Company Girl Coffee 11.6.09 "Stormy Weather"

Good Morning! It's quiet here this morning. Other than the high gusts of wind outside my window, that is. I love the wind though. We got a lot of wind storms on the Island I grew up on so I'm used to it.

Speaking of storms, I've had quite a few "mini" storms in my life this week. Let me back up and give a huge, warm, sunny HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my grandmother! She turns 96 today! I admire her so much. She's a strong, independent woman for 96! On Sunday though, she took a fall and fractured her hip. Gave us quite a scare. She has been in the hospital all week. They did a partial hip replacement on Tuesday and she seems to be recovering just fine. Like I said...strong woman! I love you Grandma!

The next storm the winds blew in was of personal nature. On Wednesday I sat down to help my 7 year old son with a school project. He was supposed to build a mobile. There were very few limitations. It had to be no bigger than 12 inches wide and 14 inches long. It needed to be need, balanced, and colorful. Other than that, sky's the limit! I should preface this story with a little info about myself. I am not what I would consider "creative" when it comes to things like this. Creative writing...could do it all day long. Creative projects? Not so much. So I gathered the materials we have around the house to make a base and had JS pick out some things from our craft corner that he liked and we set to work. Long story short, I called in my creative friend to help finish the job. I think we just needed some new perspective. JS wanted some big, colorful rectangles hanging from it, and I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out how to fit them in. Thanks A, for helping to calm that storm! :)

Yesterday I took my oldest three to their school's book fair before school started. JS was the first one to find the book he wanted. RL didn't have much trouble either. BC, my 6yr old was very disappointed to find out that his first choice was sold out. He had his heart set on it. The tears began to well up in his eyes and I could see the storm was coming. Fortunately, so could the Librarian. She took our money and said that she'd see if she could order some more. In the mean time, she had him pick out his next favorite and set it aside, just in case. Thanks to our school Librarian, for showing love to my son!

About 2:15pm yesterday I got a call from the school nurse. JS had complained of a sore throat (which I already knew about) and had a fever of 102. (Which had developed since school started.) I got off the phone, woke up my youngest two from nap, and headed to the school. Since there was only a half hour left of school by the time I got there, I requested that my other two kids leave class early. I was greeted by three teary eyed children when I got there. One, because he had to wear a mask on his face and go home early, one because she was missing the last half hour of her movie, and one because he was missing music class. After a short conversation in the car about how sometimes parents have to make tough decisions, I promised the kids I would make it worth their while to come home early. We had movie night with popcorn and hot cocoa. Needless to say, I will be taking my son in today if he still has a fever and a sore throat. Strep is going around at his school right now and I don't want to take any chances.

So, I'm hoping that today the storms will stay outside, and it will be a pretty smooth sailing type of day. The thing is, I'm still here. I don't want you to get the wrong idea and think that I'm complaining. Things might have gotten a little rocky this week, but every storm eventually came to an end. There are storms in life, but all can be navigated safely if we look to the One who commands the seas.

Psalm 107:28-30
Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
and he brought them out of their distress.

He stilled the storm to a whisper;
the waves of the sea were hushed.

They were glad when it grew calm,
and he guided them to their desired haven.

Thank You, Lord, for the storms. I look to you when the winds rise and the waves seem to crash around me. For you are my desired haven. I praise you in the storms of life. You are my faithful navigator.

Amen!

Conversation with a Teller

I had an interesting conversation with a teller this morning that I don't believe was by chance. Especially after my post on hope last week. I was in the bank to cash some checks because we are saving up for some beef and trying to keep the money separate. Somewhere in the conversation I happened to mention that my husband is a Worship Pastor. That opened up the floodgates.

She told me about her childhood church and how when her mom re-married they got converted to Mormon. We talked about her grown daughter's church and what she didn't like about it. She asked questions about my church and I gladly answered her them. When I told her we used to work at the church down the street she wanted to know what denomination it was and what they believed. At one point she mentioned that before she moved here she did the study "Purpose Driven Life" with a friend, that lead to her eventual baptism and attendance at their church. She expressed her sadness when she moved from there and told me that she hasn't found a home church here that compares.

Normally, I would invite this woman to my church. But under the circumstances, I felt compelled to invite her to my old church instead. She lives not a mile away from it and I think she would feel welcome there. I told her the name of the Pastor and the service times. If I go back to the bank in the near future, I might even take her a connect card from LCN to further encourage her to visit there.

I walked away wishing that I could have done more. I prayed all the way home that in some way, God used me to touch this woman's life. Even though I didn't "present the gospel" to her, I saw it as an opportunity to encourage her in her existing faith. It was a brief encounter, but a meaningful one. I encouraged her in the best way I know how: by sharing my own experience with her and letting her know that there are good churches out there.

No, this meeting was not by chance. I don't often go in to the bank. I prefer the drive-through because I usually have a car load of kids. But this morning, I was kid-free, and something in my spirit told me to park, and go inside for a change. I'm glad I did.

Hebrews 3:13 "But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness."

Siesta Scripture Memory 11.1.09

Hebrews 10:23 "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful."

I thought this a fitting verse to tie together all of the verses that God has shown me this year about hope. Yes, I still have 3 memory verses left in the year, but I couldn't wait to store this treasure in my heart.

May you hold unswervingly to hope, because He who promised is faithful...

~Melissa~

Company Girl Coffee 10.30.09

Yesterday Rachel Anne over at Home Sanctuary posted a really terrific devotion about Jesus, our King. Her willingness to share from her own personal experience really got me to thinking and brought a lot of scriptures to mind, but one in particular is on my heart this morning.

1 Peter 3:15 "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,"

There's that word "hope" again. I sure have been coming across it a lot lately. The greek word here is "elpis," pronounced "el-pece." It's origin is from the word "elpo," meaning "to anticipate, usually with pleasure." Another definition is "the expectation of good."

HOPE. We throw the word around casually in everyday conversation. "I hope you have a nice day." "I hope you feel better soon."

What I truly desire though, is that Hope shines through in my life. Christ is my Lord and my King, and the reason for my hope.

Now I've come full circle to Romans 5:1-2 and my post Cup of Hope, from last week.

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God."

Rejoicing in my King,
~Melissa~

SNOW

Perhaps I spoke too quickly when I said it snows here on or shortly after Halloween! This morning, October 29th, I woke up, grabbed my cup of coffee, and taking advantage of the quiet house set to reading my devotions. The first kid to wake up was my 2yr old. He crawled up on the couch with me and snuggled in. Then, out of his mouth with excitement came not the normal "good morning mama," but "snow mama!" I looked out the window and sure enough, it was snowing. It has changed to mixed snow and rain now, but I can't help wondering if this is a sign of things to come.

Here are a few verses that sprang to mind as I was lamenting the cold snow outside:
Psalm 51:7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, let us reason together,"
says the LORD.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.

Isaiah 55:9-11
9"As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Psalm 147:16 He spreads the snow like wool
and scatters the frost like ashes.

And perhaps the most appropriate for this season in my life as a wife, mother, and homemaker:

Proverbs 31:21 When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

The Sights and Smells of Fall

This morning it is cold outside. I woke up to our first official "frost." There is was, blanketing the lawn, toys, and windshields of our vehicles sending a signal that winter is just around the corner. We usually get our first snow on or shortly after Halloween here. So before winter settles in, I thought I would share a few of the sights and smells of Fall around our house.

Leaves...piles and piles of them! My daughter was disappointed because they finally started to build up in the yard, and then the rain hit! We never had a chance to rake them and jump in them. Yesterday the weather cleared and she went outside and started to rake. There are still plenty of leaves yet to fall, so hopefully the weather will stay clear this week.Toothless grins! LR, who turns five in 17 days, just lost her first tooth yesterday! It's been wiggly for a while now. She was so excited. My baby girl is growing up.Cookies! Friday my DH got into baking mode and whipped up a batch of sugar cookies to cut, bake, and decorate with our kids. They turned out great! The close up picture turned out blurry, but my MIL called it the "Easter basket" cookie. There are sprinkles of every kind piled high. It was decorated by a very eager 6 year old. :)Cinnamon rolls anyone? This morning I got motivated and the smell of cinnamon filled the house as I baked up a nice surprise for my children. (No, sorry, they are not homemade!)This week we will have some pumpkin fun. I'm looking forward to letting my kids show their creative side painting pumpkins. Last year I had my own fun and after Halloween I made the pumpkins into pie! Pumpkin pie is another sight, and smell that I love, love, love, this time of year. I keep a bunch of pumpkin spice candles on hand to fill my home with that fresh baked aroma. :)

While we are on the topic of aroma, a passage of Scripture came to mind this morning when I was baking cinnamon rolls.

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" -2Corinthians 2:14-16

The "fragrance of life." Now that's a fragrance worth wearing. In any season. How will you spread the aroma of Christ today?

~Melissa~

A Cup of Hope

"And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." -Romans 5:2b-5

Good morning girls! I only have a minute or two before the kids are up and things get crazy around here. I wanted to share this passage today because it has been on my heart a lot lately. I've been listening to a sermon that my DH preached back in June. (The one I sent to Rachel.) I have a lot of friends that are currently walking through some tough trials and I have been praying this scripture over their lives.

Here are some things that stand out to me:

1. We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God... this is an amazing thing! The glory of God is so incredible, SO powerful, that it is our source of hope.
2. We rejoice in our sufferings... wait a minute! We're supposed to rejoice in our sufferings? Remember what I just said. The glory of God gives us hope, and if we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, then we can rejoice in our sufferings.
3. Suffering produces perseverance... God knows that when we suffer trials, it is hard. He wants us to walk through them, (and He never leaves our side) so that we can develop perseverance. Paul realized this when he asked God to remove the thorn in his flesh. Three times he asked, and God said "My Grace is sufficient for you." -2Corinthians 12:7
4. Perseverance produces character... when we walk through trials, it builds character into our lives. The kind of character that we want to model for our children. My kids' elementary school has a motto "character counts." They give out awards to the kids who model good character to their peers. I want to teach the kind of character to my children that will stand the test when they have to make tough decisions, or walk through difficult times of their own.
5. And character produces hope... did you see that? AND character produces hope. We've come full circle here. It's a process. You can't jump from suffering to hope. There's those two small things in between. Suffering produces perseverance, in turn produces character, in turn produces hope. BUT through it all, remember #1. We rejoice in the HOPE of the glory of God. Hope is there all along. It is the starting point, and the ending point! We just have to look to the Source.
6. And HOPE does not disappoint. Why? "Because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom God has given us."

Whew! There's a lot to take in there. I'm still processing it myself.

For my friends, whom I love, that are in the suffering stage right now, know that I am praying for you. God is faithful, and He will see you through. For those of you out there that have persevered, built character, and are walking with hope right now, take a minute to think about who you can be praying for that is in need of hope.

May the God of peace bless you all this weekend!
~Melissa~