.  Show up to work.  Show up to support your friends and family.  Show up for life.  Success takes being there.
• Know who you are and what you stand for.  
• Laugh as often as you can and enjoy the moments you have with the people you love.
• Remember that the world needs people who will give a hand up, not a handout. Help people who don’t have what you have.  
• To have as much fun as you can but to be conscience of your future/rest of your life.
• Learn the credit card game.
• Study hard so you can play hard.
• Enjoy college and travel as much as possible
• Starting in the late fall or early winter, begin looking for internship opportunities that match your interested or career goals. 
• Dont spend to many hours playing video games. Applying the hours that would be spend on video games to something more stimulating or informative could pay huge dividends later down the road, especially allocating those hours at this young an age.
• You are in control of your own life.  No one is going to hold your hand during this journey.  You need to be driven and make the most of what you have been given.  The observer creates reality. Seize the day.
• Find your passion, follow it, and the rest of life will fall into place as long as you are nice to people and brush your teeth.
• Never be afraid to take chances because 10 years from now would you rather be asking yourself “what if?” or saying “oh well” ??
• what you put into something is what you will get out of it. Nothing is just handed to you in life, you have to work hard to get where you want to be.  
• I would say my advice is to set reachable goals, so the transition from high school to college or a job is smoother.
• I would stress time management when you get to college. It’s important to have fun but make sure you are managing your time well and balancing out your schoolwork and social life. Too much of either one can have a negative effect.  
• Follow you passions, attain your goals, but know that sometimes the wave of life will throw you off course, just maintain your breath and continue to get back up on the board, and you will find success.
• Don’t be nervous for the future. Everything always works out in the end.
• Go to college!!! Seriously, it is the best time of your life!
• Make sure you do your “homework” on all the colleges/programs you’re interested in as well as scholarship opportunities.
• Don’t be afraid to change your mind (as far as your major/path)
• Don’t pick a major just because your friends did or because you think you should or it’s the safe choice. Pick something you’re actually interested in, you may be in that field for a while you should at least like it.
• Make sure to do internships or related work while you’re still in school
• Don’t wait until the last minute (senior year) to start planning for after college, it goes by much quicker than you think!
• College is the time to learn and explore on your terms.  So don’t forget to have fun, take chances, try new things, travel, and meet new people. All of these experiences make up who you are and you never know what you will discover or who you will meet that could change your life indefinitely.

 

Keep Sweeping!

 

 

With a Heart of Thanksgiving…

A quiet house.  A quiet dog.  Husband at work and the kids out for the evening.  Work sits silent.  And the voice of my Creator, my Father, the One that knows me best…beckons.

“Come talk to me…or just listen for awhile…I want to share some things with you…”

And He did.  And I will never be the same.

November 19th, 2011.

I hear you, Lord.

Ever have that moment where it all comes to a head?  Ever have that moment that everything builds to a place that you think its all going to implode?  Or you will?  Ever feel like “If one more things happens?” or “If I get one more bad report…”  Yeah…I know that place.

The details of where I sit right now dont matter.  He knows.  The place my heart sits right now?  Yeah, He knows that too.  Too vague?  Maybe but He says that the details dont matter, only my response to them does.  He says that in my weakness He is strong, Im counting on it.  He says the time for half ass compliance is over and putting all that is behind and pressing on is the new lense we are looking through now.  Total obedience, regardless.  No matter what the doctors say, He says YOU SHALL LIVE AND NOT DIE!!!!!

What do the days ahead look like?  I dont know but I do know that starting tomorrow…it will be different.  I will be different.  I know the steps and I do know that He has put everything I need inside me to live and succeed and be compliant with everything He says.  And I am going to walk it out.  And I am going to journal it here…for you and with you. 

230…Its my weight.  I am 41 years old.  I am very sick.  They say I will be blind and not walking in 6 years.  They are wrong.  My body shuts down at 7pm every night and I can barely walk.  They are still wrong.  My husband helps me to bed every night.  I love it but they are, most certainly, still wrong. 

My entire life I have asked God for 100,000 women to stand before and tell them He loves them.  Every vision of this that He gives me is of my walking to the podium and standing.  WALKING and STANDING and I could SEE them.  That hasnt happened yet and my destiny says its mine.  I WILL be there on that day.  I WILL WALK.  I WILL STAND.  I WILL SEE.  And NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST ME SHALL PROSPER. 

Tomorrow.  Like never before I feel a fire ignited within me and I cant fail for great is His faithfulness to me and I shall be faithful in return.  One year from now…on December 31st, 2012.  I will see the fruition of my steps.  I will see the victory over sickness, addiction and half ass living.  My family will walk in unity, joy shall be my fruit and love be my guide.

Will you join me?

I’ve picked up my broom once again, friends…its dusty but its usefulness never went away….I did.  We start sweeping in 2 hours and 30 minutes.  Get your rest, its going to be a great adventure. 

And we will do it with a Heart of Thanksgiving.

I love you and am praying for you and ask the same in return.

Start Sweeping!

Stepping Up to the Starting Line

Are you a marathon runner?  Do you know what that moment feels like as you step up to the starting line for the big race?  Do you ask youself, “Am I ready for this?  Have I trained enough?”

I’ve never run a race other than as a child at recess against my peers but having a older brother that was an athlete growing up and now having a son that is a three sport high school athlete has given me some perspective to draw from but physically, I cannot relate.

Honestly, I’ve always wanted to be a runner but something always held me back…injuries, uncertainty…but mostly fear.  Fear of not doing well, fear of rejection from others, fear of not being as good as the others…fear of failing.

Its the same fear I am choosing to face today.

Paul says in Philippians 3 verses 13 and 14, “No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it,but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,  I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” (NLT)

Putting all that is behind…boy, what a load that is!!  It not only speaks to fear, hurt, disappointments…but acheivements, success, good things…putting ALL behind and forgetting the past.  Wow…not only is that liberating but a little awe-inspiring for me.

See…I have stuff that I’ve carried with me for  a long time.  Successes…failures…great accomplishments…dazzling crash and burns…and all have travelled with me like a comforting companion.  Its been a sweet ride but Im also confident of this one thing…those things are no longer God’s best for me and I want nothing less.  And He wants to give me nothing short of His best.

I have some work to do…and its time I get on it….and surrender to a greater extent to His process. One day at a time.  I already see the fruit of it in my life and those around me..and its sweet.  Im not blind to the fact that experiences, events, and those aforementioned items in the “stuff” category might not just “go away”…I’ve got to process through them in the endeavor of walking without fear.

I dont know your first steps to shedding your stuff but for me, I found my first steps at a Marriage Toolbox that my husband and I went to.  The couple that was facilitating are both pastors and licenced counselors here in the NW with 15+ years of clinical work and a couple that has lived outloud their journey to health and wellness in a Christ centered environment…outstanding couple and tremendous examples to me.  So there we were, spending the day learning and gaining tools for our marriage and they tell a story of someone who, in their journey, listed the houses they had lived in and the memories they had of their experience in each one…positive and hurtful.  They began to see where they came from and how it impacted who they are now.  WOW!  That reasonated within me and I now find myself writing the same list for myself…and surrendering to the healing process of “putting all that is behind…”  I dont know where it will take me but I know I’m headed in the right direction.  You will, as you seek Him and ask for guidance and wisdom, find those first steps…and the healing He desires for you and you desire for yourself.  He promises it is so and He is not a man that He should lie.  Trust him, friend…(Prov 3: 5, 6).  I’m tired of carrying this stuff around…arent you?

So I’ve stepped up to the starting line and maybe you have too…its going to look different for each of us as far as the race path…some may have twists and turns in the days ahead and maybe you are the one that needs to walk on the flat surface for awhile before taking the inclines ahead.  Wherever that is, know that God is with you always…He promises in His Word to never leave us or forsake us…He also promises that while we make the plans, it is HE that orders our steps.  In these moments of surrender, confidence may come slowly but have confidence in this, dear friends…that He who began a good work in your will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil 1:6).  You are a work in progress…give yourself some grace but keep sweeping!!  Dig in…taste and see that the Lord is good and know that God has not given you a spirit of fear but of power, love and sound mind! (2 Tim 1:7).

I love you…keep sweeping!

You Love Me Anyway

I am His.

Period.

With all my successes and failures, hopes and dreams, lack of follow through and every “Should’ve”…Yep, still His.

My “Why did I” and “Why didnt I” and especially, “What do I do now that I did.”  STILL HIS.

See..there is a couple things that you must remember on this journey of sweeping the temple, He doesnt move and His love doesnt change.

When Jonah sat in the belly of the fish?  Yep, still loved.  When David sinned with Bathsheba?  Still loved.

It took Jonah three days of sitting in that muck to call out for help…I can tell you I have sat in the midst of my mess for much longer and still He loved me through it.

You are His, friends…dont ever forget it.

Romans 8:38 and 39 says: For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Side walk Prophets sing this amazing song, You Love me Anyways…the words are below. I pray it touches your heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8BBCYFAYRI

You Love me Anyways:

The question was raised
As my conscience fell
A silly, little lie
It didn’t mean much
But it lingers still
In the corners of my mind

Still you call me to walk
On the edge of this world
To spread my dreams and fly
But the future’s so far
My heart is so frail
I think I’d rather stay inside

But You love me anyway
It’s like nothing in life that I’ve ever known
You love me anyway
Oh Lord, how You love me
How You love me

It took more than my strength
To simply be still
To seek but never find
All the reasons we change
The reasons I doubt
And why do loved ones have to die?

But You love me anyway
It’s like nothing in life that I’ve ever known
You love me anyway
Oh Lord, how You love me

I am the thorn in Your crown
But You love me anyway
I am the sweat from Your brow
But You love me anyway
I am the nail in Your wrist
But You love me anyway
I am Judas’ kiss
But You love me anyway

See now, I am the man that called out from the crowd
For Your blood to be spilled on this earth shaking ground
Yes then, I turned away with this smile on my face
With this sin in my heart tried to bury Your grace
And then alone in the night, I still called out for You
So ashamed of my life, my life, my life

But You love me anyway
Oh, God… how you love me

You love me anyway
It’s like nothing in life that I’ve ever known
You love me anyway
Oh Lord, how You love me

You love me, You love me
You love me, You love me
How You love me
How You love me
How You love me
Appears on Album: These Simple Truths

Keep Sweeping.

Day Seven – Project Restore – Tools for Your Marriage

I came across this giveaway and did some further research and have come to this…you DONT want to miss an opportunity to win this giveaway or attend this conference in Pasco May 13-14th!  Here is the link for the giveaway!

http://wasitnoti.blogspot.com/2011/04/give-away-family-life-presents-weekend.html

You will gain tools for your relationship regardless of your marriage status…click on the link today!

Day Two: Project Restore – Truth Spoken

I had a friend tonight give me perspective on a truth that I was lacking.  It changed my lens and I am forever grateful to them for this.  It got me thinking about perspective, lens and the like…and how it all relates to my growth process.

He wants to change my lens and my heart.

I feel a step closer tonight.

I love you, Jesus…

Me.

Day One: Project Restore – Personal Grace

One day at a time…Its all I can do…all I know.

Right.

It’s what I can say and type but how many of us try to pack a week into a day? How many wait/procrastinate and then try to do a cram everything into an afternoon? I do.  And while I have the capacity to do that most weeks, there are definitely times I have done it and paid for it in the days following.  My body doesn’t like it.  AT ALL.

I remember a song we used to sing in church, I’ve posted the lyrics below..

ONE DAY AT A TIME, SWEET JESUS
(Marijohn Wilkins / Kris Kristofferson)

Sung By: Cristy Lane  Also recorded by: The Alexander Brothers; Judy Collins; Phil Coulter; Floyd Cramer; Carlene Davis; Florida Boys; Tennessee Ernie Ford; Foster & Allen; Bill Gaither; Don Gibson; Arthur Greenslade; Lee Greenwood;George Hamilton IV; Sharon Hardman.

I’m only human, I’m just a woman.
Help me believe in what I could be
And all that I am.
Show me the stairway, I have to climb.
Lord for my sake, teach me to take
One day at a time.

Chorus:
One day at a time sweet Jesus
That’s all I’m asking from you.
Just give me the strength
To do everyday what I have to do.
Yesterday’s gone sweet Jesus
And tomorrow may never be mine.
Lord help me today, show me the way
One day at a time.

Do you remember, when you walked among men?
Well Jesus you know if you’re looking below
It’s worse now, than then.
Cheating and stealing, violence and crime
So for my sake, teach me to take
One day at a time.

(Chorus)

Do as I ask, Lord…not as I do.  It reminds me of Paul when he said, “I do what I know not to and that which I know to do, I do not.”  Well, my body has had enough.

I spent last Monday and Friday in the doctor’s office again and my numbers don’t look good.  It’s due to my inconsistency and unwillingness to comply.

My girl, Molly, says…”You can make progress or your can make excuse, you decide.”

My husband says, “We start from here and we move forward.”

The Bible says, “For a righteous man may fall seven times, And rise again…” (Proverbs 24:16)

And rise again.

I’ve been this way before, you know.  You can read earlier posts and see that my life was once full of doctors, “procedures” and hair loss…meds, meds and more meds…

But today…today was different.  After all my appts, etc…I heard Him so clearly this morning…”We wont be coming this way again…restoration and freedom is yours. Now let’s get you transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Truth be told, I want Him to heal me instantly.  I don’t want to hurt, take meds, lose my hair, limit myself anymore.  I don’t want anything associated to having to think about going somewhere and making provisions if I get tired, sick, etc.  I just don’t.  I want to be a wife and mother…I want to do and be all that God has for me.

And He says…”I want that too and so we are going to walk this out together…strenthening your body, spirit and emotions as we go along.  My grace is sufficient, Daughter, let’s get moving. No need to beat yourself for what you think you’ve not done, cast your cares upon me, I will take them for there is no condemnation to be found here.”

Oh.

Grace.

oh, man.

THAT.

Not His grace…I get that…but giving myself grace and knowing that its HIS strength that I walk in.  It’s in my weakness that He works best.  And regardless of what the girl in the mirror might reflect to my distorted vision, I am beautiful and created in his image.  I DONT HAVE TO DO IT ALL!!!

Now my head knows that but catch me in the midst of my day or talk to my family at the end of the day and it will show a much different picture.

Slow down, sister.

The Psalmist writes, “He leads me beside the still waters, He restores my soul….”

Restoration…doesnt that sound divine?  It does to me.

See…I’ve overcome and know that I continue to by the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony…its what this blog is…what Twitter is…what Facebook is for…what my writing and speaking are for…Its for everything I don’t say outloud to those that are watching from a distance.

I am created in HIS image and that is just good enough.

*smile*  The girl in the mirror is catching up to that and I love it.

So today is day one of Project Restore.

I will walk this out with my Saviour and Friend.

I will take it one day at a time, sweeping the temple that He resides in.  He is worthy to have a residence swept clean for His presence.

I will give myself the grace that I assure others is there and unmerited.

My goodness, friends…He is a good God.

Pray for me and this journey, please.  Nothing better than to know heaven and earth are moving on my behalf because the saints are praying.

I’m praying for you!

Keep Sweeping!

In My Weakness…

He is strong.

It’s all I know right now.

It’s all I can depend on.

As life moves and days flow by, I am more aware every moment of my need to utterly depend on God.

Strong statement you say?  Perhaps…but what other things do I depend on without a thought?

Breathing? Food? Water?

Who gives them to me?

Who gave me the very breath I breathe?

He did.

Psalm 3:5, 6 says: ”Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

Cool.

Hmm…

Trust.

Lean not to my own understanding.

Acknowledge Him in all things.

He’ll work it out.

Got it.

Til the next time I worry, fret, fail or fall.

And he gently reminds me….

“My grace is sufficient, my daughter, and My power works best in weakness.”  (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Huh?

Best in weakness.  Doesnt that just BLOW your mind?  When my body hurts and Im feeling like I got hit by a truck, the last thing I want to do is pick up, carry, and do ANYTHING…Im certainly feeling WEAK and without STRENGTH and He says that’s when His power works BEST?

Not to carry my heavy box but to carry my heavy heart.

Oh yeah…that.

*smile*  Oh Friends…its all He is about.  Loving his kids enough to carry their heavy loads and burdens.

His Word says… “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”

He wants your stuff.  Your weakness, your cares, your every moment of every day….simply because He cares and is crazy about you!

So in looking at those verses, here is my final thought on what I know He is saying to me today…(Sweeping The Temple Version!)

My daughter, I am so crazy about you!  I see how things are spinning around you and I want you to know today that I love you and I am in the midst. Cast your cares on me today…Trust in Me and stop trying to fuss and fret and work it out in your own head…I got this!!  I know the path I have for you, humble yourself and the feeling that you have to do it all for yourself…you never have to do it alone for I am here and want to take it from you because I love you.  I see you are tired but remember this…I am at my very best in you when you are feeling your weakest.  I love you, daughter…

See…He simply does…because he simply loves.

In my weakness, He is strong.

Stop, Surrender, Submit, Strength, Success.

I’m praying for you, keep sweeping.

My Broken Year…and the God Who Heals.

Can it stop?  Please?  Make it stop, God!!  Make the hurt go away!  These and more were all my cries in the midst of the last year.  The hurt, the brokenness, the death, the sorrow….it was overwhelming and it JUST KEPT COMING.  How much can one woman take, God?  I know you say you wont give us more than we can handle, BUT I DONT WANT TO KNOW how strong I am!!!

He quietly stood by while I screamed at Him about not understanding…and then said, “I love you.”

 

 

Huh?  No answers…except for THE answer.  He is the God that heals…in the envelopment of His love.  He took me, sat me down and held me…and healed me.  He bottled my tears, he took the rawness and transparency of a woman who had faith and KNEW where her help comes from while she didn’t understand why it had to happen.  Why it all had to happen.  Why her friends and family members had to die.  Why one of the most precious souls were taken from her family.  Taken from me.  Why the personal challenges with my health?  I thought I was getting better, God.  Why can’t you just heal me….and then He did.  Not physically but emotionally and He gave me a new lens.  He gave me HIS perspective….of myself and others.  It’s changed my life…and how I do life.

No matter where I sit today…in my grief and sickness….I AM HIS MASTERPIECE.

No matter where I lack understanding….about anything….His ways are higher than mine.

No matter where or how much I feel inadequate…He is the one that defines me.

No matter how much I am challenged to love every piece of myself….He loves me as I am…His creation.

No matter how much I don’t understand the loss of a child…He says, “I understand, I gave my Son.”

And His balm of peace covers my broken heart.  He softly whispers…”Be still, and know that I am God.”

He assures me that whatever my day, week, month or year looks like…He will never leave me or forsake me.  He assures me that the Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.  He says I am the apple of His eye and no part of the concerns of my heart are too big for a God that promises to perfect that which concerns me.

And He offers the same for you…for your aching, tired and broken heart and spirit.  He hears you and has heard you….every cry, every inaudible sound of grief and every bit of your lack of understanding.  And He wants nothing more than to envelope you in His arms of love and say “Be still, and know that I am God.”

While I still don’t have the understanding of the “why”, I do have the understanding that His ways are higher…and that is enough for me.  *smile* Until the next time I don’t understand something…and we walk through this again.  He doesn’t mind the amount of times we bring our concerns and burdens to Him…just as long as we bring them and leave them with Him.

Things are settling down for us a bit…my heart is healing and my lens of the details has expanded to see and love as He does more clearly.  If that be the only benefit of all these things…its enough for me to know He has taken my broken year…and is still the God who heals.

He’s never let me down, friends…and I promise He wont let you down either.

I’m praying for you, keep sweeping.