Pictures: January 22-28

New outfit from Nana.

The ensemble reminded me of Iris, so I called it “Dress like Iris Day”.

Another new outfit from Nana.

Reading up on the latest news.

1. She saw her Bryan put on a hat (baseball cap) before leaving the house.

2. While Bryan was gone, she was looking at one of her books and saw a picture of babies wearing hats. She pointed to them, looked up at me and said, “Dada!”

3. When Bryan came home she kept looking up at him and smiling, fascinated by his hat. So he gave it to her and she did this…

…and this.

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

This verse has been on my mind for the last few years, so meditating on it this week was very sweet. I have been challenged by this verse with the reminder that we, as humans, are created with a longing. A longing for something that we all have trouble “putting our finger on”, at times. Even Especially this “I’ve  been a Christian since I was 6 years old” girl who knows a lot in her head but so often has a disconnect from head to heart. For a large majority of my life I have struggled with making God an emotional priority in my life.

Though I have been blessed with the privilege of calling him my Savior for so much of my life, it has still been far too easy to get distracted by the things of this world. I have known (in my head) for years that, yes, even logically, I have the fullest of joy available to me and more pleasures than I could ever think to seek after. He is the answer to my longing. Logically and emotionally. Yet my heart and emotions are weak, still trying to find joy in the fleeting pleasures of shopping, eating out, beauty, stuff, success, friendship status and much more.

Honestly, I hesitate to even post these thoughts because I want to “save face” and keep looking like the young, Christian woman who has a strong faith in God, is desperately in love with Him and is not caught up in such frivolous things. But I am done with that. I want to be real, not fake. I want to be able to be honest, even if that means honestly admitting that I am not as sanctified as I would like people to think I am.

My prayer, not just for 2012, but for the rest of my life, is that God would daily increase my longing for more of Him and decrease my longing for clothes, fitting in, making certain friends, and a life of ease. That every day when I wake up, I would really, truly look forward to spending the day in his presence where fullness of joy can be found. And I know that this will look different through the various stages of my life. Not necessarily an hour or two of reading the Bible and praying before my family gets up in the morning…I might be lucky to get 5 minutes, or I might get no time before they are up. But whether I start my day with an official “devotion time” or not, I can spend my day lingering in God’s presence by praying: asking for his help, surrendering my selfish thoughts and desires, praising him when I have fun with my child(ren), thanking Him for beautiful weather; and also by meditating on his Word: thinking about the Fighter Verse(s) for that week, posting Scripture around my house (it doesn’t have to be a beautifully framed, expensive piece of decoration), looking for verses that I could use to encourage my husband or others, etc.

Having said all of that, I feel I must explain that my prayer is two-fold. The second part is that I would find fullness of joy in His presence not merely with the mindset of, “Of course I should do this. It gets me what I want. I would be crazy not to do the one thing that will gain me fullness of joy.” I also hope that the more I find my satisfaction in Him, the more I live a life that reflects Him. I want people to look at me and see a beauty that is different from the world’s idea of beauty. I want them to see a woman whose longing is fulfilled by the only One who can fill theirs. And I want them to ask how they can filled by Him, too. Not for my glory, but His.

*this week’s Fighter Verses are Romans 15:1-2

Pictures: January 15-21

It was a “stay in pajamas” kind of day.

The many faces of Joy…

Baby in the bath water.

A day to stay inside.

Here she is in her new outfit, Aunt Laurie and Grandma.

Crazy hair.

Swim class (props to Nana for the swimsuit).

Romans 10:13-15

For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

But how are they to call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

I pray that God would give me a heart that longs to see people call on his name and be saved. I am so prone to go about my days thinking mostly of myself, consumed with the small bubble of my own life. I forget the big picture very easily. This is not my home. There is a reason that I am here and it has a great, eternal value. I am here to be salt and light on this earth. I am here to sow seeds. Seeds of kindness, a smile, selflessness, an encouraging word, an effort to get to know someone, a listening ear, an offer to help.

And during the times that I am not sowing seeds of the Gospel myself, I have the privilege of being a faithful sender of others “who preach the good news” all around the world. I can pray God’s Word for them, help send packages to them, pray for their requests, encourage them with an e-mail or letter.

I want to be a part of the enhancement of God’s kingdom, spreading the good news of the Gospel. I want to have beautiful feet…not by the world’s standards, but by God’s.

*this week’s Fighter Verse is Psalm 16:11

Fighter Verse Confession (Romans 10:13-15)

I’m just going to be completely honest here…

I haven’t even started memorizing these verses. But, this week there is only one verse so I’m going to devote Monday and Tuesday to Romans 10:13-15 (expect a mid-week post) and then the rest of the week I should be back on schedule.

Thanks for your patience!