Do you give God your best?

This morning I woke up refreshed and ready to go.  I am sleeping better and I wanted to get up and have some quality time with the Lord.  Sometimes I find myself giving him what is left and not my first fruits.  We tend to do that don't we?  We convince ourselves that we will spend time with him when the rush of the day is over, when our minds are clear and we can consentrate.  Well, I am lying to myself.  My mind is so full of what happened that day I can't give him my best.  I now have the frustrations of the day, the business of the day going around and around in my head that my mind wanders.  I am also so tired that I can't seem to think straight.  The t.v. is on in the other room and flopping on the couch and vegging out sure does seem appealing. God wants my best.  That is not to much to ask, he gave his best for us.  He didn't give us his leftovers.  He gave us himself, the best, nothing held back.  How is it then that we think it is o.k to give him our worst?  We could never even begin to give back to him what he deserves.  We could never praise him enough, study enough, pray enough so it seems the least we could do is give him the best of what we do have, our time. The truth of it is, our time is not our own.  It doesn't belong to us, it belongs to God.  Christian or non Christian, it is his.  I challenge whomever reads this to give him what rightfully belongs to him, our first fruits, our bes.

Not of this world.

I had something very sad happen today.  It made me realize how easy it is to allow things of this world to come in and effect us.  Makes things that should bother us not seem that big of a deal.  Then when we get called out on them we become defensive and and full of excuses.  A little while back, I found a dear friend of mine on Facebook.  I had been trying to locate him for years and I finally found him.  We found out that he was a pastor now but we didn't talk a whole lot but it was just nice to know where he and his wife were.  We had been really close to he and his wife when we were first married and spent a lot of time together.  This morning I got on FB and there was somthing really offensive on her wall.  I didn't even know what to think and needless to say I deleted her as a friend.  I have made the decision that if anyone I have as a friend posts something offensive or any of their friends I will have to block them because I don't want it showing up on my wall. I then scrolled down and he also had somthing on his wall that I felt was inappropriate.  Especially for someone stating to serve Christ and someone who serves as a pastor.  I did say somthing on his wall.  Not much but I did express my shock and disappointment.  I later got a message from him that felt like a scolding.  Excuse after excuse, telling me who Jesus was around when he was on this earth etc.  My heart broke.  He did appologize for offending me but then came the infamous "but".  It gave me a taste of what I am stepping into.  A world that hates me and what I stand for.  A world that looks at me as a prude, judmental and a goody toshoes.  That suddenly someone I thought would be like minded with me points at me and says basically "you aren't perfect."  I never will claim to be perfect, I won't be perfect as long as I am on the world but I must be striving for it.  If I do somthing I shouldn't and believe me I do, I hope I will get called out on it.  I need to be held accountable for it.  He posted somthing on his wall and he mentioned "for those of you that know me, you know I never ment to offend anyone."  Well shouldn't we also want to make sure that those that DON"T really know us can see what we stand for and see Christ when they look at us?

It's all a matter of trust.

What do you trust in?  Do you trust in yourself?  Do you trust in this world?  It is a very important question and I encourage you to really think about it.  I have discovered that there is truly only one thing I can truly trust in and that is my Lord and Savior.  He is constant.  He never changes.  He doesn't have a bad day and his feelings and desires for me are not based on human emotion but but emotion, perfect emotion.  Psalms 7:1 says it so perfectly but yet so simply.  "O Lord my God, in you I put my trust."  The more I study the perfect, never changing, word of God, I get to know him better.  I learn of ALL his attributes, not just the ones that make people feel warm and fuzzy but the ones that this world don't seem to talk about anymore.  These are the things that make him the ONLY thing we can truly trust.  His perfect justice, his perfect anger, his perfect love.  That is why I trust him when he says it is time to go.  I know that none of his requests are selfish.  He only wants what is best for me because he loves me perfectly.  No alterior motives, he won't lie to me to get what he wants.  I encourage you to place you trust in him.  He will never fail.

I am chosen.

"I didn't choose him, he chose me."  That reality came at me today like a freight train.  I was doing my devotions this morning from my Utmost for his Highest and it was about committing to Gods purpose and one of the verses he uses was John 15: 16-19.  Jesus says that he chose use we did not choose him and he chose us to go and bear fruit.  We have to be in Gods hands to do as he pleases.  Our purpose is to  witness so others can be placed on the Rock, Jesus Christ, just as we were placed.  After reading this over and over again it was like I finally got it.  This is my answer to everyone who questions why we would uproot our life and move to Cheyenne.  "I have to, we are chosen and we must go."  Yes we can refuse.  We can always refuse but going against what God wants us to do is a dangerous place to be.  I want to be in his will always.  We were created to serve him and bring Glory to him.  That is it.  EVERYTHING that we do as christians should be about serving him.  Our job, our friends, our spare time.  Deuteromy 28:14 says "woe to you if you turn aside, to the left or to the right".   We can't do that. We have spent our whole life doing things that we wanted to do.  It is now time to do what God is telling us to do.  He is not "asking" us to go, he is TELLING us to go and we have to obey whether we understand or not.  I am going to go willingly and with a happy heart.  I want to see the beauty that God is going to create out of this.  It is time to get excited and praise him for what he is doing.

Tears today.

I have tears today.  Tears that want to flow and fill an ocean.  It just hit me all of a sudden that in 3 weeks I will once again pack up my life and leave the ones I love behind.  I will move to a place I do not know and start over.  For those of you that don't know us, that has been a large part of our lives.  Running from the Lord and seeking the things of the world had my husband restless and wandering and we have moved alot.  Twin Falls is the first place we have lived in this long.  It is home.  I became a grandma here.  I became a nurse here.  I found Jesus here and now it is time to leave.  This is the first time we have ever started over because God asked us to and I know there are so many people that do not understand.  Some of the tears come from that too.  Wish there were more hearts celebrating with us.  More hearts that understood and sent their blessings with us.  I know that it is not about man but our hearts don't always understand that.  I wish I had a church gathering around us to pray with us and wish us well but we are alone and will be celebrated by our friends in Cheyenne when we arrive. I have faith in God.  I do.  This is what we are suppose to be doing I just wish that it could be easier and less painful today.

He'll take care of the rest.

About 2 months ago, right after I gave my notice at work that I was leaving, I got a call from my oldest daughter telling me that she had just lost her job.  I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me and I thought "how can I leave her and the baby here with no job?"  My husbands personality changed and he became quiet and withdrawn.  Wouldn't talk about Cheyenne much and I knew as her dad, her protector her was thinking the same thing as I was.  No matter how old they get when your kids are in trouble, you feel like it is your responsibility to help them and protect them.  Especially my girl who has a son of her own with no other help.  I prayed so hard and God just reassured me that he was taking care of us.  I knew that but deep inside I kept asking "but what about her?"  It has been a hard 2 months.  I worried, I prayed, I cried.  Yesterday she called me and she got a job.  I can not begin to describe the relief and joy that came across me and the lightness in my heart.  Came home to a husband full of joy and excitement about going.  What a difference.  Then this morning I realized that I should of felt that way all along.  When God told me he was taking care of us I should of realized that when he promised that it extended to my children.  He knows what our children mean to us and by taking care of them he takes care of us.  He promises that "he will take care of the rest."  We have to believe that he KNOWS what we need and it IS important to him.

Under his wings

What a beautiful and glorious place to be.  Me and Tony were just spending some time in the word together and I flipped over to Psalms 91 and God revealed so much to me.  Last week I did a study of Ruth by Jon Piper ( go to his website and listen it is awsome) and he talked about how got uses what we consider stumbling blocks to protect us.  We see them as set back and inconveniences but they are Gods special way of protecting us.  VS 4: "He shall cover you with His feathers, and His wings you shall take refuge."  I realized that is where I have been this week.  I could not understand why God would allow me to go through such pain and keep me home from work when we are trying to get ready to leave and I need to work and everyone needed me!!! ( my flesh talking of course ) Today he gently reminded me that I was being protected.  I don't know from what.  It may have had nothing to do with me at all but he needed me home this week.  Maybe he kept me from getting in a car accident, or hurting someone else in one.  May Visions needed me gone for some reason.  I don't know and I don't think I ever will but he knew that the only way to keep me home was to make it impossible for me to go to work.  He also wanted to make sure he got my attention.  Remind me to slow down a little and get my priorities strate.  My job requires a lot from me and I don't always put it in the place in my life I should.  I needed to step back and realize that I have limits and I have to come home and live a different life.  I can't live my job.  It is amazing though.  I am feeling so much better today.  Haven't had near as much pain and I am getting the feeling back in my leg.  I guess what ever he needed me to stay away from I did and now he is sending me back to where he wants me.  When you are facing a stumbling block and it is frustrating and you don't understand remember God sees EVERYTHING and know what he needs to do to keep you under his wing and protect you.  You are were God wants you to be.  That is always under his wing in the shadow of the Almighty.

The smile of a child

Today was my birthday and what I wanted most was to hug my grandbabies.  2 of them are in Georgia but I got to see them on Skype but the other one is close and he came to see grandma.  Momma got him all shiny and smelling good and when he came around the corner and saw me he got a big smile on his face and when I took him in my arms, he cuddled up.  I'll tell you what, God definately knew what he was doing when he created grandchildren.

Does God have a calendar?

"Alright Lord, do you realize that time is getting short before we pack up our stuff and head for Cheyenne.  You still have not pointed me in the direction of a job, I would prefer that we had our own place.  Maybe I should take over because, Lord, you must not have got your calendar from the bank this year."

His timing definately is not our own.  I am a planner.  I want everything in line, set up, and ready to go before I do ANYTHING.  If I don't, then nothing will go right, right?  I watch the date of our move draw close and yet everything seems a little to calm.  I look at posted jobs but yet don't feel a overwhelming draw to it and it doesn't feel "right".  Can't really look for a place of our own cause we have no idea how much money I will be making and when I will start working.  Even with all this unsuredness going on I still know we are suppose to go.  I think that is how I know this is Gods plan and not ours because it goes against everything that I am.  I takes me OUT of my comfort zone not put me IN it.  When I stop long enough I can see all that is being done to prepare us to go.  I guess I expected walls, walls that would test my faith during this whole process.  We have had a few but just as quickly as they arrived, God knocks them down.  He hasn't even let them last long enough to discourage me.  He knows me so well,  and he loves me so much.  He knows how much I long to serve him and be in his will.  He knows how I long to put my foot in the Jordan, but he also knows how hard it is.  He loves me so much that while things may come up that can make me run, he won't let them stick around because he is my helper.  He wants me to feel peaceful and assured.  Yes, life still goes on and things will arise that make all of us want to go back to what is comfortable but yet he promises that if we just hold on he WILL clear the path to his will for us.  Some paths are more rocky than others.  Some have bolders and some just pebbles but all rocks can stumble us on our journey.  Can get in our shoes and make the journey quite painful but then he will pick us up and carry us to ease the pain and difficulty.  I am discovering that since I have made this choice to be obedient I can see him working in places I have never noticed before.  He walks in FRONT of me on the path and kicks the pebbles and stones out of my way.

The first step of faith.

We don't always understand why God calls us when he does or why he calls us at all.  When I look back on my life I cannot see any reason why he would want us to go to anywhere but he does and it is time to be obedient.  The reason I call this blog "A foot in the Jordan" is because last time we were in Cheyenne the evangelist there was doing a series on faith. He was telling the story of Joshua having to lead the people across the Jordan river, which was flooded and raging, to get to the promised land.  God told him to have the priests put their foot on the river and it would pull back so they could cross.  That took alot of faith in somthing they did not understand. He didn't know us at the time and didn't really now that we were feeling called to Cheyanne but we were putting if off and putting it off. As he taught I had a overwelming peace and knew God was telling us it was time to go.  Of course my flesh was not wanting to listen and there was a nasty battle going on.  I was standing alone just trying to process it when I felt a arm go around my shoulder and a soft voice said "Sandee, it's time to put your foot in the Jordan."  I knew then that it was time to go.  It was time for blind faith.  It was time that we let God get everything in order and we just need to follow directions.  Is this easy? No, nothing is easy about leaving a home you love, your family, your grandbaby, but Tony said somthing to me that I hold on to.  He said, "If our children were living somewhere and were lost, wouldn't we pray for him to send someone to bring the gospel to them?" That is what we will be doing.  Hopefully we will be bringing the gospel to a loved one of someone who has been praying for years for their salvation.  We don't know whats coming, I don't have a job yet, we don't have a place of our own but we must put our foot in the Jordan and let him part the raging water.