Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Proverbs... geesh.

Proverbs 28:9
"He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination."

Ever wonder why it seems like God isn't listening or isn't there. Feel like your prayers are just bouncing off of the ceiling and raining back down on you. God does not listen to our prayers if we intend to go back to our sin as soon as we get off our knees. If we want to beat that sin and follow Him, He willingly listens. (No matter how bad our sin was. Isn't that a relief!) What closes God's ears to our prayer isn't the sin, but our secret intention to go and do it again. He knows our hearts.

Proverbs 28:13
"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."

Trying to justify your sins. Struggling to compare yourself to the "other guy" and telling yourself that you "aren't as bad as you used to be." If you are failing to recognize your sin for the ugly thing that it is, you will not beat it. It is hard to learn from a mistake you don't acknowledge making. And what good is a mistake if you don't learn from it. (thanks Mom) To learn from it...
1. Admit it! (For real, put it right there and see it for what it is.)
2. Analyze it! (What is it? How did it happen? What caused it? When do you fall into it's trap?)
3. Adjust! (Change! Hello! Make some plans to prevent this thing from happening again. Don't get on the computer! Don't go to the bar! Don't underestimate the power of reading your Bible and praying.)

Everybody makes mistakes, but only fools repeat them. Something in each of us strongly resists admitting we are wrong. That is why we admire people who openly and graciously admit their mistakes. These people have a strong self-image. They do not always have to be right. (Yep, I am getting my toes stepped on right there...)

Proverbs gave me a smack in the face today. Also, Proverbs 28: 20, 26, and 27. But I figured that this post would go on for days if I kept on. I pray that God will use His words to bring joy to your life and glory to His name today.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

URGENT!



URGENT!
Please be praying for this family. Destiny and Jesse have recently lost their infant son on Valentine's Day this year. They are continuing to struggle and desperately need fervent prayer. I am asking you, person reading this, to please take a moment and pray for them today and especially Thursday. Please be praying that the Lord will help them to see His will in their situation and help to heal their pain. Thanks.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

907 North Street

The first address I ever memorized. We walked up the stairs and I heard Mom whisper to Dad, “If you get me this house, I will love you forever.” I am excited to see her so excited. This is bigger than our last house. In my room, I used to talk to a dog in our neighbors back yard. It was in a fence and I felt sorry for it. I used to have nightmares that the dog was the Devil and would get into my room. I would wake up sweaty and nervous. The walk-in closets had footmarks and scuffs on the walls. The wooden rod was severely bowed in the center. I remember the clumsy feeling I got as I climbed the wall and slung myself over and around the wooden rod in the closet. Windy and I would skin the closet of all clothes and hangers and pretend to be acrobats. I left my closet light on at night. This is when I first began to be afraid of the dark. Dad and Windy would watch scary movies and I never really wanted to. But I did in an effort to please my father. This is when I first noticed his favoritism. I walk out of the kitchen screen door onto the back porch. Blankets and sheets are tied to the wrought iron posts. A giant fort awaits me. Mom is inside with our Barbies. She plays with us and ignores the world. I am glad to have her attention. Mrs. Anne-Marie Day is our neighbor. She hides Easter eggs and we hunt around her porcelain clad home. We get hungry and she offers us crackers and butter. I gleefully accept. I know she enjoys the company, but I can tell she has tired of hiding the eggs. We go home. Uncle Donnie and some people are at the house. Windy and I are sent upstairs. She runs downstairs to go the restroom. I instruct her to hurry, we are playing. I hear her scream. I think she is laughing at first. I come downstairs and she is on the blue sectional couch. She is crying uncontrollably. Uncle Donnie suggests we take her to the doctor as he and his friends walk out of the front door. Mom and Dad wait a while. I am concerned. Windy broke her arm. She got a butter knife stuck down her cast. She kept that cast for years. It smelled horribly. She liked the attention that got with her broken arm. I was jealous, again. Windy can’t get her cast wet. I make Mom give me a bath in the sink too. We only had a shower there. Windy and I used to plug the drain with a washrag to get a couple of inches of water to play in in the shower. It was a small bathroom that attached to Mom and Dad’s bedroom. I pretended to be asleep so that Dad would carry me to bed. Windy was already in bed. Mom and Dad went into their bedroom and decided to leave me on the couch. I yell “cockadoodledoo” as I pretend to wake them up barging into their room. Mom was changing her clothes and Dad was in his underwear lying on the corner of the bed. I felt awkward and embarrassed. They carried me to bed. I remember watching Mom put on her make-up. Her lighter would flicker as she used it to soften her eyebrow pencil with its flame. I tell her she looks better without it. She looks flattered and ignores my advice. My Dad still uses that black and gold bedroom suite from Hoffa’s Rent to Own, over 20 years later. I was aware of popularity. I remember hearing the boys in Mrs. Leath’s first grade class talk about chasing Brooke at recess. I wished they would chase me. I got in trouble for flipping Josh Swanson off. I had a band-aid on my middle finger and I showed it to him. I didn’t know I was “flipping him off.” I cried. I never liked getting into trouble. Josh Jones would get spanked all the time at school. It didn’t bother him. The first birthday party that I remember took place in the dining room. At my party, we play games like pin the tail on the donkey and we have an ice cream eating contest. I win the ice cream eating contest, but I give my prize to T.J Royston. He was my first boyfriend. I enjoy having everyone’s attention on me. Brandy Wesley accidentally hits me in the eye with a party favor. Grandpa catches all of this on his new video camera. It is a big deal to have a video camera. Grandpa is my favorite relative. He makes me feel special. He and Lou (his girlfriend) bought me a giant lion stuffed animal for Christmas. Windy got a Barbie. Mom gets a job as a waitress at Robie’s. She is gone a lot at night. Bump, my Dad’s friend, comes over and brings pizza. We all watch television. I eat chips and bean dip. I am lying on the pompasan chair. It is much bigger than me and I feel like a princess on a throne. I throw up bean dip all over the chair. Bump makes a big deal about how disgusting it is. Dad throws the cushion out on the back porch and leaves it there. I go to bed. I can hear Mom and Dad fighting when she gets back from work. “Why didn’t you at least hose it off?! I come home and I have to clean this up!” Mom is mad. Dad tries to come up with an excuse. I think he was embarrassed that Bump grossed out and he was lazy. I feel guilty for making them fight. Windy and I could hear them in the vent. We would listen together. Once we ran over to Mrs. Day’s house when they were fighting. She asked us if we wanted her to call the police. We say no. We go home. Windy and I go and take the cigarette butts out of the ashtrays. We hide under the porch and pretend to smoke

Monday, May 19, 2008

The Hunt's










What a busy weekend... I shot Autumn and Daniel's wedding. They are such an amazing couple. It is wonderful to watch God's hand join two incredible lives into one. This was one of my all time favorite weddings. (Minus that my allergies were going haywire as I crawled around in the grass.) Congratulations to the newlyweds! Autumn, I will have to come visit ya' all in Ledbetter, KY!

Monday, May 5, 2008

Seven

7 things that children need to hear from their parents.

1. They are sinners just like everyone else. (Including Mom and Dad...)
Mark 10:18
2. You can't choose your parents, but you can choose your Father.
John 8:44 & John 1:12-13
3. You reap what you sow.
Galatians 6:7-8 & Galatians 4:7
4. If you live for Christ, this world will not love you.
John 15:18-19 & 1Peter 4:12, 16
5. Without discipline, we will all be spoiled brats.
Proverbs 3:11-12 & Hebrews 12:10-11
6. You can't have everything that you want.
James 4:1-3 & Psalm 37:4
7. Life's not fair, but God is just.
Revelation 6:9-11

When things go wrong...they are actually right.

Why doesn't God get rid of trouble/sin in our lives?
*We are sinners, all of us, even you. And if He rid the world of sin, He would have to destroy us all. He loves us and doesn't want to destroy us. Romans 5:12
*Suffering is a part of our Christian experience. We are to be like Christ, and if He suffered on this earth, we will as well. Try to take joy in Christian suffering, knowing that it is part of your growth and becoming more like Him.
1 Peter 5:9-10, Romans 8:17-18, 2 Corinthians 4:17-18
*It causes us to hope in Christ and in His return. If we can handle everything on our own, we wouldn't need God. Philippians 3:20
*It demonstrates God's power. It also allows people to see God's power in your life. When you are handed something too big for you to handle and yet you survive and grow from it... when people watch God working in your life, they will want that for themselves. 2 Corinthians 4:7-18, 2 Corinthians 12:8-10
*It proves our faith in Him. James 1:2-4
*Through our sufferings, we can help other people. You can use your life lessons to minister to other people that are going through the same thing. God can't be a God of comfort without suffering. If there weren't any suffering, there would be no need for comfort. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5
*For God's glory. John 11:3-4, 1 Peter 4:12-5:1, Romans 8:18, 28