A GOOD LAND

For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land-a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; Deuteronomy 8:7
This is what God gave to me first thing this morning. So I sat down and read Deuteronomy 8. It made me think of how God gives us promises that WE do not claim. It would be like someone giving you a new house and even though it is your house, you will not live there because you did not take the key to your new house, unlock the door and move in!
God has given us so much but because we are sheep (head down and never looking up) we do not receive what has been given to us. Don't you think that would be so frustrating to God. I guess frustrating would not be the right word. That would be our human word! I think more like heartbreaking to God. I am guilty of not claiming my promises. I let the enemy tell me that God meant that promise for someone else! Not me! I always feel like God says my middle name a lot. You know like VICKIE DEnise will you ever get this. I feel like that I am on another spiritiually growing place right now. You know when your heart races wehn you that what is God going to do next.
Jack and I are on a new adventure and with my natural eyes, I get a little nervous. With my faith eyes, I see that nothing is impossible wehen we are in God's will. So I believe that was what God was giving me this morning. I could have just brushed it off but I chose to get in the word of God to see what God was trying to tell me. It told me that God is bringing us into a good land-a land with brooks, streams and deep springs GUSHING out into the valleys and hills.  I am not believing what the enemy wants me to believe. His lies is this land is too big for you, that the giants live in this land, and that I need to stay where is is comfortable.That is time to take a leap of faith. So we are leaping! Please keep us in your prayers that we are in God's will. It would be good for your soul to read Deuteronomy 8 today and listed to what promise God has for you and claim that promise. May your 2013 bring you into the a good land-a land with brooks, streams, and deep streams gushing out into the valleys and hills! Peace, love and BLESSINGS to all of you.

Roller Coaster!

Well that is how explain about my life. ROLLER COASTER! Yesterday was a very hard day for Jack and I. It really has no rhyme or no reason. Some times I know what opens the floodgates of tears and some days not so much. I am so very blessed to have the friends that I do. Friends that can't phytham the loss of a child but they are so clued in on how it must hurt.
One thing that I want to say is that I am always amazed when someone says that I inspire them. Let me insert here (it is no way, shape or form) me that is doing the inspiring. I know as I know that the inspiring comes from God. I know when I have my melt downs that God never has a melt down. I know that when I just can't get this head wrapped around my situation that God is all over it.
I guess the first part of my struggle (this week) started Saturday when I was making my nieces and nephews their little gifts from Jack and I. I can't say too much about that (don't want to give away the gift part to nieces and nephews) but that stirred up that all the kids will be here, all except Ej. So not much sleep on Saturday night. I did not feel like going to church on Sunday but I did and of course the sermen included not giving your all and coming to church just because is not good enough. But anyway, after the service, a lady at the church that reminds me so much of my mom grabbed me and gave me a hug. And she said you was on mind last night and so I prayed for you. Norma Coffey that made me cry all the way home. To think that someone thinks of me and prays for me, just like my mom would have. Now do I need to insert that God has got this. So then come Monday night when it was time to wrap the gifts, well going down again. Still not giving too much away in cases sneaking nieces and newphews are reading this. It made me wonder what Ej's interest would be today and what he would be doing. I think I have shared this before but there is just days that I SHOULD NOT GO THERE! But I did! Round two of melt down pursued and was with me on Tuesday. That is when God sent Donna (her daughter Amanda is in heaven with Ej and they are comet jumping) Anyway God sent her to my office where she looked at me and said HONEY what is wrong and then she followed up with well that was a dumb question because I know what is wrong. By the time she left my office, I was better and she always makes me feel better. See God has sent me another mother that has lost a child to comfort me and give me wisdom of a Jesus Girl! Thanks Donna!  And I might insert here that all the sweet little friends on fb, that share kind words and comments that make m e feel better. Then Jack took me to Somerset last night to watch our little Kade (grandson) play basketball. It done my heart good to do a little coaching. Well actually I am not the coach but I am the nana who thinks she is the coach. So God let me think I know enough about basketball to do a little bleacher coaching...lol. So last but not least was my conversation with my other friend Julie Beckman who has got to be the sweetest person...And she has loads of compassion that I think God blessed her with. When those words was said that I inspire her..That is so funny to me because most the time I am doing all I possibly can to get by. But that is where God comes in once again. I CANNOT do anything without him leading and guiding and trying to make me understand that I am not controlling this life but God is. And I am thankful that God is patient with me because if he was not God, I would have already wore him out and would have made him quit. But I am thankful that he keeps sending me all the people I get to conversate with. He sends all of my friends just in time and with the right words and all I can say is I AM SO BLESSED, I AM SO THANKFUL that God or my friends have not walked away saying you are too much of a mess for me to stay. Please have the best Christmas ever with your children. Love them and when they are on your last nerve love them a little more. God has got me thus far and believe me when I say that it is miles further then I could have got on my own. It is not me, it is God.

I am Forgiven

I have learned so much about forgiveness over the last few years and one of the biggest thing I have found is that it is harder for me to forgive myself then it is  to forgive others.  I believe that some unforgiveness of others comes from not forgiving ourselves.  It is much easier to blame someone else then to think that the burden of responsibility might be on me.  With that being said not forgiving ourselves comes from pride. The pride that we think we are higher then God because he has forgiven us so why can't we forgive. When the bible says when we ask God not only with our mouths but with our hearts to be forgiven. It is done! Not tomorrow not the day after that not 5 minutes from now but right at that very second that you ask for forgiveness.  So God has forgiven us, but we keep it going. We try to figure out why we did it. We try to blame others for what WE did and then before we know we are back in the cycle of unforgivness. The very thing that God took and forgot about until we remind him. Sometimes we have to say I am sorry, will you forgive me. EVEN if we think we did nothing wrong. But if we have hurt someones feelings intentional or UNINTENTIONAL, that does not make their feelings any less hurt.  And I am not proud of the fact that in the past I have hurt someones feelings and I have done that intentionally.  How sad for me. That to hurt someone on purpose, well, is just mean spirited. But even if I hurt someone in my past and was unintentional I always thought, well that is their problem because I did not do it on purpose. I am thankful that I am not the old Vickie but the new Vickie. It is such a freedom. I am not perfect but no stretch of the imagination but I know I am a Jesus Girl and that makes me smile.  God's word is very clear about if you have unforgiveness in your heart and you come to the Alter of God, that you are to make it right and then come back to the Alter of God. If you believe in God's word then that is the message. I am not saying that forgiveness is easy, it is not because it involves us giving up what we would like to hold on to. I am thankful for the forgiveness that I have gotten from my friends and family but more than that, I am thankful that I am forgiven by our most precious heavenly Father. The Alpha and the Omega...