Lea Anne McCrory Wood

The Way He Wants You to Live

2011-08-18T07:45:00.000-07:00

I've been meditating on a scripture a lot these last two weeks and it has come up in conversation a couple of times. I need to hear "Well, done... good and faithful servant," and I'm sure that other people in leadership need to hear it as well. However, a lot of the time we seem to only tell them about the bad stuff they are doing. This scripture spoke volumes to me and as I meditate on a few of the points of interest I hope it speaks to you as well.

And now, friends, we ask you to honor those leaders who work so hard for you, who have been given the responsibility of urging and guiding you along in your obedience. Overwhelm them with appreciation and love!

Get along among yourselves, each of you doing your part. Our counsel is
that you warn the freeloaders to get a move on. Gently encourage the stragglers,
and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with
each person, attentive to individual needs. And be careful that when you get on
each other's nerves you don't snap at each other. Look for the best in each
other, and always do your best to bring it out.

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

Don't suppress the Spirit, and don't stifle those who have a word from the Master. On the other hand, don't be gullible. Check out everything, and keep only what's
good. Throw out anything tainted with evil.

May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together—spirit, soul, and body—and keep you fit for the coming of our Master, Jesus Christ. The One who called you is completely dependable. If he said it, he'll do it!

Friends, keep up your prayers for us. Greet all the followers of Jesus there with a holy embrace. And make sure this letter gets read to all the brothers and sisters. Don't leave anyone out.

The amazing grace of Jesus Christ be with you! 1 Thessalonians 12-28

How do you overwhelm someone with appreciation and love? Is it just telling them you appreciate them or is it writing a note?

How do you get along with others? How do you do your part? These are serious questions that need to be answered as we each try to spur the others along in the Christian walk and faith.

Thank God for everything... even the people that get on your nerves. Always praying for others and asking God for guidance. Completely surrender to the Lord in every path you walk on. Knowing that you don't have to fix anything or that you aren't in control of anything. Just be thankful, prayerful and cheerful.

This next part is the part that I'm meditating on... How do you know if something is good or not? How can you discern the good from the bad? The spirit is alive within us and it speaks to us and it protects us and it tells us things we could not possibly know on our own. So don't quench that spirit... Don't put out the spark of fire that ignites within us when there are red flags flying around.. test everything and see what is good... It says to throw out all the evil. If you have a red flag then address it... test it, ask questions... seek the answer then dig it out and throw it out...Not the person, but the thing that is evil. Sometimes we have answers from people who are gifted in discerning right from wrong... seek out good counsel. Don't try to be an island and do things on your own. Ask for help from others who walk with the Lord and seek his counsel.

This book of Thessalonians was a letter written to the church of Thessalonica... It was asked that the letter be read and passed along to the members of the church... It was passed down for 2 thousand years...

Test and approve everthing and keep only what is good... Ask the spirit to help you discern what is good today.

Lea Anne

A little bit of a pity party...

2011-08-01T09:20:00.001-07:00

I have to say that I was in a bit of a pit last week... doing a little self-pitying... and I allowed myself to go there for a day or so before I pulled myself out of it. The whole time I was in it, I kept saying that I know better... I kept telling myself to get over it... I knew better... But I can't deny that I was in it.

Well, I have to say that when I began to feel my emotions and feelings trying to control me, that I go to the source of all my strength. I went to the Bible to hear what God had to say about it and I found him to be faithful, as He always is. I recognized that He cares about our feelings and I know that even if it's a self-imposed feeling of pit dwelling, not necessarily something someone does to you, He can pull us out of it if we let him.

I came across the passage from Jeremiah where he is lamenting that he was ever born. He spoke about how everyone was against him, how he didn't have any friends, how he should never have been born, and it made me realize that I felt somewhat similar. The passage I'm referring to is Jeremiah 20:7-18.

What stands out the most to me in this passage is the way that Jeremiah flips between the reason why he is the way he is and the feelings that he feels because of the way he is. What he knows to be true contradicts how he feels about it. This was a little confusing to me and the fact that the Lord didn't respond to him says a lot too. He basically overcame the issue of self-pity by realizing he was responsible for what he was called to do and by giving voice to how he felt about it, didn't change his feelings, but he understood that the Lord would take care of him.

So when we find ourselves in a bit of a pity party, do we sit around and complain about it?

Or do we withdraw into isolation and mope about it?

What should we do to overcome it?

How do we get over it?

These are just a few of the questions I have for you. I know that for myself, I allowed myself to feel a little pity, but then I pulled myself up by the bootstraps and got over it. I can honestly say that I am over it and I hope to have a better understanding of who I am for having gone through it. I hope that I can always go to the source of all knowledge when faced with honest feelings of self-loathing or self-pity.

I know who I am in Christ and will continue along the path that is laid out for me. I will be faithful to stay the course. I will press on. In the process, I hope to encounter little things about myself that will make me a better person when I incorporate them into my behavior modification plan. The only evidence that we are a living, walking-in-relationship-with-Jesus person, is a changed life.

Is my life different than it was a year ago?

Am I seeing things a little differently?

We must always be evolving in our relationships, growing in our spiritual development, and loving just a little bit deeper as we allow Christ to work in our lives.

So don't be embarrassed about having gone on a pity party trip. Embrace it and allow the Lord to heal you and grow you up.

Love to you all,
Lea Anne

Stop speaking worthless words and start speaking Good ones

2011-07-13T12:58:00.000-07:00

Have you ever felt like you were treated badly and because of all the work you've done for the Lord, that it shouldn't have happened to you the way it did. Did your feelings get hurt so bad that you wanted to quit what you know God has called you to do? Maybe you have quit but the pain of the insult is so bitter in your mouth that you spew forth poison every time you have the opportunity to "tell" someone what happened to you... Well this is an interesting passage from my study in Jeremiah where God honestly tells Jeremiah to stop his whining and complaining and just get about doing what He told him to do. If this is you and you are currently stuck in an offense, I pray that you receive this as it is meant. As a way out of the depression and insult and into forgiveness and full living.

Jeremiah 15:15-18
You know where I am, God! Remember what I'm doing here!
Take my side against my detractors.
Don't stand back while they ruin me.
Just look at the abuse I'm taking!
When your words showed up, I ate
them—
swallowed them whole. What a feast!
What delight I took in being
yours,
O God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
I never joined the party crowd
in their laughter and their fun.
Led by you, I went off by myself.
You'd filled me with indignation. Their sin had me seething.
But why,
why this chronic pain,
this ever worsening wound and no healing in sight?
You're nothing, God, but a mirage,
a lovely oasis in the distance—and
then nothing!

19-21This is how God answered me:

"Take back those
words, and I'll take you back.
Then you'll stand tall before me.
Use
words truly and well. Don't stoop to cheap whining.
Then, but only then,
you'll speak for me.
Let your words change them.
Don't change your words
to suit them.
I'll turn you into a steel wall,
a thick steel wall,
impregnable.
They'll attack you but won't put a dent in you
because I'm
at your side, defending and delivering."
God's Decree.
"I'll deliver you
from the grip of the wicked.
I'll get you out of the clutch of the
ruthless."

The NLT version says:

“If you return to me, I will restore you
so you can continue to serve me.
If you speak good words rather than worthless ones,
you will be my spokesman.
You must influence them;
do not let them influence you!

God doesn't mean to discount your feelings or to make light of your offense. He just wants you to continue serving him whatever happens. Even if no one ever receives. Even if no one ever changes. He can't use you when you live in unforgiveness. He just can't.

God gives us an important responsibility in the ministry and that is to keep on keeping on even when it gets hard. Even when there is an offense...

Be the one to share about what Christ went through... How he suffered and was beaten, and how he was crucified and how he died that we may all have life. He did it willingly... he knew when he came to this earth that he would suffer injustice and that he would lay down his life for all of us who are so imperfect, but he put aside his rights to not be hurt. So why can't you. This is all about bringing glory and honor to the Lord... Not about your hurt feelings...

I hope that this speaks to someone today that is holding on to a little injustice and offense today. Just lay it down and Get over it... God says to put away all that worthless talk and start talking good things today.

Lea Anne

A Blessed Life

2011-06-30T07:36:00.001-07:00

I wanted to stop and take a minute to offer a little gratitude to the Lord for where I am in life. I have been very blessed and I want to express my joy for life out loud.

Lord,

I wanted to stop and say "Thank You" for all that You have brought about in my life and allowed to happen.

I wanted to give credit where credit is due...

I wanted to inspire hope in someone today that is feeling a little depressed or is waiting for an answered prayer.

I wanted to remind myself and others that our hope is in the You, Lord.

Rejoice and Be glad...
Lea Anne

A Special Form of Communication

2011-05-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

Do you have a special form of communication between you and the Lord?

Do you have a certain something that brings you instant peace and joy that you recognize as a sign of God's presence?

Some people see a rainbow and are filled with peace.

Some people see a star and find comfort.

Others may see a feather or a leaf that floats in front of them and it reminds them of a promise that was spoken over them a long time ago.

I have always found a sense of peace when I see a Bluejay or a Red bird. It's always made me stop and take notice of my surroundings and pause and give God some GLORY because I feel him near. That happened last Friday morning when I pulled out of my driveway. I saw a bluebird chasing a redbird and it instantly brought comfort to my soul.

I felt the arms of the Lord wrap around me and say "Peace, Child, I am with you."

I still feel that peace. That unexplainable peace that surpasses all understanding from the only source that can fill you with joy and comfort.

Today I can say that God was establishing His peace with me where the decision of making an offer on a house was concerned. He said... "I've got this... you don't have to worry." And even though it turned out a little differently than I expected, I'm happy all the same. The Lord truly does know best! Trust him today for your decisions.

I hope you have a special form of communication between you and the Lord. It's those moments of sight that give an infusion to your faith that is mostly unseen but oh so neccessary in how you deal with the everyday stresses of life.

Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him!
Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side,
working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is
about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

Don't fret or worry.

Instead of worrying, pray.

Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down.

It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. Philippians 4:4-8 (Message)

I pray you can hear the whisper of the Lord in your life today.
Love,
Lea Anne

Just Make a Choice...No Guesswork involved...

2011-04-11T14:46:00.000-07:00

Have you ever watched the game "Let's make a deal?" Have you ever thought about decisions in life and what would happen if you had picked another path in life? How do we know what God's BEST plan is for us?

This is God's Word on the subject:

"As soon as Babylon's seventy years are up and not a day before (translated as "At just the right time, not a second before"), I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans (not just plan... but PLANS) to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. "When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen. "When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I'll make sure you won't be disappointed." God's Decree. "I'll turn things around for you. I'll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you"—God's Decree—"bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it. Jeremiah 29:11-13

You see, I've been meditating on this thought for a few weeks now. It's not that we have choices or opportunities that we get to pick from... You see our paths are already laid out for us... As we walk, we learn things about ourselves and about God that make us into the person he wants us to be.

But here is the gist of all the seeking and the path walking and the direction guidance we ask for... We must seek GOD, then all these other things will be added unto us. Seek Him first, seek Him and not direction... Seek God and you will find His will for you.

You don't have to wonder what's behind all the other doors... just pick one and walk through it. Walk and seek the Lord and He will fill you with his glory and he will direct your steps. You don't have to know where you are going, you just have to walk along. Praying and seeking as you go, trusting and believing that what he's bringing you to is something good... something you are hoping for...

Just wanted to share what I've been meditating on the past few weeks. What peace there is in not having to know where the path is leading, just knowing who's leading me...

In Christ,

Lea Anne

Walking in Forgiveness

2011-03-17T10:09:00.000-07:00

I was taken aback the other day when a thought came to my mind about something I did about 23 years ago that was not quite reputable. A fleeting thought about a mistake I made even though I knew better. And something that I had already asked forgiveness for and from which I was walking in complete freedom. I hadn't even thought about it in 15 years, much less dwelt on it, so when the memory came to my mind, I felt an instant grip of regret... of guilt... of unworthiness to teach and witness and speak of the glory of God.

I was preparing for my Bible Study class when this happened and it was a great lesson on advancing the Kingdom inspite of circumstances... inspite of limitations.... inspite of selfish motives... inspite of fears... inspite of dissatisfaction in other people... It was as if the enemy spoke this to my mind " who do you think you are? You have made so many mistakes... You aren't worthy to talk about "Godly" living... You aren't good at all... remember when you _________...

And I did remember... I remembered when I said I was sorry... I remembered when I asked forgiveness... I remembered when I turned in repentance (and didn't do it again)... I remembered that I was forgiven and walking in grace... Even after I remembered all this, I needed to be comforted by Jesus and I went to his word in the little book of promises that I keep by my bedside table and looked up "regret" and this is what I found...

The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this:
“I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite
and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble
and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts.

Isaiah 57:15

God spoke so clearly to my soul... the part of me that was sorry for the wrong that I had done... and told me very gently that HE had forgiven me and that HE knew I was forgiven because I had a repentant heart... I wasn't STILL walking in that sin or attitude of before... I had a changed heart that was healed and free and forgiven and that I had his COURAGE in me to boldly proclaim HIS GLORY to others. To teach others with the authority of one that was walking in freedom and forgiveness and to always know that I was WORTHY to be called a child of his.

This is the attack and the path that the enemy tries to take a person down. He tries to keep you from walking in forgiveness and freedom by reminding you of the bad things you've done. The sins that you've committed and the utter lostness of your past lives...

We are all sinful people and do things we're not proud of. But we have a righteous Father who convicts us of a wrong when we do it and when we come into agreement with Him that it is wrong he will forgive those sins if we ask him to. We then have to turn from the way we were doing things and choose not to do them again if we are in agreement with God that it is wrong for us.

The first part is confession and the second part is repentance... You can have confession without repentance, but God's word clearly spoke to me that I was FREE because of my repentance... Because I wasn't doing it anymore. That I don't even want to do it anymore. That I hadn't even thought about it in 15 years or longer... That's WALKING IN FORGIVENESS... That's Freedom... that's Abundant living and pleasing to God and it's stuff that the enemy hates... He has no power over a person that chooses to walk in Forgiveness... of yourself and of others... We have power to forgive because we have been forgiven...

Does this make sense?

I just wanted to share my experience of what happened to me and the way I chose to overcome it. I choose to walk in forgiveness and boldly profess the name of my savior, JESUS...

I hope you can walk in forgiveness too.

Lea Anne

Sifted as Wheat

2011-02-17T20:46:00.000-08:00

"Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat." (Luke 22:31)

I've never seen this verse before tonight and I came across it in my study of Jesus the One and Only. It stopped me in my reading of the Passover Supper when Jesus is about to be betrayed by Judas. He has just shared the last meal with the disciples, announced that he would be betrayed, and washed the disciples feet. Then Jesus spoke those words to Peter... Satan has ASKED to sift you as wheat...

This was an answer to my prayer of the last 11 days in my life as I wondered why I was faced with a couple of seemingly bad circumstances. As I have learned in my walk with the Lord, if I seem to be under a little oppression or trouble seems to be brewing around me, I stop and check my fellowship with the Lord, then I go through a mental list of confessions as I seek the Lord for an answer in response to my unfortunate situations.
Here's a little of my confessional list that I sift through my mind and heart

I first humble myself and realize that "who am I" that something bad SHOULDN'T happen to me.
Then I give my concerns and discernments to the Lord and ask HIM to bear them for me.
Then I watch! I stay alert!!! (Satan is the great enemy... not the people around me who I might feel the attack is coming from... It's ALWAYS Satan...He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
Then I stand firm and Wait... Waiting isn't a passive thing for me... Waiting is SEEKING the Lord for comfort and understanding... I read the Bible to seek God's grace to deal with the unfortunate cirumstance... then I wait a little longer.
Then I stand firm on my belief that GOD IS ABLE TO DELIVER ME... whatever the issue may be... I STAND FIRM in my faith...
Then I praise God for keeping me safe... even when I don't understand...
AND I ALWAYS THANK GOD for His GRACE to overcome the whatever... if it's a dishonor, or a slander, or a financial shortfall, or whatever it is... I KNOW GOD'S GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR ME.
I then Wait some more because I know that after I've suffered a little while that God will restore me, support me, and strengthen me and bring me back into a firm foundation... HE IS ALL POWERFUL and nothing happens without HIS PERMISSION...

So with all that check list being checked off, I have peace...that surpasses all understanding... so that I can pass the test that I am called to take. This is what I KNOW and what I've walked out through the years with the Lord. So when I had a bit of a shake up last week, I immediately recognized it as a test and I have had several scriptures that have brought me comfort.

Hosea 10:12 Plant the good seeds of righteousness and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord that he may come and shower righteousness upon you...

I read that verse on Saturday and I felt healed. But when I read the verse from Luke 22:31 tonight... It actually stopped me in my reading and I had to write this to give praise to the Lord. I'll try to explain what I mean but it's still fresh...

I actually felt honored... Honored to be ASKED by satan to be sifted... My checklist is right out of scripture if you'd like to read it yourself... 1 Peter 5:6-14

This sifting is allowed by God because in his kindness he has called me to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. Because I am a follower of Christ, I can bring glory and honor to the Lord through my suffering and sifting. GLORY TO YOU, FATHER.

The very next thing Jesus said to Peter was this... But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again...Strenghten your brothers...

This is what is so amazing about this story...Jesus knew Peter would deny him...BUT he also knew that he would repent and be even STRONGER because of his faith and go on to do GREAT things for Christ...

WHAT JOY!!! To know that we can be restored to fullness of faith with the simplest form of repentance and obedience to do what God calls us to do... Just Trust and Obey...

Again, I just say Thank you Lord. For revealing the purpose behind the bump in my path. That I stayed on your path for me and "after a little suffering, you will restore me, support and strengthen me... OH what a story to tell... Satan will be sorry he messed with me...

Please know that nothing happens without God's knowledge and permission... if we just humble ourselves and seek HIM instead of focus on the problem, HE WILL RESTORE US...

In Christ,

Lea Anne

A Life of Harvest

2011-01-29T06:38:00.001-08:00

I woke up this morning with this thought on my heart...God blesses obedience... I couldn't lay there in bed I had to get up and write this note. I knew that I had to put it on paper in order to bless someone today. It sure blessed me. I realize that I talk about God in almost every one of my status updates. I kind of think I'm a little fanatical. I'm sure most of you think that I am. But I just can't help myself. I'm living a life of HARVEST. My life is full and abundant and overflowing and I want that so much for all of you who care to read this. And all of those who don't take time to read this. I don't know who reads this and when I write it's certainly not to receive a popular "LIKES" to be clicked, but I write in order to share with you the harvest in my life.

It got me to thinking about Harvest... What does harvest mean. I looked it up. Here's what the dictionary said...

HARVEST
1. The act or process of gathering a crop.
a.The crop that ripens or is gathered in a season.
b. The amount or measure of the crop gathered in a season.
c. The time or season of such gathering.
2. The result or consequence of an activity.

I like the #2 definition in relation to my life. I am harvesting what I have already planted. The activity that is evident in my life is in direct relationship to the activity that I do on a consistent basis... It is the law of reaping what you sow...

And I harvest in spring, summer, fall and winter because I am sowing in spring, summer, fall, and winter.

I wanted to write this note to offer a little encouragement to those who are harvesting a "bad Season". You can change and start harvesting a good season by the things you choose to do daily. Today you can start choosing to live a life that is in DIRECT OBEDIENCE to the Lord. You may not even know what that consists of. You may never have read a word of the Bible in your life and haven't because some "Christian" turned you off to Jesus a long time ago. You may have to have proof that Jesus exists before you will even try to read the Bible. I don't know what stage of life you are in, I don't know what struggles you may currently be under. I just know that without God's word as a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path, then we WILL take the path that looks right but ends in death...

These last few sentences were all scripture, and because I have hid it in my heart, I live it... day after day after day...

Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.

Proverbs 14:12 There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end
it leads to death.

Acts 17:31 For he has set a day when he will judge
the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this
to everyone by raising him from the dead.”

I've had many conversations with people who are turned off by the words that I speak. Some have even said, "Stop quoting scripture. Just tell me what you think." and I honestly can't do that. It doesn't matter what I think... Really it doesn't... It only matters what God thinks... And he has told us what he thinks on EVERY subject that is common to man...(another scripture)

I Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has seized you that isn’t common for people.
But God is faithful. He won’t allow you to be tempted beyond your abilities.
Instead, with the temptation, God will also supply a way out so that you will be
able to endure it.

I just wanted to emphasize how real and true and vocal God is. His word is active, living, breathing, alive...

But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the
sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and
marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. 13 Nothing in all
creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes,
and he is the one to whom we are accountable.

Take a chance and try God for yourself. I want so much for you to walk in the fullness of his love and mercy. To receive the blessings for your obedience. God will not be mocked. He may not punish disobedience on this side of heaven, but he ALWAYS blesses obedience with a fruitful harvest on this side of Heaven. And to think of what our heavenly rewards will be is almost incomprehensible. I CAN'T WAIT...

This may be long, but I wanted to end with an example of sowing and harvesting that God has revealed to me just last week.

I've written before about my job and the way I felt God was leading me toward promotion.

IE... Heb 5:4 No one can be promoted to the position on his own, he must be called by God.

Ps 109:8 Let his years be few, let someone else take his position.

The fact that corporate was talking about promotions and looking for those within the company who might be up for promotion...

The fact that another person was put in a position that I was currently working and the same day Cecile announcing she was getting married and moving to New York and her position would be open...

The fact that my bosses didn't post the job because they felt I could do it and they moved me right up...

All these things happened in a way that God directed them. I just listened to him and followed him and stayed faithful throughout all of last year.

Then in September when Life Action came... I was at the alter every night and I struggled with God about my job. I didn't want to give up my new position... I really liked it... And I felt God asking me to give it up... For a week I struggled with it. Then finally, on the 8th night of the revival, I surrendered it. I said... FINE GOD... you can HAVE MY JOB!!

And I told him that HE was more important to me than my job and that I would go wherever he told me to...

You see... He didn't want me to GO ANYWHERE ELSE... he just wanted to know if I was WILLING to go if he asked me to. My faithfulness was rewarded...

Little did I know that at that same time, things were happening in the spiritual realm that I couldn't have orchestrated. God was arranging my favor with MEN because he was pleased with my surrender and obedience. All this to say that I was awarded MVP for third quarter sales in the ENTIRE Raycom company... 48 TV Stations... And all this because of three things...

1... I sowed the seed of good work, EVERY DAY...

2... I stayed faithful and faith filled EVERY DAY...

3... I surrender COMPLETELY to the Lord my life and my work

He blessed my obedience... and he hasn't asked me to give up my job. And I'm still sowing good seed... And I'm still staying faithful... And I am completely surrendered to the Spirit... Wherever he Leads, I'll go...

I just wanted to share my faith with you today and give you a little look into my life's exceeding greatness...

I love you and wish a fruit-filled day!!!

Lea Anne

Object Lesson from a KumKwat Tree

2011-01-22T13:49:00.000-08:00

This morning as Dana and I were cleaning the yard, he called me over to the backyard where he showed me this HUGE thorny bush growing in the Kumkwat tree. From a distance, you really can't tell the thorn bush is there. You can see the kumkwat are full and the tree looks healthy.

Taking a step closer, you can see the sprout at the top of the tree is bare of fruit.

But as you look closer, you see that the fruit is almost smothered by the thorn tree. This is the lesson that Dana received from this thorn bush.

The thorns represent the junk in our lives. This junk may not seem like it would hurt us, as you can see there is still fruit on this tree. But the junk is stuff that we allow to grow in us and can hinder our witness. It is thick and thorny and can cause us to become prickly and stubborn and smother the good stuff in our lives. The thornbushes are usually more sturdy than the fruit limbs and are very difficult to get rid of. We sometimes don't even notice the thornbushes that crop up in our lives because they sort of blend in. But they aren't healthy. They poke other people. It's a little irritation at first, then it becomes self-defense and it will usually result in a wall of bristly thorns that nobody wants to be around.

The only way you can deal with the thornbushes in our lives is to cut them out completely. We can't just prune them back and hope that they stay under control. We must uproot them until there is no thornbush enbedded in our lives.

Once we removed the thornbush from the kumkwat tree, I couldn't believe how BIG it was. It was over 10 feet tall and the thorns were over 2 inches long... This is how the junk in our lives begins to take over. Little by little. The only way we can keep the thornbushes from growing is with daily maintenance. We have to stop and take inventory of what our lives represent.

What is filling up our day to day existence?

Is it full of godly behaviors?

Are you filling yourself up with the spirit through daily Bible study, worship and prayer?

Do you surround yourself with Godly people and things?

Taking inventory every day is the only way to recognize and maintain your godly life. If you see a stalk of sin like the thornbush below, then immediately CUT it out of your life. Don't let it take another day away from you. Start living in the Fruit of the Spirit.

I wish I had a better picture to show you how pretty the kumkwat tree looks with the thornbush removed. I hope this demonstration of the object lesson of the kumkwat tree spoke to you like it did Dana and me.

I love you and I love when the Lord reveals himself in nature. He is the creator and the maker of all things. He is LOVE and the fruit of the spirit is just waiting to grow in you like this tree.

Love,

Lea Anne

Words are Mindsets...What is your mindset today?

2011-01-08T08:09:00.000-08:00

This collage spoke volumes to me this morning. I printed it out and framed it where I will set it beside my bed. If I ever feel depressed, or discouraged or a little blue, I can look at this and be reminded of who I am. These words are more than just words, they are attitudes... they are actions... they are emotions... and they can change my disposition by claiming them out loud. I hope that you will take the time to look over the words and claim one of them today.

Happy New Year!
Lea Anne

Reality Check... Take 1 and 2...

2010-12-20T08:09:00.000-08:00

I had a pretty extraordinary week where I had the privilege of hearing from two people about what they thought our church should be doing, but wasn't doing. Each situation was an honest assessment of how they were basically let down by their fellow christian brothers and sisters. Our family of believers, who I believe really do love each other, sometimes just doesn't express that love through any particular action. I know that we are not saved by works. I know that we have eternal salvation through Jesus Christ when we place our faith in him. But the Bible also says in James 2:18-26 that "Faith without works is DEAD."

So how do we put on Christ for those in need? How do we work as Christians to fulfil God's law of kindness...gentleness... tenderness...

Colossians 3 spoke volumes to me this week as I tried to work through this devasting reality of how sad the situations of these two individuals were. Let us be reminded of what it really means to live out the Christian Life...

You are God's people, Holy and loved.

So put on tender mercy and kindness as if they were your clothes.

Don't be proud.

Be gentle and patient.

Put up with each other.

Forgive the things you are holding against one another.

Forgive, just as the Lord forgave you.

And above all those good things, put on love.

Love holds them all together perfectly as if they were one.

Let the peace that Christ gives rule in your heart.

As parts of one body you were appointed to live in peace.

And be THANKFUL.

Let the message about Christ, in all it's richness, fill your lives.

Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives.

And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus,

giving thanks through him to God the Father.

The fact that we are more socially connected now, with the invention of Facebook and texting and other social media networks, than ever before DOES NOT give us an excuse to not get physically involved when we see someone hurting or in need. We must do the Christ thing and extend the hand of fellowship, or meet the financial need, or offer a helping hand, or cook a meal, or pick up kids, or send birthday wishes... We MUST get involved.

The Christian life is about sacrifice

The Christian life is about service.

The Christian life is about self-less-ness (thinking of yourself LESS and others MORE)

No wonder the world thinks it doesn't need a savior... The Christians aren't acting any different than the lost. We are as self-absorbed and self-serving, and selfish as everybody else.

PLEASE... I'm begging the church to take notice of those that are hurting, that need a friend's shoulder to cry on... that just need to be remembered... Look for ways you can meet a need today.

I'm Looking...

Lea Anne

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-13T13:48:00.000-08:00

The Wood's

Merry Christmas!

Glory to God in the Highest,

and on earth peace,

Goodwill,

to men

I am so thankful for what the Lord has done for me this year. One of the great mysteries of the Lord is how He can take the horrible, the tragic, the painful, the devastating, the embarrassing, and the ruinous experiences and memories of our lives and not only heal them, but use them for good. It's not that He will make you unable to recall them, but He will heal you so thoroughly from their effects that you no longer think about them with any pain.

He did just that with me this past year. I did a lot of Waiting on the Lord... A lot of praying for direction... A lot of self-reflection in hopes that I become more like Christ and less like the old me. I want to be right with the Lord. I want to be right with others.

God will never allow anything to happen to us that He doesn't already have a way to use it if we will let him. I just hope that whatever has happened to you this year, you will let God heal and use it for His glory. Don't hold on to the hurt or the pain... Let it go... Let GOD bring restoration and healing to your life... your marriage... your job... your children... your health... your ministry... your friendships... your "whatever" the enemy might have tried to steal from you this year. He can if you let him.

In Christ,

Lea Anne

A little Dream (and a little faith) goes a long way...

2010-07-23T07:35:00.000-07:00

I have had a pretty emotional couple of weeks and as I sort through my thoughts I wanted to bring you along this crazy little world that I live in.

It started around January of this year.

I was invited to a corporate meeting for the Internet Sales Directors of all of Raycom's TV stations, on January 24-26th. I met a lot of the people responsible for overseeing the budgets for the internet and how the website content helps the actual on-air element at KPLC. It was interesting and of course I never just listen, I talked and shared ideas and got to know a couple of the head dudes at Raycom Media. Never in my wildest imaginations did I think at that time that I was being prepared to take over the Internet Sales Director position... but that's just how God works...

Anyway, when I came back from the seminar my boss told me that I had made a good impression on the corporate guys and that he thought about me as far as a general sales managers' position opening in another market. I was flattered by the suggestion and I hadn't thought of moving out of the market, but then I know how God works and I didn't discount the idea. I took it to the Lord and this is what I want to share with you that has been revealed to me over a period of 7 months.

Dana was doing a lesson for the college department for the 5th Sunday Gathering on the 31st and he was reading out of Hebrews 4... where the word of God is alive and active... it cuts to the quick and speaks to us... I was meditating on those words and as I read a little further down in Hebrews 5:4 these words jumped off the page at me... No one can exalt himself to a position of honor... but it is the Lord who promotes you... (My paraphrase because this is what I interpreted from the Lord) Okay Lord, this is timely I thought. Even though I had not thought of the promotion on my own, I was listening to the still small voice that was guiding me down this path.

The next thing that happened is a meeting of the corporate dudes here in Lake Charles where we discussed the launching of KPLC Connections to some of the very guys that I had met in January. Another divine set up in my mind.

March offered another sign of God's guidance in a breakthrough for me with words from Psalm 109:8 ...May his days be few may another take his place of leadership...This came on a day that was very emotional for one of my managers. I didn't know what this meant at the time and I thought okay God, what are you doing here?

I'm feeling the pull of going into leadership, I just didn't know what direction God was leading me in. Now it's May and my general manager announced that someone else in the station would be the new Director of KPLC Connections, which is basically what I've been responsible for over the last 2 years so needless to say, I was a little shocked... I mean, what does that mean for me? Right?

But less than a hour later, Cecile announced that she and Bert were going to get married and she was going to leave Lake Charles and move to New York... this happened at the same time... Perfect timing... and needless to say... the job details for her job has been worked out with my management and they worked it out with Corporate that I didn't even have to compete for the job. They didn't have to post the position on the Raycom Media site that would allow other Internet Sales Directors to apply if they wanted to... It all worked out in perfect timing for me to be ready to step into this position. A position that would start on August 27th... which is also the same date as the closing on the house... Which is a whole 'nother story and thing that has been going on in my life since January...

Abundant living... not being afraid of change... inviting the unknown into your life to allow a little dreaming to occur... Dreams I didn't even know I was dreaming but God was placing in my heart. He brought it to pass... It just brings the passage back to mind that started me on this path... Hebrews 5:4... No one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God...

When God brings you to it, he'll bring you through it...

I'll let you know how it goes with the transition... I'm just living in obedience to the word of God and letting him direct my steps... Hope this offers a little hope to someone today who is a little lost as far as what direction you are going. Just trust and obey...

Loving Life,
Lea Anne

Want to know why your Prayers won't get off the ground?

2010-07-15T14:28:00.000-07:00

Isaiah 58

Wonder Why Your Prayers Won't Get Off the Ground?

1-3 "Shout! A full-throated shout! Hold nothing back—a trumpet-blast shout!
Tell my people what's wrong with their lives,
face my family Jacob with their sins!
They're busy, busy, busy at worship,
and love studying all about me.
To all appearances they're a nation of right-living people—
law-abiding, God-honoring.
They ask me, 'What's the right thing to do?'
and love having me on their side.
But they also complain,
'Why do we fast and you don't look our way?
Why do we humble ourselves and you don't even notice?'

The Bottom Line

3-5"Well, here's why:
"The bottom line on your 'fast days' is profit.
You drive your employees much too hard.
You fast, but at the same time you bicker and fight.
You fast, but you swing a mean fist.
The kind of fasting you do
won't get your prayers off the ground.
Do you think this is the kind of fast day I'm after:
a day to show off humility?
To put on a pious long face
and parade around solemnly in black?
Do you call that fasting,
a fast day that I, God, would like?

This is the kind of fast day I'm after:

6-9 to break the chains of injustice,
get rid of exploitation in the workplace,
free the oppressed,
cancel debts.
What I'm interested in seeing you do is:
sharing your food with the hungry,
inviting the homeless poor into your homes,
putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,

being available to your own families.
(knock, knock, as I was hit upon the forehead)

Do this and the lights will turn on,

and your lives will turn around at once.

Your righteousness will pave your way.

The God of glory will secure your passage.

Then when you pray, God will answer.

You'll call out for help and I'll say, 'Here I am.'

A Full Life in the Emptiest of Places

9-12"If you get rid of unfair practices,
quit blaming victims,
quit gossiping about other people's sins,
If you are generous with the hungry
and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out,
Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness,
your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.

I will always show you where to go.

I'll give you a full life in the emptiest of places—
firm muscles, strong bones.
You'll be like a well-watered garden,
a gurgling spring that never runs dry.

You will rebuild those houses
left in ruins for years;

You'll be known as those who can fix anything,

restore old ruins,

rebuild and renovate,

make the community livable again.

This is straight from scripture and I can't tell you how refreshed I feel as I read these words. I have a word from God after months of seeking his face. Of asking for answered prayer. Months of trusting and waiting and trying to remain faithful to his will. And he answered after I came to a place of brokenness in my life that I cried out to him in earnestness and with full surrender to the things that I had been trying to control in my life. He had the control the whole time and all he wanted was for me to let go of it.

MAN, what a relief to know I don't have to wonder. I have heard from God and now it is just a matter of time that He will bring it to pass. I can boldly proclaim the word I received and speak it as if it were already in existence. We will sell this house and the plans he has for us to renovate and rebuild one that has been in ruins for over 5 years, he will give us... I just have to wait on his perfect timing and for the people he has waiting to buy our house here. God's WILL will prevail. It just so happens to be my will as well because he placed the desire in my heart. I didn't have it before but because I truly wanted to walk in his path for me, I asked him to give me the desire that he wanted for me and that's what it was... Now I just have to move toward that gift...

More to come as this unfolds...

I love when I hear from the Lord and will gladly give him praise for it as long as I live... Thank you, Jesus...

LeaAnne

PS. As a reminder of what happened this day when I wrote this, we had a couple come see our house at 5pm this day, then come back for a second look on Friday, and they contracted our house that weekend. We closed on this Tuesday August 10th 3 weeks after the first look. Amazing Lord what you do in your perfect timing. Help me to always remember that you are always at work behind the scenes.

Be thankful for your spouse...

2010-07-14T12:35:00.000-07:00

My heart is so tender right now and I've had such a time of self-reflection over the last few days. Being vulnerable is very uncomfortable. It can be scary because by baring my soul, it may open me up to circumspect. It could cast doubts on my character. It could cause someone to question my walk. But I know that if I don't look deep into myself and view me as God views me, that I will never truly grow. I don't want to stay the same in my Christian life. I want to go deeper and wider with Christ. But that stretching... that pulling at my guts... that growth spurt... It hurts...

Most of my pain has been as a result of major conviction from one sentence in Church on Sunday...

There should be no secrets in a marriage

Doesn't sound threatening... doesn't really seem to be scary at all when you speak it... but was. it. ever! the earthquake of emotion that I didn't see coming. A simple statement, but sometimes the most simplest of statement are the most convicting and life-changing. I have had a little bit of yuck in my past. And there is a limitation of opening up about the yuck that lies under the surface. I'm not needing confession therapy here, but I do have a few secrets in my past. Things that weren't beneficial to talk about. They wouldn't benefit anyone so I kept them to myself... But now I know that going deeper into where my heart is means digging out the yucky parts.

And that statement...

There should be no secrets in a marriage.

It shook me a little to say the least. I don't want to go into detail and maybe one day I will, but right now I'm too tender. I'll just say that we should always be thankful for our spouses. We should always treat them with the respect and honor due them. We shouldn't take them for granted because it could be so easy to lose them. Someone else could come in and steal them away without either one of you realizing it. It could happen so easily...

Breathe...

Pray...

Praise...

Be Thankful...

I am so in love with my husband and just want to shout it to the whole world. I want to encourage you to do the same with your spouse.

Love him... Laugh with him... spend time with him... have fun with him...invest in him... encourage him... dote on him... seduce him... woo him... praise him... cherish him... allow him to lead you... submit to him... don't ever give up on him... tell him how much he means to you and how thankful you are for him.

Only you can do that... that honor and privilege is yours to give... Don't waste the opportunity to share your life with him. Don't just live with him... abide in him... hold him close and never let him go...

Hearing things about ourselves that seem hurtful at the time can really be a good thing if we turn that pain into a self-reflection and learn from it and grow into a better, deeper person. Someone who will encourage those around them and build them up and become the person that we are created to be. But only if we dig a little deeper and unearth some of the yuck and face things about ourselves that aren't pleasant... Then we can truly be free...

I love you, Dana, and I'm thankful for the little reminder that you are my best friend... I look forward to a lifetime of tomorrow's with you.
Love,
your wife...

Summer Siesta Bible Study... Ruth...

2010-06-26T18:32:00.000-07:00

I've just finished the first week's lessons of Kelly Minter's Bible Study... Ruth. I am loving it and already have learned some interesting things that I didn't know about the book of Ruth. This is a special season in my life where I feel like I'm just where I'm supposed to be, doing what I'm supposed to be doing. Waiting on the next thing to happen in my life, but all in all feeling pretty stable.
That is not the case in a few of my friends lives. This week I have encountered three women who are at a loss as to what to do with their lives. Their marriages. Their jobs... My heart goes out to them.

This statement from the bible study just keeps coming to my mind as if it's my duty to meditate on it. It's a quote from Matthew Henry reminding us that fleeing our circumstances doesn't necessarily remedy them. "It is our wisdom to make the best of that which is, for it is seldom that changing our place is mending it."

I think this verse means that even if we find ourselves in a situation that seems hopeless, or desperate, or completely wasting our time, that we should learn to make the best of it. That changing the situation isn't going to fix the problem... Because, honestly, the problem we have with anything, be it another a person, a situation, a marriage, a job, a child, a sibling, a co-worker, a whatever, the problem is OURS... It's not anyone else's... And even if we leave that "thing" that we think is causing all our grief, we really don't leave it, because the problem is IN us... Unless we resolve the issue that we have a problem with in our own hearts and minds, we will always have the problem...

Honestly, if we leave one situation, chances are we'd just find fault in another situation as soon as we got involved because again, the problem is IN us.

We must choose to humble ourselves and lean not on our own understanding of things. Let God be in control of our comings and our goings. We have to turn to God for our daily bread. We have to seek him for our paths. Willful disobedience is a scary thing. It is choosing to not surrender to the Lord. It is trying to do things in your own might.. by your own willpower. God says that nothing is impossibly for him, and that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me... But it all must be done through Christ... Through a daily dependence upon Him. Oh, for those who struggle with depending on Jesus... If you only knew that there was FREEDOM through OBEDIENCE... It is for our blessed freedom that we learn to depend on Jesus...

It's not just enough to know God's will, but we must DO God's will. We must actually follow him along the path he has laid out for us. The Bible Study gave two examples of men who wept and was asked to do the will of God. One did it and the other didn't... Paul in Acts 20:22, 34-36 knew God was leading him to Jerusalem where he may have to suffer tribulation and possibly jail... but he went... The other example was the Rich man in Mark 10:17-22. Jesus asked him to sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor, and then come follow him, but the man wept because he had a lot of money and loved his money more than God... He walked away from what he knew the Lord wanted him to do... Willful Disobedience... What a scary place to be in... This is where the hardening of the heart comes into play... Once we start saying no to God, our hearts will become harder and harder to hear his voice and to do his will... Oh, my friends... listen and head the voice of God today. Turn from the path of selfishness, and thinking of only yourself, and heed the voice of the Lord... Let him love you into the fullness of his righteousness and surrender your heart to him today.

Oh what peace we often forfeit because we don't trust and obey...

What a lesson for me through the book of Ruth... I can't wait to see what God is going to do next in my life, but until then, I will fill myself up with his goodness and grace...

Until next time,
Lea Anne

40 years of the good life...

2010-06-21T14:55:00.000-07:00

I turned 40 last week and I have to say it's been a pretty good ride so far.

I've been reflecting on the things in my life that have developed who I am...

I've decided to put a few reflections down on paper and in no certain order so that I can measure my growth in the coming years. I believe the best is yet to come and I have a lot to learn yet.

1. 19 was way too young to have a baby... but 44 seems just right to have all adult children... Perspective is important.

2. What I know about God couldn't have been told to me at an early age, I had to live it to learn it.

3. Childhood friends last a lifetime...

4. You don't have to know what your career will be when you're 13... People change and likes and dislikes change also.

5. You get out of life what you put into it.

6. Faith is only grown when you trust in something bigger than your own ability to accomplish something.

7. Prayer works!

8. Attitude is everything. Talent is just added value...

9. Live... Laugh... Love.... there's a reason this is on plaques!

10. The joy of the Lord is my strength... Nehemiah 8:10

These are just few reflections that have gotten me through the last 40 years. Important ones...

Waiting on the Lord...

2010-04-09T07:28:00.000-07:00

http://www.chattingatthesky.com/2010/04/27/tuesdays-unwrapped-6/
I'm linking to Chatting at the Sky Tuesdays unwrapped

I am gaining a new understanding of waiting on the Lord. As I was reading in Isaiah last night I was reminded of this verse...

For since the world began, no ear has heard, and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him Isaiah 64:4

I received such a gift as I meditated on these words. God WORKS for those who wait on him. I have learned before that God is always at work. He is always aligning things around the unseen so that he can lay out the path for us to walk upon. At just the right time he shows us the next step. If we are listening and watching for the Lord to act, we are always walking along the path that he has directed us toward. He asks us to walk along, trusting that he has the next thing already in place, but that next thing might take awhile to bring to pass. The fact of the matter is, do we believe that God is always at work? I believe that he is. But the rest of the scripture is what impressed me the most in my meditation... "for those of us who WAIT for Him."

How do we "wait" for the Lord?

I wait by learning more about Him. I wait by praying for others. I wait by loving others more. I wait by being still and KNOWING that he is God. I wait as I tell others about what I'm waiting on. I wait by sharing my belief that God is always at work. As I wait, I am doing... Waiting is not passive... It is actively demonstrating my faith in the Holy God working on my behalf...

I was sharing this with Keelea yesterday and she got frustrated about the house and didn't want to even talk about the showings. She said the whole thing just aggravated her. This was an opportunity to share with her how my faith was being developed as I waited. Waiting for God builds character traits in us that only faith in the Holy Spirit can do... Patience... Long-suffering... Peace... Goodness... The fruit of the spirit is developed as we Wait...

If we were given everything that we wanted without having to wait for it, how would that grow our faith? That would make our faith useless and then we would think that it all depended on us. That we could bring to pass everthing we wanted. That's not faith... That's ego... That's not scriptural, it's self-empowerment. It's not believing in the One who orchestrates our life, it's just living by our own standards... Things do just happen and life does just exist... but without faith in the ONE TRUE GOD that works for those who WAIT for HIM, our life wouldn't have the same substance. It wouldn't be as astonishing for those that don't believe. There wouldn't be any meaning to life as we know it. It would just exist.... What's the meaning in that?

Our meaning and purpose in life is to lead others to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ as the One TRUE savior. As the one TRUE source of life...

That's why we're here... To proclaim the goodness of God. That's what I get to do as I wait. I get to praise God for his goodness and mercy and love.

He's also been showing me about grace... That's for another post.

Go WAIT for God today and bring praise to him through your waiting...
Love
Lea Anne

Life passing by... one day at a time...

2010-03-24T15:09:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking... or rather not thinking... I've let the whole day go by without much thought as to taking action... Taking responsibility for my tomorrow... I've just let the day pass by...

I don't like when I do that.

Life has a way of just happening without conscious thought. We don't have to even think about it and it just ticks along... second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour until you realize a whole day has been lost. That's how my today went.

I don't like when I do that.

Maybe we need a day to goof off... to not think... to not act... to just "be"...

I'm trying to grasp the meaning of why it matters so much.

What's one day to not be intentional about?

Every second counts. I get that. Every decision starts with intentional effort to change your current situation. Every day is an opportunity to do it better than the day before. To be intentional takes motivation and inspiration. It takes action.

I just have to forgive my wastefulness of today and decide to do it better tomorrow...

Only tomorrow is not guaranteed... we only have today...

I want to make the most of it...

Reflection is a good thing... It keeps us honest... It keeps us open to change... It helps us be better... Take stock of your life and decide what it is you need to do to grow...

I took a day off from life, but life keeps on ticking... I have to get back in there and remember my mission... Be intentional...

Lea Anne

Standing against the Wiles of the devil...

2010-02-26T09:04:00.000-08:00

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Eph 6:10-11

What is wile(s)

1. a trick, artifice, or stratagem meant to fool, trap, or entice; device.
2. wiles, artful or beguiling behavior.
3. deceitful cunning; trickery.

He gets us EVERY TIME.... When will we learn that it is just the wiles of the devil playing us. He lies to us, wants to trap us, discourage us and snare us. He will do anything he can do with cunning satanic variety to weaken us and destroy us. He goes to work daily to produce discouragement, confusion, indifference and imbalance. He is our chief enemy, but deals in wiles and stratagems.

It always happens in relationships. That's where he gets us. Even when we have great marriages, or great friendships, or a great workplace environment... He always tries to get in there and mess with our emotions.

I fell victim to this attempt on Tuesday and it only took me a day to recognize that it was the "wiles of the devil". I refused to stay in offense. I refused to stay upset or defeated. I just overwhelmed the devils attempt to get me to stay mad or angry because I wanted peace and reconciliation more than I wanted to be right or indignant. Does that make sense. I wanted peace and I knew this wasn't about us.

For Ephesians goes on to say in verse 12: Our fight is not against people on earth but against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world's darkness, against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly world.

So you know what I did... I prayed for humility and put on the armor of God. Then I went and talked it out and got over it. Score 1 for Lea Anne; zero for the devil... this week!!

Here's the secret weapon!! Ephesians 13-19
That is why you need to put on God's full armor. Then on the day of evil you will be able to stand strong. And when you have finished the whole fight, you will still be standing.So stand strong, with the belt of truth tied around your waist and the protection of right living on your chest. On your feet wear the Good News of peace to help you stand strong. And also use the shield of faith with which you can stop all the burning arrows of the Evil One. Accept God's salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times with all kinds of prayers, asking for everything you need. To do this you must always be ready and never give up. Always pray for all God's people.

We get to choose whether or not we will live in victory or defeat... Every day we get to choose. It doesn't matter what we did yesterday. Choose today to live in victory and stand up against the Wiles of the devil...

Standing strong.
Lea Anne

The Excitment of a "First"

2010-02-07T04:54:00.000-08:00

This morning when I awoke, my first thought was about how anticipated this day has been for many people. For almost 2 weeks, our state mainly, but the whole nation has been waiting for the big playoff between the New Orleans Saints and that other team... Who is it again? Oh yeah, the Colt's. I've seen more Black and Gold for sale around town this past week than I've ever seen before. I have firmly resisted buying a "Saints" shirt but that's not to say that I won't buy one after they win today... just saying is all... Okay, back to the thought...

The Superbowl is probably the only game in a year that I actually watch and I always enjoy the event, but this year it's a little different. This year is a "FIRST" for me. This year is the "FIRST" time that the New Orleans Saints has made it to the Superbowl.

What is it about "FIRSTS" that are so appealing? Just think about how many "firsts" have already been experienced in your life...

First day of school..

First boyfriend/girlfriend...

First kiss...

First job...

First paycheck...

First car...

First house....

First child...

First fight in a relationship...

First love...

So then I thought, is it the actual EVENT that is so exciting? Or is it WAITING for the event that is so exciting?

Why is a first "thing" so anticipated?

Is it because we SEE others have it and we want it for ourselves?

Is it because we have HEARD about it from others and we can't wait until it's "our turn?"

What is it about "firsts" that make us almost crazy for the experience of it?

1 Cor 2:9 says 'No Eye has seen, no ear has heard and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him'. This verse was quoted from scipture in Isaiah 64:4 that ends it by saying "A God like you who works for those that WAIT for him!"

Who "WAITS" on HIM...

I think it's the WAITING that is more exciting than the actual EVENT. The WAITING is the fun part... Once the event happens, it will just be the "Next" time for that thing... not as much fun as the waiting on the first time... and sometimes the thing you waited for may not be what you expected. Some "THINGS" have a way of disappointing us that way.

So...What are you waiting for? I hope you are waiting on the Lord. I pray that you are seeking HIM before you act... Remember, once you take action on that "First" thing, whatever it is, it might not be as exciting as the waiting was. Don't place your hope and faith on the EVENT...

When we place our hope in the Lord and wait on Him, on His timing, on His guidance, on His go-ahead, we won't be able to imagine the goodness He has prepared for us.

Have fantastic, fun-filled, expectation fulfilled day today.
Lea Anne

Neglected...

2010-01-09T08:17:00.001-08:00

I feel as if I've neglected this blog page for the new Facebook craze and I'm sure there are a lot of you that might read this that don't have facebook, so I'll try to do better.

I wanted to share just a brief note on feeling neglected. I have recently heard that one of my couple friends of almost 20 years, has just seperated. It was a shock. It got me thinking that I don't want to take my marriage for granted and I've actually been meditating on this matter for the last few weeks.

It started when I watch "Nights of Rodanthe" It was a romantic, tragic love story but the intimacy between Diane Lane and Richard Gere was something that I wanted in my own marriage. I realized that I had the ability to have that same kind of intimacy with my own husband and I decided to implement a few of the moves that I saw them perform... Needless to say it had the desired results I was looking for. And this opens up the opportunity to write about how we neglect the things in our lives that we want the most. Intimacy, desire, seduction, affection, you name it, I'm sure all of us have felt it. I just want to say... You can HAVE it. All these things... You may have to initiate it, but you can be the leading lady in your own life, in your own marriage, in your own dreams... You don't have to watch from a distance. You don't have to imagine what it would feel like. You have permission to explore your sexual side of your marriage. Tell your husband what you want or what you like. Don't be shy.

I hope you aren't neglecting your husband. I hope you are meeting his needs. If you do, you'll be amazed at how intuitive to your needs he'll be. I can bet you that he will respond if you start a little romancing in the bedroom. You don't have to wait on him, you take the lead.

I don't know why I felt the need to write this, other than it's been on my heart for a few weeks now. I want you to have a fulfilling life. A fulfilling marriage. A fulfilling sex-life. It's amazing how good marriage can be when that part is in place. I hope this hasn't embarrassed anyone, because I just wanted to share my own experience with you.

Have a Happy night!
Lea Anne

Be well Balanced

2009-11-12T13:40:00.000-08:00

Be well balanced...for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring... seeking someone to seize upon and devour. 1 Peter 5:8

I just attended the funeral of a 21 year old and I have to say that I didn't know him at all, but I know his mother and my heart goes out to her. I am amazed at how so loved a person can be that at his death, hundreds of friends come out to pay respect to him, yet in life, he struggled with feeling inadequate or unloved. Again, I don't know the exact things he struggled with as I didn't know him personally, but it left me with the need to reflect on how we can feel one way about ourselves, yet in actuality, the opposite is true. Satan is a liar and speaks words of defeat into our minds and sometimes people believe him.

Satan cannot devour just anybody he pleases. He has to find someone who gives him an opening to do so. One of the ways we give him an opening to destroy us is through imbalance in our lives. How can you bring balance to your life?

First ask yourself a few questions?

What is the most important thing to you?

If you don't know what that is, then chances are, you are swayed too easily and are off balanced a lot... What are the signs of being off-balanced? Are you stressed out, overcommitted, burned out, bummed out, or worn out from too many commitments? Do you murmur and complain when ask to do something that YOU agreed to do? Are you just flat out frustrated?

I think a lot of people are in bondage to imbalanced lives. So what do you do?

Stop... Everything for a while....write out what's important to you... Then put in perspective the things you have committed to and the things you need to do and prioritize your mind.

After talking to a friend about this very subject a couple of weeks ago I did that very thing and I was amazed at how easy it was to come up with the most important things in my life. I challenge you to do the same.

Don't let the enemy steal another second of the abundant life that we can have in Christ Jesus on the planet earth. We don't have to wait until we get to heaven to have happiness, peace and balance... We can have it now.

We can stand strong against the enemy and we can overcome those feelings of inadequacy and defeat... With balance...

Stop standing on the sidelines, when you can sit in the center of the Will of God.

2009-11-06T07:30:00.000-08:00

I just recently read a blog that spoke volumes in just a few words. You can click here http://www.chattingatthesky.com/2009/11/04/to-enter-in/ if you'd like to read it too.

I'd like to expound on her point about insisting that sitting on the sidelines is "Okay" for her when really it's not. She would like to be in the center of all the activity but makes herself feel content to stay back.

Are you content to just sit on the sidelines? Do you wish you had the courage to jump in the middle of things and be a participant instead of just a spectator?

All it takes is a little effort on your part to try. Just take the leap. See if the rewards of that leap are so much better than the "what-if's" that so many people choose to live with everyday.

What is your "What-if" today?

Maybe it's "What-if" I quit this job and opened myself up to a new way of life? (I personally LOVE my job so this isn't my "What-if"...

Maybe it's "What-if" I took a chance on love and asked someone out? You ask them out, don't wait on them to ask you out...

Maybe it's "What-if" I said what I really thought instead of going along with the crowd?

What is your "What-if"?

I'd like to know what some of you are thinking and what some of the real or imagined fears that you live with are. If you feel like sharing, please do. I'd love to hear from you.

I'm waiting on the "next thing" God has for us... but in the meantime, I'm learning and trusting more with the here and now...

Hope you take the leap today!
Love you,
Lea Anne

Coming in to the Good life...

2009-10-30T09:08:00.000-07:00

I've told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I've conquered the world." John 16:33

Do you have trials?

Are you distressed?

Are you frustrated?

The Bible says to "Be of Good Cheer" I don't FEEL cheerful. Yet the Lord says that I can be of good cheer when I encounter trials and tribulations. It doesn't mean that I did anything wrong. That's the first thing that I think about when I'm encountering a few difficulties. The first thing I do is fall on my knees and ask God to reveal to me whatever I might have done to deserve the tribulation... Then I wait to see what He reveals to me....

But what if there's nothing to reveal?

What if I have earnestly searched my heart and asked God to reveal whatever it is that might have set up this tribulation that I have assumed has come because of some "Reaping what I've Sown" mindset... and nothing... I am right with the Lord... I have asked forgiveness for anything that might have grieved his spirit... And I still find myself in the season of tribulation...

I received healing from this word today in my Joyce Meyer daily devotional... If trials come against you, don't try to figure out whether you sowed some bad seed that produced them. Trials will come, but if you will obey the Word of God long enough (not just five minutes of trial and error), sooner or later, you will come into the good life that God has prearranged for you to live.

WOW! Do you know that God has a plan for you? He has a purpose for you? He set the wheels in motion for that purpose to be fulfilled long before you ever "DID" anything. We just have to play out that plan... All the bumps and potholes along the way are part of the plan... He is teaching us patience through the trials... He is building up in us character traits that only come through trials, temptations, and sorrows... We wouldn't know the joy of success if we hadn't felt the pain of failure, would we?

We wouldn't know the sweetness of restoration without the sorrow of separation?

We couldn't possibly understand the meaning of hope without having first received something so wonderful as a result of waiting before... If we never had to wait on anything, then what could ever be called "special", "God-given" "blessed"... All these things come from having waited on something.

Everything, God works to the good for those who "Trust in Him"... Give God the Glory for your trials... "Be of Good Cheer" because we KNOW that "Joy comes in the morning." That it's always calm after the storm...

Just trust him a little more today in the middle of the unknown... He is always faithful...

Waiting on Him,
Lea Anne

Play offense with your Life...

2009-10-21T06:40:00.000-07:00

I'm reading through the Chase the Lion book study and I've found some interesting material in just the first few pages that I want to reflect on. When I think of the word Offense, I immediately relate it to football where the offense is the scoring side and the defense is the protecting side. I want to state that this note is not about football, but that's the best way I can relate to offense... So with that being said, how do you live your life?

Is it in offense?

Or is it in defense?

What's the deciding factor between the two?

Here is what I read today... Satan wants us to live in a defensive posture, and he uses two primary tactics to accomplish it... Fear and Discouragement. Are these two areas that you struggle with on a daily basis? Are you afraid of life? Decisions? People? The past? Or do you battle with discouragement? Do you feel depressed, oppressed, or repressed? Are you free to be who you really are or are you afraid to show the real you?

These are real life tactics used by the enemy to KEEP us from taking risks, doing the uncertain thing, or stepping out in faith. We think because we're playing it SAFE that we're doing the right thing. When in all honesty doing nothing wrong doesn't constitute doing something right... Does that make sense? I had to read it a few times. Doing nothing wrong doesn't constitute doing something right...

We could live our whole lives and not do anything wrong... We could be the perfect "Stepford Wife". or the Perfect employee, or the perfect mom, or the perfect daughter/son... but did we do anything on purpose to advance our faith... Did we trust without knowing the outcome? Did we try something where there was a huge possibility that we would fail, but a bigger promise of promotion? What have you done with your life to live offensively...

Did you "Chase a Lion" and kill it?

WOW! Makes me want to go to a zoo and actually look a lion in the eye and see the danger but rejoice in the power that it exudes... There's power in the chase and the kill... take hold of that and do something a little risky today!

A lot of people have asked me why I'm selling my house? They say, You mean the one you just built? And I feel as though I have to defend my decision, but this verse that goes with this study was perfect affirmation about the decision that I've made to sell my house... here it is..

And Jesus replied, "I assure you that when I, the Son of Man, sit upon my glorious throne in the Kingdom, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And EVERYONE who has GIVEN UP HOUSES, or brothers, or sisters or father or mother or children or PROPERTY, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will have eternal life" (Matthew 19:28-30)

Isn't that great!?! The mindset here is not a "savings" mentality... It is a risky mindset...I'm giving up to get!! We can't just keep holding on to things we don't want to lose... nothing is really ours anyway and when we trust that God is always leading us to a better life, then we can start living offensively...

Don't just Live with it... Deal with it...

2009-10-05T15:41:00.000-07:00

I don't know how to title what I feel compelled to write about. I've searched for the topic in scripture and I haven't found exactly what I feel expressed through any passages yet. I know there is an answer in scripture and as I type, I'm praying that the Lord will lay on my heart what it is exactly that I am feeling.

What I think I'm feeling is hypocritical...

What I think I'm feeling is inconsiderate...

What I think I'm feeling is unable to relate...

It seems like I always have an answer... Like I always have the solution to the problem... Like I know what I'm talking about when I'm sought out by a friend and offer my advice...

My first thought is... "this is over-comeable... all you have to do is blank ..."I seem to have an easy answer for life's problems when they relate to other people.

But the truth is, I feel as though I'm on an island, untouched by reality... Like I live in a bubble that is isolated from all the hurt and pain that the real world feels and lives with everyday. I feel as though I can't possibly be this secure or safe, or unworried, or happy, or fiesty, or content, or excited, or loved, or fulfilled, or whatever I seem to be feeling at the moment, when another person seems to be falling apart. It just seems too good to be true... Life can't be this easy, right?

Don't misunderstand me...I have my fair share of problematic situations... I had to deal with one today... It was an advertiser that had a complaint about a charge for something back in July... He's just now telling me about it and he didn't even start with me, he went to my boss... Well, I just dealt with it... It may not have been the solution he was looking for, I may have to be taken off the account, I may have come across as a little aggressive, but I dealt with it. And I feel better and okay because I dealt with it. I don't have to wonder what I should do, what I could do, or what someone else would do... I did it... Now that problematic situation isn't over, but I don't have to dwell on it and it doesn't consume my thoughts anymore.

This brings me to the point of explaining why I feel a little insensitive to other people and their problems...A lot of times I find most people would rather live with a problem than deal with it. Dealing with things means confronting another person, or admitting guilt about something, or having to apologize to someone... Dealing with a problem means that it might be a little uncomfortable for a moment, but the truth is, NOT dealing with it causes so much more anxiety than when you do deal with it... NOT dealing with something, be it an attitude problem or a relational problem, a behavioral problem or a developmental problem will not make the problem go away... It won't go away if it isn't dealt with... It will grow bigger and bigger and finally overtake your life until that problem is controlling all your thoughts and actions... or rather "inactions" as the case may be.

Regardless of what we do or don't do about something, do you trust God with the outcome? Have you ever said "If this happens, then I'll __________." What if that something happens when you start to deal with your problem? Can you answer the question? What would you do? What do you WANT to do? If you can answer that question, then the problem is not really a problem anymore, you just have to take action and deal with it.

Is something taking over your thought life right now?

Are you NOT dealing with something that needs to be dealt with, hoping it will just go away?

Have you forgiven yourself for something that happened so long ago but you're still living with it?

Have you asked God what you should do?

Don't just live with it, Deal with it... today.

Do you need a "Time Out"...

2009-10-01T07:44:00.000-07:00

I am weary, O God; I am weary and worn out, O God. (Proverbs 30:1)

I’m tired.

I’m always trying to figure things out. Always trying to improve, to do better. You’d think you’d have something to show for all that always trying.

To put it in simple terms... I wonder if it's all worth it.

Don't get me wrong... I will keep on keeping on... Trusting the Lord and doing good... Going to work... Doing my best... taking care of kids... picking up dropping off... Church... Church... Church... (My "third" place in life)

But I wonder... will it make a difference... does it matter in the long run... Will anyone be affected by the fact that I keep on keeping on?

That's what it's all about isn't it... It's certainly NOT about ME! So if it's not about me, then who is it about? What is it all for?

It has to be about others. Do they see Jesus in me? Do I make them WANT to be a better person? Do I criticize, complain, devalue, or condemn other people? Do I encourage, build up, inspire or acclaim the value of others?

I'm doing one or the other... I get to choose how I treat people. I get to choose what attitude I want to exhibit. I get to choose to make a difference...

And I'm tired...

But I must press on...

I love you!
Lea Anne

Black and White...

2009-09-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

Psalm 119
1 Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord. 2 Joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their hearts. 3 They do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in his paths. 4 You have charged us to keep your commandments carefully. 5 Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees! 6 Then I will not be ashamed when I compare my life with your commands. 7 As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should! 8 I will obey your decrees. Please don’t give up on me!

I've been meditating on the words in Psalm 119 that tell us how to be happy. It tells us the things we should do if we want peace and contentment in our lives. It also tells us what we should stay away from...

I have heard several people say "How could God have allowed this ..... to happen?" When I hear that phrase I want to be sensitive and understanding about their situation, because I do care about them. But as I've been reading and meditating on Psalm 119, I have to ask the questions "Did you ask God what he thought of this BEFORE you made the decision that has found you in the situation for which you are so distressed?" or "Have you followed the commands of the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength?" or "Have you walked along the path and not compromised with evil?"

Our "Happiness" status should not be situational but we all know that we are somewhat controlled by our emotions. The Bible says that " Joyful are those that obey his laws and search for him with all their heart."

Can we honestly say that we search for God with all our heart? Does the Lord consume your thoughts? Do you ask what he thinks before you make a big decision and then WAIT until he answers? Or do you not even include him in your decision making process? Are you controlled by the way you feel about something instead of knowing what you believe about it and doing the right thing instead of the wrong thing?

The whole HUGE chapter of Psalm 119 tells us how we can be happy and joyful... One way is knowing the commandments of God...

I've tried to tell my kids that you have to know what you think about something before you find yourself in a situation where you have to decide based on how you feel about it at the time... That is not the time to make a decision.

Here's where things can get sticky. I'm a black and white kind of person... Something either is right or it is wrong... Now I believe that something can be okay for one person but wrong for someone else, but if you know what is right and what is wrong for you, then there's no question as to how you should respond to it when you're faced with that circumstance.

I think that we as a society have so many socially acceptable things, that it doesn't matter what God's word says about something, the majority of people will do whatever the crowd does. That, in my opinion, is called compromising... which, as the word clearly states in the passage from Psalm 119 we shouldn't do, in order to be Joyful or "Happy" as some versions say.

I'm saying all this to say that I want each and everyone of you to be happy... I know that God wants us to be happy and he has clearly given us the guidelines of what can make us happy... Are we willing to do what it says?
Are willing to take the stand on either the Black or the White side of things? We have to take a stand for something or we'll fall for anything.
Don't be deceived... Right is always right, and wrong is always wrong... What is right for you can only be determined by your convictions and that conviction comes from the free gift of the Holy Spirit that guides us into all righteousness... That leads us down the path to happiness (if we are following it) What side are you on?
Lea Anne

Winning Favor...

2009-09-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

I am two weeks into the study of Esther and I have deduced a couple of things from just the first chapter. The first thing I've discovered is that it isn't a person's spiritual beliefs or particular status in life that determines whether or not you win favor with others... It is mostly our Character of person... Your Character will shine through regardless of your position or status. It doesn't matter whether you are the leader or a follower... Integrity, accountability, and constancy is the thing that makes up the character of a person. You can't buy character... you can't pretend to have character... you can't hide behind character... It is the essence of you... If you have good character, that is what comes out. If you have bad character... that is also as obvious...

Esther Chapter 1 starts off with Anger, Pride, and Arrogance being displayed by the King of Persia...I'd like to suggest that anger, pride and arrogance are not character traits... They are emotional expressions displayed during situational experiences... The character trait would be identified as inconsistency, rash, and self-serving... these "traits" are not emotional outbursts... these underlying traits are what make up the person's character...What is on the inside of us will be evident in the way we live. The Bible clearly states in Galatians 5 what life without Character looks like. I encourage you to read it.

But Esther Chapter 2 introduces a new character trait... Beautiful, lovely, spirit-led, good... And it states that she "impressed Heggai and won favor with him"... How does one "Win Favor"... It doesn't go into detail as to how she won his favor... It doesn't say that she "tried" to win his favor... It doesn't say even what she did that was so impressive to him... So it leaves the door open to speculation as to what a person should do to win favor with those in authority over them... I would speculate that the only thing she did was demonstrate the strength of character that people without it look upon with longing and wish they had... She was a person of integrity... she did what she said she would do and didn't do what she shouldn't... She was accountable... She had maids and those in authority who watched every move and she was constant... What is that you ask? She didn't waffle from one decision to another... she stayed the same... she stood her ground... she was stable... The bible says in James 1:8 A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways... If you talk out of both sides of your mouth, you lose credibility... You slack a little in the integrity department... You aren't constant...

If you aren't a person of good character.... You can be... It starts with an internal decision to plant the seed of goodness in your heart. Ask the Lord Jesus to take over and recondition your character traits... A changed life on the inside will demonstrate good fruit on the outside... Go back to Galatians 5:22... the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, long suffering, and self control... These are the traits of good character.

I'm being changed by the renewing of my mind... daily...
Lea Anne

Being thankful...

2009-09-10T06:07:00.000-07:00

Today, I'm thankful... I've been thinking over the last week of how to put into words what I'm feeling and the word I want to camp on is "thankful". I could sit and commiserate all the things that don't seem to be going my way, but I'm not going to do that. I'd rather find a reason to be thankful.

Today is the eve of the 9/11 event that brought terror to our nation. I remember exactly where I was and what we were doing that day and as I reflect back on it, I'm thankful that there weren't more deaths, more disaster, more terror. I'm thankful for family and friends that are still here and available to talk to or zip an email off to. I'm thankful that the Lord gives us the wisdom to keep us out of harm's way or redirect our steps when we are asking for that wisdom. He won't lead us into harms path and so many stories were told about how someone just changed their plans that day instead of getting on a plane or going into the office... Or they had a delay in getting there. Sometimes a traffic jam is simply put there to protect us from an unknown harm. God knows everything that will happen to us and if we are listening, he will lead us away from harm.

That doesn't mean that nothing bad will happen to us... Just that if we are listening, we might avoid a whole lot of unneccessary pain and suffering.

I watched John Maxwell this past weekend and he told a story about this little boy that was reading a book and was so devastated by the events that were happening in the book that he had to flip to the back to see how the hero ended up. Then as he went back to the intensity of the story, he was able to encourage that hero with these words..."Don't worry, I read the end of the book and you'll turn out okay. Don't give up." That is how our Lord looks at our current situations... He knows how we end up and he promises to never give us more than we can handle. You just have to trust that whatever it is you are going through can be used to teach you something about yourself. Let God teach you something as you go through the trials. As a Christian, I've read the end of the book... Guess what? We win!!!

So as you evaluate your life and situations, just remember that the problems we face are usually short lived and overcome-able. (is that even a word?)

I choose to remain thankful. And always keeping an ear intune to what the spirit is up to. I ask for a special revelation of His goodness today.
In rememberance...
Lea Anne

Removing the LOG from my eye...

2009-09-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

I was humbled today as I laid my cares upon the Lord in my quiet time. I was quick to think back over the last few hours as I always do and ask God to reveal any wrong thing that I might not have noticed that I did. Sometimes our sins are very evident when we intentionally know we are sinning. But other sins, sins that are of an attitude nature aren't as easily recognized in ourselves. That was the case with my sin from yesterday.

You see, I caught an attitude of excellence... You know what that is, don't you? I'm sure we're all guilty of this type of sin... Although I'm not trying to cast aspersions on any one else and I'm taking full responsibility for my thoughts and comments from yesterday, I'm sure we've all had this type of attitude...

It's the "holier than thou"... It's the "I would never"... It's the "How could they have missed that blantant misspelling?"... It's the "Why weren't they more welcoming?"... You see where I'm going with this?

The attitude of Excellence. We think everything we do is PERFECT and are quick to criticize the "incompetence" of others. The "mistakes" made. The failures and faults. I needed this word from the Lord today and it quickened my spirit within me. Whatever measure I use to judge others will be meted out on me... Father, forgive me for my attitude of excellence.

Luke 6:37-38"Don't pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. Don't condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you'll find life a lot
easier. Give away your life; you'll find life given back, but not merely given back—given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity."
39-40He quoted a proverb: "'Can a blind man guide a blind man?' Wouldn't they both end up in the ditch? An apprentice
doesn't lecture the master. The point is to be careful who you follow as your teacher.
41-42"It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, 'Let me wash your face for you,' when your own face is distorted by contempt? It's this I-know-better-than-you mentality again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your own part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.

Go easy on someone today... they may really need to see the best side of you instead of the "excellent" side of you.

I Love you!!
Lea Anne

How to tell if a desire of your heart is of God or of your own nature

2009-08-31T12:58:00.000-07:00

I did a little research on Bible Gateway and typed in desires... There were 48 different references for "Desires" in that search. 40 of those 48 searches had to do with sinful desires... only 8 specified a desire from God. This tells me that most of the desires we have are of a sinful nature. So how do we discern whether our desire for something is good or bad? This scripture spells it out loud and clear...

Romans 8:5Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. How do we live in accordance with the Spirit?

We can start by learning the right way to live by following the specifications of "Holy Living" found in Leviticus Chapter 19. If you read this chapter, it pretty much spells out what God considers right and wrong. If you are doing the right things in accordance to what the Word of God says, and if you are praying and seeking God's face before you make decisions, and if you are earnestly waiting on God for the answers... you can be assured that the desires in your heart are of God.

Now what happens if you read this chapter, which is just one of many that teaches us what God thinks about things, and you recognize right off the bat that you aren't living out these attributes? What do you do then? If you continue in the act that is clearly spelled out as being wrong then you are living in complete disobedience to the Lord. God does not reward disobedience...

But, God is full of grace and mercy to forgive us as soon as we call out to him in confession and repentence.

Deuteronomy 28:1 If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth.

It doesn't matter what you've done, or how far you strayed... All you have to do is TURN from those acts and follow after the commands of the Lord. God's word is not a book of rules that keep us from having any fun in our lives or tells us "we're doing it wrong". It is a loving guidebook that tells us about blessings and curses...Life and Death... We get to choose how we live... Either in the blessing or the curse...Or life, abundant and ever-flowing... or death...

So back to the desires and knowing without a doubt if the desire in your heart is of God or your own fleshly desires... Are you following the commands of God? Is your heart earnestly seeking God? Are you obeying the laws of right and wrong in accordance to the Word of God? If you are... then follow the desires of your heart.

Proverbs 3:1My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, 2 for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. 3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. 4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Knowing the will of God in our lives starts with knowing what we want. Truly knowing what we want... Then trust that God will direct your paths to that want. He wants to give us the desires of our hearts because when we are seeking him, he places them there for us to instill hope.

Romans 5:1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through 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. 3Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

I hope this helps someone who is seeking to know the will of God in their lives.
I love you!
Lea Anne

Worked the Young at Heart EXPO

2009-08-27T14:52:00.001-07:00

I might have betrayed blogger by joining facebook. But I did. I already have 127 friends on facebook, but I won't neglect you friends on blogger. I'll keep posting especially since I haven't figured out how to type more than a couple of lines on facebook. You know that I can only speak in a hundred words or more...
Just kidding... but not really...

I find that this is a place where I can just lay it all out there. I'd like to think that I might help someone else by what I have to say, but it's mostly just a part of my random thought processing...

Today was a good day. We served the community with about 2000 people coming to the Young at Heart EXPO and it just reminds me of how thankful I am to be able to work for this great company. I love the people I work with as well. I've posted the 2009 photo booth photo for you to see. I haven't changed much in the last year. In fact, we are in a health challenge at work, and I haven't moved more than a couple of ounces in both directions since this same time about 5 years ago... I really need to change as I'd like to lose a little weight. I have to resolve in my mind that I will before I do... and basically I just haven't made that resolution...

I just wanted to say hi and I have a lot of thoughts I need to organize before I post anything worthy of reading... That will come soon...
I lOve you!
Lea Anne

A walk in the right direction...

2009-08-21T07:49:00.000-07:00

I have been meditating on a specific foundational belief of the Christian faith lately. That is the belief that God is in Control and He actually directs our steps as we walk along in life.

How do you feel about that?

Do you believe that God directs us and speaks a clear word to us, or not?

I believe He does.

I was reading the prophet Isaiah this past week and this scripture spoke volumes to me...

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.

And further on in Isaiah...

Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it."

So why do so many people struggle with knowing God's will in their lives? Do you struggle with knowing what path to take, which direction to go, which job to persue? Do you wonder if there really is a God that can speak to you and tell you which way to go? Have you ever thought, "Does he even care about me?" Maybe you are like the Israelites in this passage of scripture... Isaiah 30

1 “What sorrow awaits my rebellious children,” says the Lord. “You make plans that are contrary to mine. You make alliances not directed by my Spirit, thus piling up your sins. 2 For without consulting me, you have gone down to Egypt for help. You have put your trust in Pharaoh’s protection. You have tried to hide in his shade. 3 But by trusting Pharaoh, you will be humiliated, and by depending on him, you will be disgraced. 4 For though his power extends to Zoan and his officials have arrived in Hanes, 5 all who trust in him will be ashamed. He will not help you. Instead, he will disgrace you.”

Are you putting your trust in other people to help you make your decisions?

Another foundational belief of a Christian, is that God's word is true... Either you believe it in its entirety or you don't. You can't pick apart the Bible and get to choose the things you want to believe is true and discard the things you think can't possibly be true. You take it as a whole... And that is a lot of the reasons why so many people struggle with their decisions, because they don't believe that God can speak to them through His Word...

Have you even consulted the Bible to see if JUST MAYBE God's word is true... For here it says this in Hebrews 4...

12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.

Okay, enough preaching... How do you actively apply the scripture to your current situation and then know that God is directing you down the path he wants you to walk on? I'll share with you what I am currently praying for and seeking an answer about...

I have my house for sale... (the whole story of this is on the home page if you want to read how it came to be.) I also have a houseguest that needs to find a place to stay. I have been praying that I can handle this in the right way with sensitivity. I was reading the Psalms and I read this...

Psalm 91:9 If you make the Lord your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, 10 no evil will conquer you; no
plague will come near your home. 11 For he will order his
angels to protect you wherever you go.

Now this might not mean anything to you, but it brought me peace to know that God will protect my houseguest wherever she goes. I don't have to be responsible for her wellbeing... She does love God and serves Him, but I don't know how strong her faith and trust is in how He provides for those who trust in Him. However, my faith is strong enough to know that He will provide the right place, at the right time for the right amount of money. I do have to be proactive in that I have to look for that opportunity... I have to do what I am able to do and then trust God for what I can't do... But we have to start somewhere, and I choose to start with trust in God. I have a peace that I wouldn't have if I were stewing about the situation. God gives us a choice as to whether we subject our will to Him or not. We make that decision every day. Will we Seek His Will?

Will we ask Him for Wisdom?

Will we do what He says?

God's will is the way we CHOOSE to live each day of our lives.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. 14 I will be found by you,” says the Lord.

Here's the ending of this thought for today... God keeps in perfect peace, those whose thoughts are steadfast in HIM. If you aren't seeking God, you probably aren't walking in His will.... So I ask you again, have you studied the scriptures to see what God says about what you are doing?

I love you!!
Lea Anne

Just waiting...

2009-08-12T07:14:00.000-07:00

I find myself in another season of waiting... Waiting is not easy... You would think that waiting around would be easy... I mean all you have to do is wait, right? But waiting on God is not the same thing as waiting in line, or waiting for the doctor, or waiting on your kids to get ready to go somewhere... When you wait on God, it's because He is trying to teach you something. He's trying to show you something... He's trying to bring you to another level of trust... He's working things out in other people's lives that will align themselves up to what He wants to do in your life. This kind of waiting takes a special kind of discipline that only the Holy Spirit can develop in you. This kind of patience... It is a fruit of the spirit...

So as I wait on all those other things to line up in order for God's plan for me to be laid out for me to walk on, I involve myself in knowing God better. I'm starting to read the Gospels in my quiet time...

I read a blog entry the other day that talked about going at the speed of God. You know that feeling when you are in a car and you are speeding down the road at 60 mph and all the things you pass by are just a blur? The trees, the signs, the buildings you pass are not in focus, and you can't see details? But then another car comes up along side you and is going at the same speed as you are, you can look across and see everything about it... The people in it, what they are doing, if there is a television on, you can tell what movie it is? All the details are in focus and clear, yet you are driving along at 60 mph? That is how it is when we are going the same speed as God. If we are behind him or ahead of Him or not even on the same highway as Him, we are always playing catch up and don't notice anything around us... Life is all a blur... but when we are going at the same speed as God, then everything comes into focus... Even the waiting on God... He's not standing still, he may be going 60 mph down the road, but when we are at the same speed as him, we are moving forward even if it feels like we're standing still... Does that make sense to you? It was very clear to me as I have been waiting on God... I'm not sitting still, I'm being moved forward to the next thing that God has for me... I just can't exit the highway before God does, or pass Him up because I think He's going too slow. I have to follow Him closely and at the same speed as He is... It's recognizing when God decides to switch lanes or exit, that I have to focus on... Not knowing where the exits are...

I hope this resonates with someone today. You don't have to know where you're going, you just have to trust and follow the guidance of the Lord...

I love you,
Lea Anne

Had our first showing of the house...

2009-08-07T07:45:00.001-07:00

We had a call within the first few hours of putting the sign in the yard. The guy called and wanted to see the house at 1pm yesterday. Of course I said yes. I knew when I put the sign in the yard, that someone would call and I hadn't cleaned the house yet. (Well my idea of clean!)

So I already had an appointment with the kids dentist set for 10:30 and I had to wait til that was through before I went home to clean... I didn't get home until almost noon. While I was at the dentist, Dana called and said the termite guy was coming to do an inspection around the perimeter of the house and would be digging some of the dirt away for inspection purposes... When I drove up, I wish I had a picture of the mess that he made, but I was in too much of a hurry to clean the inside... Oh my goodness, it looked like a gopher had dug out the entire dirt surrounding the house and left mounds of grass piled up at each turn... Oh, well, a prospective buyer should be impressed that we care about termites, right? I didn't let that deter me.

So I did a mad superwoman vacuum queen thing and amazed myself with the amount of cleaning one person can get done in 30 minutes.

Back to the couple that called to look at it. He called me at 12 and said He wanted to bring his girlfriend at 12:30 and his wife at 1pm? Would I have a problem with that? I just said to make sure he brought the one with all the kids. Seriously, he told me that he had a friend that lived in the neighborhood that he wanted to see it also and it just so happened that I knew her. So she came in and walked around and he came in and walked around while he was waiting on his wife and then the wife came in and walked around too. They have 5 kids... 10, 8, 6, 4, and 1 and are currently living in a 2400 sq ft house with all of them. So they are definitely in the "Must Have" category... They didn't seem overly excited, but this isn't about what we seem. It's what we need and God knows what we need. So I'll let him worry about that...

However, the girl that I knew brought her husband by at 6pm last night so he could give his opinion to the friends... This husband, just so happens to have been my anesthesiologist when I had Keelea... Great, nothing like a visitor who has seen ALL OF YOUR PRIVATE PARTS WHILE IN THE MIDDLE OF LABOR... So what's a little dirt in the bathroom going to hurt? Right..

Day one of our adventure turned out to be a little wild and fun... We'll see what day 2 holds.
Talk to you soon,
Lea Anne

Putting up the "For Sale" sign today

2009-08-05T06:58:00.000-07:00

This picture represents a little early morning misting and at the same time, I'm feeling a little misty eyed by putting the "For Sale" sign in the yard this morning. I am completely trusting that the Lord's will for us will reveal itself in the way the next few things transpire...

If you are familiar with the story of the Israelites as they left the wilderness to enter into the promise land, they had to cross the Jordan River... It was at its flood time in the early spring, and it was a raging river. God told Joshua to have the priests put their feet in the water, while they carried the Ark, in to the river. This point is missed by most people, but was very evident in my heart as I read this that God will do the impossible, but we have to do the possible first... And that is trust Him completely... We have to put our feet in the raging river of life, of decisions, of actions, and then God will perform the miracle of rolling back the sea so we can cross on dry land...

He does that for us if we seek Him with our whole heart. He knows the heart above all else, and He will direct you down the path of His best for you, when you give up the control to Him completely...

I don't have to know where I'm going from here... I just have to take the first step of obedience... That is trusting God...

So don't cry for me, Argentina... (I love that show in case you haven't seen it, Evita) I will be okay. God will direct us to the next thing... He will take care of us.

I love you!
Lea Anne

The Emotionally Healthy Church

2009-07-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

Last week I blew my witness with one of my co-workers and I've felt really bad about it. It was one of those moments that I know I shouldn't have done it, but all the while it was happening, I didn't want to stop myself. I'm sure we've all done it, but that doesn't mean it was right. I will have to make amends to her somehow, the moment just hasn't presented itself. I was making copies this morning and she came in, but she wouldn't even look at me so I feel as though she needs a little more time.

That leads me to the subject that I've been reading up on called the Emotionally Healthy Church. A church is only as emotionally healthy as it's members and I took the test to see if I were emotionally healthy. Although I passed on most of the items, there are several that I need to work on.

Here is a statement that stuck with me...

Jesus never compromised his Holiness... He felt every human emotion and yet never sinned...

How can we be assertive... yet not aggressive
...deliberate yet not impulsive
prompt...but not rushing in to speak your mind

Jesus knew what he believed in and what he stood for, yet people were drawn to him in the midst of their sinfulness... Like the woman at the well who "had many husbands..." Like Nicodemus, the tax collector... Like the woman caught in adultery and the crowd wanted to stone her...
Jesus knew what was under the shell of every person he encountered and he had compassion on them. Yet he always spoke about doing what was right. For them to "go and sin no more." Always with compassion.... I lack compassion... It was one of the questions on the test that I scored WAY low on...

It was stated like this... I am regularly able to enter into other people's world and feelings, connecting deeply with them and taking time to imagine what it feels like to live in their shoes...

I can honestly answer this question as No... Now in my honesty, I need to search out why I don't have more compassion for others. Last year for my evaluation at work, my boss gave me glowing affirmatives. The only thing he said that I could improve on was to be a little more sensitive to how other people might struggle and to put myself in their shoes... (UMMM... I think I'm starting to see a pattern here.)

One of the reasons that I can admit to not being so compassionate is that I believe that we make our own choices. We do exactly what it is we want to do. Even if doing it causes us harm or pain... The problem is that some people really want to stop doing it, but can't... Here is where I have a little disconnect... Just STOP... Or DON'T... It's not that you can't, it's that you don't want to... Just like when I went around to talk to my co-worker... I didn't want to stop...It wasn't that I couldn't...

That is why I am not as compassionate as I should be... I don't want to put myself in their shoes and understand what it is they are struggling with. If we are honest with ourselves, we can admit that we have a problem that we need to stop doing... That's the key to emotional health... Being honest with yourself...Most emotionally unhealthy people just don't want to admit they have a problem. In fact, the emotionally unhealthy person will blame someone else for the fact they do what they do... What is it that holds someone in bondage to a destructive pattern of behavior?

I calmed down considerably after I rushed in and spoke my mind last week and even after the moment passed, my co-worker made a comment about having had a really bad day, that one of her kids had his wisdom teeth pulled and she was really stressed with a corporate report that was due. It didn't excuse her hanging up on me or yelling at me over the phone, (prior to her hanging up on me) or the fact that she wouldn't open her door when I went around to talk to her face to face... None of that is excused, however, it is understandable and I am a stronger person emotionally than I believe her to be, so I should not have crushed her with my words. I should have stopped and waited before confronting her.

But I didn't.... Now I have to make amends for it.

Yes, I have to make amends, because that is what I'm taught to do by the example of Jesus Christ...

The Bible does give an example of Jesus getting angry, like when he overturned the tables and ran the people out of the temple, or when he got angry that his disciples couldn't stay awake long enough for him to pray... But he never sinned....

That's what I need to work on... The not sinning part.... I hope that I have another opportunity to do it right...

Just not before I study a little more about it... I don't think I would pass the test if I took it again today.

Always learning, striving to be better, staying honest with myself... Admitting where I fall short, and asking for the chance to do it right... That's what keeps me emotionally healthy...

I'll end with this verse that I've never noticed before. It's John 2:23-25...

23 Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. 24 But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew human nature. 25 No one needed to tell him what mankind is really like.

Wow, I want Jesus to be able to trust me... Father, forgive me...
Lea Anne

Are you spending enough time with God?

2009-07-21T06:53:00.000-07:00

I stay so busy. There is so much to do...work to do at home and of course my REAL job, activities at church and school, (well only when I want to do them at school) taking time to exercise (I'm actually in a health challenge at work and I HAVE to exercise three times a week or I have to pay $1 when I don't) appointments, family obligations, invitations to special events (Do I actually get to go to special events?)...it never ends. In fact, it all seems to grow larger day by day.

God, when life gets so busy I need to remind myself to take time out. I don't want to try to do everything and leave You out. I want to start fresh right now and come to you every day; spend time talking with you, meditating on your Word, listening to you, praising you and thanking you. Please, God, like a breath of fresh air, cleanse and clear my heart and mind. Fill me with your presence and power for living the life you want for me.

I start my day with a daily dose of "Life Today" with James and Betty Robinson and then immediately follow that with Joyce Meyer. I find that when I commit that hour everyday, then my mornings start off a little better. I open the Word of God and let God say hello to me. This morning I was reading Psalm 51 and I didn't think it was appropriate for how I was feeling today and I almost skipped over to something else, then the words... "Create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me," jumped off the pages to me. We all need to pray that prayer and start our day asking God what needs to be cleaned out of our lives.
Since that verse spoke so loudly to me, I reread the first part of the Chapter... It was about being broken, and calling out in repentance to the Lord asking for forgiveness for my mistakes and flat out attitude problems. It said that God doesn't want our sacrifices, he wants a broken and repentant heart. That is not to keep us in bondage and feeling unworthy, but to be cleansed from all our unrighteousnesses...

To stay right before the Lord... It takes that daily confession of our sins and our activities to stay in the keeping of the Lord...

So I ask you, have you sought the Lord today? Have you asked the Lord to forgive you for your sins of yesterday, last week, last month, last year... How long has it been since you've been to the Cross...

I love you,
Lea Anne

What to do when your guest doesn't show for LIVE TV...

2009-07-16T08:08:00.000-07:00

So I have to do the Live 50/50 Thursday segment this morning at 9:25 with a local restaurant and I get to work this morning and there is an email from her saying she's sick and can't make it for the Live segment so I could just go on without her. This is the segment from this morning in which I grabbed my manager and said you be me, and I'll be the guest. Sometimes you just have to be flexible where LIVE TV is concerned... Why worry and get all stressed out. Just live in the moment... That's what I did.

Don't feel as though you have to watch, I just thought it was funny with me trying to explain a restaurant that I've never even been to...

Enjoy!

I commit my work to You, Lord, knowing You will establish it (Proverbs 16:3).

May it always be that I love the work I do and be able to do the work I love.

Lea Anne

A place of Patient Waiting...

2009-07-15T07:17:00.000-07:00

I talked to Mom today and she asked me what was going on because I haven't updated my blog in a while and it seems like this is the way she keeps up with what's going on in my life. I should call you more, Mom!! But it is true that I am an open book in that what I'm praying for or thinking about I usually lay right out here for everyone to read. Well this morning when Mom asked me what I have been up to, I said that I was just waiting... And that is exactly what I'm doing. I'm praying for a breakthrough in at least three areas of my life and although I am still in the "getting direction" part of my prayers, I don't have anything definite to talk about yet, so I am withholding those random thoughts from you so as not to scare you away from my blog. Believe me, when God starts to move me in a new direction, there is a lot of random events that don't make sense at the time, but in reflection, all seem to be the pieces of a puzzle that gets placed at just the right time and sequence in order for the next piece to fall into place...
All this to say that as I opened my email this morning, this is the devotional prayer that I read...

God, I believe You are using circumstances and events to move me into a place of patient waiting as You put me in the place You desire for me. Help my soul to mature, my faith to grow, my life to be more pure and dedicated to You. James 1:2-4 tells me, "Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." Lord, I praise You in the midst of it all--my special trials and daily challenges--knowing that I must learn to be patient and content as I wait upon You. Thank You for being with me through every trial, every day. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.

Isn't God amazing? How he directs our thoughts and our actions and gives us the right kind of encouragement when we honestly don't know exactly where he's leading us... I use the word exactly, because we don't have to know what the picture looks like, we just need to trust that he's directing our path... and to follow it with blind faith...

I will tell you that part of this unknown plan that I'm praying about is the sell of our house. I gave the description sheet to my realtor friend who is sharing it with his agents today... Just to see if someone may have a client that is looking for our type of house. I will trust that if it's meant to be to sell our house, then it will, and then the next thing is in God's hand... Although, I will let you in on a little bit of the randomness and that is that he has stirred my soul with a fixer-upper down the road that I feel would be the next great adventure for Dana and me to tackle, so I will let you know how that unfolds as well...

Told you it was random... This could drive someone crazy that didn't understand how I process a new word from God... Which to say Dana isn't crazy yet, he's learning how God and I communicate... He has his own way of communicating with God and somehow, God unites our thoughts and actions in agreement...

Amazing!
Lea Anne

A highway of Holiness...

2009-07-08T07:35:00.000-07:00

A highway shall be there, and a road, and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness... the redeemed shall walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Isaiah 35:8.10)

Are you looking for a little Joy and gladness?

Do you want your sorrow and sighing to flee away?

Then the scripture says to walk down the highway of holiness... It's neat to see how it says that a highway shall be there, which means that we will walk up to it and then we have to decide whether or not we want to take the highway of holiness... We don't HAVE to take it, we get to choose to take it... It says the Redeemed shall walk there, the ransomed of the Lord shall RETURN... It means to me that we can decide to walk there at any time we choose to turn and walk it. No matter how long you've left the highway and chosen a wider path. We can choose to walk along the highway of Holiness..

The most wonderful thing about my faith is that I can choose to be obedient regardless of whether anyone else in my life chooses to do it or not. It is my obedience that the Lord blesses. If you are waiting for someone else in your life to start being obedient before you start being obedient, then you are missing the opportunity to "come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on your head."

God bless you today.
Lea Anne

Setting the temperature...

2009-07-06T13:28:00.000-07:00

A lot of things have happened this week that have brought me to my knees in prayer. Simple things that I gave to the Lord because I didn't want to worry about them. I know my God is big and can and wants to handle every situation that I find myself facing. Some things I prayed about weren't even related to me but someone else asked me to pray for them...I am always eager to pray for others, but I can't tell you the Freedom that it gives me to know that I can offer every care and concern to my Lord and he hears them...

I received a fresh perspective from an older retired Nazarene minister on the 4th of July that I'd like to share with you. It was very simple, but so profound...
He asked me a question...

Do I want to be a thermometer or a thermostat?

Have you ever thought about this? I hadn't before...

A thermometer just takes the temperature

but a thermostat, SETs the temperature...

If I want to see the power of the Holy Spirit work in my life, then I need to be on fire for him. I need to be red hot and NOT luke warm...

If we walk into a room, we can affect those around us by setting the temperature... Don't just take the temperature... Change it... or don't...

I just thought I'd share this thought with you and see if it means anything to you like it did to me.

I'm going out to adjust a few thermostats around me....

Have a great week.
Lea Anne

Treated myself to a spa retreat this week...

2009-06-25T08:35:00.000-07:00

I finally used a gift certificate that Dana gave me for Christmas and scheduled a spa retreat this past Tuesday. It was the whole package of a massage.... AHHHH!
A facial, which I've never had before but really enjoyed. It was like two massages back to back.

And I had a pedicure and manicure. Ashton keeps saying that she's enamored of my nails and her eyes keep watching my hands move... They really are pretty, but I'm not the dainty type and they are already chipped after just two days.

It was so worth the time to invest in a little TLC for myself. I don't do it often enough and I have had a really stressful few weeks at work and home. I need a little renewing of my mind and body.

Last night as I was trying to sleep, I kept rehearsing in my head what I was going to say to my boss about a particular problem with a client. I couldn't get it out of my head and I finally started to sing praise songs about create in a me a clean heart, and I'm gonna lift up the name of Jesus, and of course my favorite praise song is Seek ye first, the Kingdom of God... I must have drifted off to sleep while singing because I just remember waking up about 3am and having to go to the bathroom. Then I fell back to sleep...

So when the word of God says to think on whatsoever is noble, true, right, uplifting... that it really does help to blot out the noise that preoccupies our mind...

I hope you find some renewal in your life soon.

Love you!
Lea Anne

Canoe trip this weekend... YippEE!

2009-06-19T06:39:00.000-07:00

Intentional effort takes intentionality

2009-06-17T08:02:00.000-07:00

When you strive to be more intentional in your efforts, it really commands your attention to details. I've managed to complete 10 full days of the Love Dare Challenge... because we are doing this on a Wednesday night, we actually only have to do 5 days a week instead of 7 so we get to play catch up if we miss one... But even with the reprieve, it's been a good opportunity to learn how I can serve Dana in little ways that make a big impact.

Just as a recap I'll list a few of the challenges I've completed over the last 5 days...

Day 6... love is not irritable... Sometimes we get overwhelmed with responsibility and stress that we get irritated at our spouse easily. This day I was supposed to react to tough circumstances in loving ways instead of with irritation. Make a list of the areas where we need to add margin to our schedule.
The only major stress in our life is the house payment... It's way more burdensome than we imagined so we made a decision to sell our house and trust God for the next step. Just like that, we both agreed and now we'll act it out to give us some margin in our finances...

Day 7...Love believes the best... Get two sheets of paper... On one list the positive things you love about your spouse... On the second one, list the negative things. Save these sheets for another day. Pick a positive attribute and thank your spouse for having that...
I picked the fact that he's always worked for us... He's not idle or lazy... That's a huge deal for me since I have a tendency to be lazy or idle... It asked which list was easier... I have to admit I had a whole page of positive things that I love about Dana... The negative was very small...

Day 8... Love is Not Jealous... Take yesterday's list of negative attributes and BURN it... Okay, I didn't see that coming.. I wanted to at least mull over the things I thought were negative so that I could help fix them... But do you know that Bible even talks about thinking on things that are noble, good, right, just, and honorable...
I was supposed to share with my spouse how glad I am over a recent success... I have to say that his position with Shannon is a good one, with a lot of benefits... Like the ability to take the boat out and spend the day with the family for two weekends in a row... that's a huge success and even though the boat isn't ours... It's as available to us as if it were...

Day 9... Love makes good impressions... Greet your spouse in a way that reflects your love for them.
This day Dana actually met me at the door with a huge kiss and he was cooking potato soup... I wonder if he is actually reading the book too... He's doing everything the book is saying to do without it seeming to be a burden... It's so natural for him to express himself and his love to me... I don't want to take that kind of attention and love for granted, so I had better learn how to return the sentiment... So I kissed him back... Then we went walking together that night.

Day 10...Love is unconditional... Do something out of the ordinary today for your spouse... something that proves that your love is based on your choice and nothing else... When Dana cooks, I always clean up after him. I feel it's my way of thanking him for cooking... And I did that the other night... But since this is today's challenge and the day isn't over yet... there is something that I can do for him... See, our washing machine broke on Saturday and we wash like 5 loads of clothes a day usually... So that means we haven't washed in 4 days and we have a pile of dirty clothes waiting... I think the repair man is coming tomorrow.... So, I think he used his last pair of clean underwear today, so I will handwash him a couple of pairs to get him through to tomorrow... If that doesn't speak love, I don't know what will...
I've been having to handwash Ragan's work t-shirts as well, because she only has 2 and we've been 4 days without a washer... She has said thank you...

Okay... that's the recap of the last week and I am honestly looking forward to the next week's challenge...

I've started a health challenge at work and have even walked three times this week, but I gained a pound... So I'm adding in that challenge as well as the love dare challenge that I'm also using on my co-workers and clients... (that's a blog for another day;-)

Anyhoo!!! I'll go ahead and end this blog as it's gotten a little lengthy!!!
Love you!
Lea Anne

Flowers for my Birthday

2009-06-16T08:26:00.000-07:00

Mom sent me flowers for my birthday! I love flowers. They are just so happy looking!!

Sunday was my 39th birthday and I had a great day. I started the day by attending church.

Then Dana cooked lunch for us and I took a nap.

Dana and the girls went back out to the lake and I decided to stay home and enjoy some peace and quiet. That's my idea of a good time... Just alone time.

Have a great week!

Lea Anne

A day at the Beach

2009-06-16T08:08:00.001-07:00

Click on the slide show to the right under "Day at the Beach" for the pictures from Cameron and Big Lake. I haven't even driven to the coast since the Hurricane and one of our friends from church had a beach house there that was completely destroyed. It's amazing how some houses survived and others were wiped away. It reminds me of the parable of the Foundations that we build our houses on... there is a picture of one house where the entire bottom of the house is missing... I can't understand how the house can be standing with no foundation, but it's there.

If you are interested in buying property on the gulf, you can pick up a deal real cheap right now.

I just wanted to share with you those pictures from the day at the beach.

Love you,

Lea Anne

A call to repent and obey...

2009-06-12T06:41:00.000-07:00

We don't use the word repent very often and I'm sure some people couldn't even tell us what it means. But recently I've been praying for many of my friends and about the need for repentance and then I had this devotional prayer in my inbox this morning.

Dear God, I am so concerned about some of my friends and family members who are living in sin. Even Christians can make wrong choices and fall into a life of sin. I pray right now, that the Holy Spirit would move in a mighty way to convict them of their sin and their need to repent. I pray that you would give them strength and direction to step up out of that pit and return to you as their first love. Please, for their soul and sake and your glory, move in these special situations. And for those who do not know you, please bring people and circumstances into their lives that your power may be shown and their eyes may be opened. Save their souls and change their lives. May all glory and honor be unto You, My Lord and Savior. In Jesus' name, amen.

You see in the prayer where is said, please bring people and circumstances into their lives?... Maybe I'm that person, or maybe not, but just yesterday I was able to talk to a friend that is facing divorce and is living with another man and all she wants is "for it to be over"... Well forgive me if I sound harsh, but exactly how is this suppose to be over? When you have children involved, and parents, and the new family of blended children and exes and their extended family, and then you have the hurt that the soon to be ex-spouse is suffering, (even if it is mostly due to his own unrepentance) ... It will never be over...

Life is about choices and consequences... If we choose to obey the teaching of God that we get from His Holy Word, then our lives will be blessed through Obedience...

However, if we choose our own thoughts and ways and knowingly go against what God's Word says about something, then, I'm sorry, but you will have to suffer for those choices...

It's the law of reaping what you sow...

You may think that you are okay... Doing what you want to do, instead of what the Lord has laid out in His word of what is right and wrong... But are you truly blessed? Do you have peace? Are you safe and secure in knowing that the Lord is your guide?

Everyday I go to the Lord and ask Him to reveal to me the things that I am not doing right... I humble myself daily to keep from getting proud and arrogant and thinking "I know best"...

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares
the LORD. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than
your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 58:8,9).

This scripture clearly tells us that our thoughts are not the same as God's thoughts... His ways and thoughts are higher than ours. So how can we know what God wants us to do?

If you have thoughts that are so foreign to anything you've ever thought and you are praying for a breakthrough in a certain area, then search out those thoughts, no matter how crazy they seem, and then turn to the scripture, which is God's love letters to us, and see if it will guide you to your decision...

However, if you are just flat out living in sin, then the first thing you need to do is repent, then turn, and obey the Lord...
First and foremost... God loves sinners....Never think for a minute that you aren't loved by God... Right where you are, doing what you're doing... He loves you!!!

God rewards obedience...
"Return to me and I'll return to you..." Zechariah 1:2...

I love you and hope this ministers to you today.
Lea Anne

An opportunity...

2009-06-11T09:28:00.000-07:00

We always knew the building of 4109 Woodside was directed by God as you can read in the link to the right of my blogpage. Once when I was praying and in my quiet time, I thought that maybe the Lord was telling us that we wouldn't even get to live there. I read something that said "You will never live in the beautiful stone houses you are building."

And although we have lived there for 6 months, I think Dana and I have decided to sell our house.

It wasn't a hard decision... Just now we're back to trusting God for the next step and the next move.

When you feel the prompting of the Spirit to do something new, then you take the step of faith and do it, then you wait for God to do His part.

That is where we are.... Waiting...

Waiting is not easy, but I've never been disappointed when God delivers...

Care to wait with us?
Lea Anne

Coping with Criticism...

2009-06-10T13:17:00.000-07:00

I keep telling myself that my feelings aren't hurt... I can handle criticism... I can hear the answers to the questions that I myself asked...

So why is it so hard to hear "not-so-pleasant" things from our spouses?

The challenge on Day 5 was to ask your spouse what were the three most irritating things I do?

The first one I knew was coming because I've commented on it myself... I lift my voice almost two octaves higher in response to him when it isn't even necessary... I'm short and loud... A lot...

The second was that I wasn't as spontaneous as I used to be... Okay I'll give him that one too... Although I'm just tired... Oh wait, I forgot that in the challenge I wasn't suppose to defend myself, I was only suppose to hear his responses... Okay, so no defensive retorts... just accept the facts...

The third thing caught me a little by surprise and totally didn't see it coming... He said that my "No-Worry" attitude caused me to be a little uncautious... That I didn't seem to care about things that needed me to care a little more about... Okay, so I don't plan on changing that aspect, but I can receive it and take a look at it to evaluate what I might need to be more cautious about.

The Love Dare is certainly a challenge and I can imagine if you don't really like your spouse, how difficult it could be to submit like the book asks you to. Doing the challenges alone is an act of submission. I don't have a problem with that at all. I think the self reflection is more of a problem for me than the submission.

I will trust that this will only enhance our wedded bliss, so I will continue.

Oh, I'm also starting a Health Challenge at work, so I might be a little grumpy in the next few posts... Not that I haven't been that way already..

Heard from the kids at camp today and Ashton seems to have fallen in love with some boy name Danny and wants to bring him home with her.... We'll see....

One more thing that I have to write about that I'm dealing with is my work and if it's what I should be doing right now... I have been in prayer about it and have started to have that restless feeling that I get sometimes when change is coming... This is what my devotional had to say...

Lord, I pray You would show me what work I am supposed to be doing. If it is something I am to do in addition to what I am already doing, show me that too...

And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hands. Psalm 91:17

Love you,
Lea Anne

Day 4 and Day 5...

2009-06-09T06:26:00.000-07:00

I hope that I have more interesting blog titles than just Day whatever in the future, but for now, this has been my focus. It's hard to do a running series of events around a single topic because so many things bombard us in a day that we can easily get sidetracked.

Day 4 was fairly simple so I did it with ease... It was to call your spouse without any agenda just to let them know you were thinking of them. Dana and I talk to each other about 7 times a day and usually eat lunch together every day so that wasn't so difficult.

But Day 5... That has taken a little time to implement... The challenge for this day was to ask your spouse what three things were the most irritating and frustrating things that you do that might annoy your spouse... Talk about self-reflection... It takes guts to hear what your spouse has to say.

I could tell you right off what one of them are, but I'm going to let him tell me what his most irritating things about me are and then I'll share his comments with you.

One of the things that I was feeling yesterday was weighing heavy on my heart and it is just something that I'm going to have to deal with... Dana helped put it in perspective for me and this is what he said...

The years that I've invested in my co-workers has come to the point where I don't have to persuade them to do as I do, I just have to keep doing what I do. My disappointment comes when I see the evidence of a life that is so far removed from Christ or I don't see any interest at all in Christ like things, and I feel defeated... Dana said that the time of response is their responsibility... I've done what I can, I've lived the example, and although I'm no where NEAR a perfect example, I have been consistent in my walk and talk over the years that I don't have to convince them. Now I just need to demonstrate a little love and patience while they make their decision.

These are the kind of discussions that Dana and I have on a daily basis and I wouldn't trade that relationship for anything in the world. We are always asking each other what kind of God conversation did we have that day with someone we work with, and we pray together for our family and our friends. I'm so thankful for him for that. I'm just so thankful for my life and I will not allow the enemy to make me feel defeated and unworthy. So I share my concern with you as an opportunity to ask for prayer, because that is what I do when I feel defeated. I start praying and praising God for what He's done for me and for who he is and then things don't seem so depressing anymore.

I'll try to keep the post down to a minimum of explanation as I can get a little wordy. Thanks for listening.
Love you!
Lea Anne

Day 3...

2009-06-08T08:32:00.000-07:00

This Love Dare challenge is more difficult than I thought. It is really hard to be intentional about being kind and noticing when you're not. I think it has brought to the surface a lot of things that I took for granted and made me realize how blessed I am by being married to Dana. He is already doing almost everything the book has been challenging me to do, and he is not even reading the chapters. It is natural to him.

Now that doesn't mean he's perfect... If anything, it demonstrates that a marriage isn't about being perfect, it's about being intentional in how we relate to our spouse. We have to PUT ON the marriage just as we decide what to wear everyday and how we have to PUT ON our clothes... We have to PUT ON intentional effort to make our marriages stronger.

Day 3 was to do something that showed how much you cared for your spouse by buying them something that spoke your love to them...

Now this is my part of "Buying" something for Dana... We decided to take the girls to Johnson Bayou to swim in the ocean, but there was still bacterial warning signs, so we didn't swim, but he did borrow his boss's boat and we went boating all day on Big Lake... the girls got to go crabbing and I actually have pictures of the day, but they are on Ashton's camera which she took with her to camp... So maybe I'll post them when she gets back.

Back to the buying thing... Dana wanted to buy a Rod and Reel to take out with him, and I let him... Does that count? He really wanted it, and I really wanted him to have it, so he bought it. And then, he took me out to eat that night for seafood and that is what I wanted so we can call day three done...

Yesterday the girls left for camp after church and the college department had a picnic at the civic center... It was a beautiful day and you never know who'll you'll meet at the park. Do you notice people who are different than you? We were making our sandwiches and this man walked by that appeared to be homeless and Miriam asked him if he'd like a sandwich... He didn't take her up on the offer, but as I was walking toward the group from the other side, and he stopped me and said to tell the group "thank you" for him that today was payday and he didn't need anything... I asked him again to eat with us, but he declined... But I watched him for a little while as he went farther down the sidewalk. He looked so sad... He moved on and the moment passed, but as we were picking things up, another man came by and said that someone had told him he could get a sandwich from us. We immediately fixed him something to eat and gave him a couple of our waters, and he thanked us with "Shalom". He said he was Jewish, that he owned the hotel across the road, and that we could rent a room from him. Then he went over to one of the trees and sat down to eat his sandwich. I watched him too, and he made the sign of the cross before he ate so I assumed he had been introduced to Jesus Christ, since that is what the cross sign represents... We can't know what a person's spiritual condition is... Even if they say one thing and do something else, that still doesn't give us an inclining of how they stand spiritually... But the Bible does say that we are known by our fruit... We will reap what we sow, and if we are bearing fruit, then our life will be an example to others. We don't have to tell others what we believe, it will be obvious in our actions and our life...

Since Day 4 was actually on Sunday, and I didn't do much except siesta after the picnic, so I will do Day 4's challenge today... I've already started but will share with you the results tomorrow...

I ask for you to pray for me, because as I mentioned on the first day, I was also going to apply this concept to my coworkers, clients and agencies... I need help where this is concerned. Not everyone I encounter, but some of them are starting to weigh on my nerves and I need help in my attitude adjustment... I can get a little judgmental and condescending and I don't want to be that way. HELP!!!

Press on and conquer...
Lea Anne

Day 2... Love Dare

2009-06-06T07:31:00.001-07:00

I completed Day 2 and I have to say that when you are intentional about being kind to someone, it is a little difficult. Not that Dana and I aren't already in a great marriage, but when you set out to make it better, all the things that aren't so nice are a little amplified. One thing that I noticed is that I would be sharp with Dana about something and immediately I was pricked about having to be "Kind" to him, so it would bring me up short and I'd say "I'm sorry"... It's amazing how this intentional effort of being Kind is good for the intended, but it really brings to the forefront how negative we can be in an unintentional, but still very biting way in the way we interact with our spouse. One thing that we can't control is how our spouse will react to us, but we can control how we respond to them... So if your first inclination is to be sharp or biting in response to something, then you can stop it before it comes out... You be the change you want to see happen in your marriage. Don't wait for your spouse to change... you start being kind to them and then they will respond back. Marriage isn't 50/50... It is you going 100% of the way expecting nothing from your spouse, and then you'll be amazed that they start meeting you half-way...

For instance, my challenge for Day 2 was this...

In addition to NOT saying anything negative, I was suppose to demonstrate Kindness to my spouse by doing something unexpected...

Okay, so we went to lunch together... although this isn't unusual because we TRY to have lunch together everyday... or as often as we can, because this has always been our time to connect with each other. So we did that...

Then I handled my insurance mess so Dana wouldn't have to... I thought that was HUGE, because I don't handle things like that usually... I went to Allstate claims, got the appraisal form and check, then went to the body shop and dropped it off so he could order the part, and now I'm waiting for them to call me to change it out... Here's something unexpected and delightful and all about the goodness of God... I have accident forgiveness for one accident, AND I have a $300 deductible credit due to my outstanding driving record... So this little "Accident" isn't going to cost me any out of pocket expense!!! Hallelujah!!

Then I had a party to go to for my boss for his 50th birthday and I invited Dana along... It was SO fun to sit out on the patio and tell stories and talk with other couples and eat party food!!

Then we went to Sonic and bought icecream for the girls and came home to enjoy some "family" time... This was our family time... I went to take a bath (while eating my butterfinger blast) the girls were watching a movie in their upstairs area, Dana went to his man cave to eat his icecream (while sharing it with the dog) You've never seen an animal that loves icecream as much as Max does)... Then I went to bed...

Of course Dana joined me later and I continued to show him some "Unexpected" kindness...

So Day 1 and 2 is finished...
Today is Day 3...
I'll keep you posted..

Oh a big shout out to my sister, Chantay, she's getting married today... She'll be Mrs. Chris Miles in about 20 minutes... Congratulations Big Sis... I love you and wish you the best with Chris...

Lea Anne

Love Dare...

2009-06-04T11:57:00.000-07:00

We started the Love Dare challenge at church last night and we had over 17 couples represented there. Great discussions and video clips from the movie "Fireproof".

The challenge for today is

to not say anything negative to my spouse today.

The challenge went on to say...and if that's too difficult, don't say anything at all...

I'm suppose to record how my challenge turned out each day, and I can tell you honestly, that it has been a breeze so far. I haven't said one negative word to Dana all day... Of course, we've both been at work and haven't had a chance to see each other, so the true test will start tonight as we interface.

As I thought about this challenge I began to relate it to how I interact with my coworkers, clients, and agencies that I deal with on a daily basis too. I thought, I should take this same concept to them. This will be WAAAAY tougher than dealing with Dana, but I feel like I'm up to the challenge. So today, I decided not to say one negative thing to or about my clients, coworkers, or agencies... I succeeded, until 8:05 am, when I got my first complaint... I mean, call...

This may be harder than I thought...

I will press on to Day 2 though...

I'll keep you posted on how my progress is going.

I hope you Dare to Love someone today!!
Lea Anne

To Complain is to Remain...

2009-06-03T06:42:00.000-07:00

I wish I could take credit for the phrase in the title, but I heard Joyce Meyer say it yesterday on "Enjoying Everyday Life". I will take her advice and not complain about the situation I found myself in yesterday, but I will comment about it. I was backing out of the parking slot like I always do, and I turned too sharply and caught the bumper of the truck beside me. This is the result of that "Bump."

And this is the other bumper that I caught...

Barely even scratched the dirt off the bumper. So I tell the engineering guy that I did it and for him to make sure that his truck was okay and I thought it was taken care of. He came up yesterday afternoon and said it did leave a dent and that the paint was scratched off and we would have to file it, and I said, "What dent?" He said, "On the right side rear bumper." I said, "I hit the left side rear bumper with the right front side of my truck." I even had a witness as one of the girls I work with was out taking a smoking break and she came over to look at it.

Well, short story even shorter, he said, "I believe you... don't worry about it."

Now I have to deal with getting my bumper replaced...

Just wanted to share that with you.

Lea Anne

A little prayer for Ashton today

2009-06-01T13:26:00.000-07:00

I'm sending out a little prayer request for Ashton today as she tries out for Barbe Softball... She is really nervous and I just ask you all to remember her this week as she works to fulfill her dream of playing High School sports.

Thanks for your prayers,
Lea Anne

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back on just to say Ashton didn't make the softball team. She was okay with it but I'm a little bummed out for her. Thanks anyway.

Setting a Good Example

2009-05-29T07:35:00.000-07:00

“Few things are harder to put up with than the ANNOYANCE of a good example.”
Mark Twain (1835–1910)American writer

I have a sanctuary in my room where I do all of my Bible Study and journaling, but I usually do it behind closed doors or when everyone else is still asleep or gone because I like the quiet time. But I recently read an entry on someone else's blog about things she wished she had done while her kids were growing up, and one of them was for them to see her studying the Word of God and meeting with God more than they did. To do it as an example of what they should do... Or to use it as an opening in discussing their own personal quiet time moments with God. And I thought I would take her advice and start leaving the door open when I do my Bible Study to encourage those who want to talk to me or happen to walk by my door to know they are invited in.

As soon as I made that connection with opening my door, God is so good to test me on it. Last night we had a late night at the ballpark and didn't get home until 9pm. We ate Taco Bell takeout and I immediately went and had my bath and piled into my comfy bed to do a little of my night time reading and studying... And I'm sure you can predict what happened...

I left the door open, and one by one, the kids started coming by... First Keelea, then Leslie (a friend of Ashton's who was staying the night) then Ragan, (who put a load of clothes on right outside my door.) Of course she was in a bad mood and didn't need me for anything, just wanted to complain about having to find a job... and then Angela (she's one of my Sunday School members who's living with us for a little while)... It's amazing how involved we can be with others when we open our doors.

I set my Bible Study aside
and took a moment to just
listen... All people really need is for us to listen and sometimes they want advice but mostly they just want us to hear them.

It is so important to record the things we are experiencing in our lives so that we can remember the times that seemed so frustrating and worrisome and see that God brought us through that time. I always take a moment to jot down the people in my life that I'm praying for, their specific needs and the dreams that I feel God is laying on my heart. I encourage you to journal as well. I have neglected this little book because of what I do on line now, but I make sure to update the specific things I'm praying for. So I can remember.

I was able to share with Angela last night about a time in my life when I was waiting on God for what job he had for me, and it was this great job that I have now, but at the time of waiting, I couldn't see what God was up to until after I reflected through my journal... In one of the entries I recorded the words to a song that I still remember the lyrics to. It's called "Help is on the Way."

Some of the words are these: Don't give up the ship, even when you feel it sinking, and you don't know what to do. Don't give up your dreams, even when you may be thinking, "it'll never come true." Life has it's own ideas of how things come about, and if you keep believing, life always seems to work things out... Help is on the way, from places you don't know about today. From people you haven't met yet, believe me when I say, I know... Help is on the way.
You don't have to know, where the path you're on is leading, you just have to walk along. Praying as you go, asking for the things you're needing. You'll never be alone. If you have faith that things are happening as the should, then don't give up, they're leading you to something good.. Help is on the way, from places you don't know about today, from men you may have never met yet, believe me when I say, I know, help is on the way...
So open your heart, open your eyes, and realize that Help is on the way, from people you don't know about today. From men, you may have never met yet, believe me when I say, I know, Help is on the way.

I don't know why I felt the need to write the words of that song down, but I just remember when I heard it, how much it impressed me with the fact that God heard me and cared about me and wanted me to know it would be okay... And it was....

So just remember, that you are leaving an example to your kids and those that are watching you, and although we can't change people, we can impress them with our actions and by the example we live.

Go be an example today for someone.
I love you,
Lea Anne

I'm waiting.....

2009-05-28T12:30:00.000-07:00

I'm waiting for SOMEONE to send me some of their pictures from this past weekend in Arkansas at the Callaway Family Reunion. I didn't have a camera of my own and have to depend on my relatives to share theirs with me. This is always a great time to connect with those long lost relatives, that you really do like and want to spend more time with, but never seem to have the time to do it.

As soon as some of those fabulous people share some pictures with me I'll post them on the blog... Until then... I'm waiting...
Love you!
Lea Anne

I commit my work to You, Lord...

2009-05-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

I commit my work to You, Lord, knowing you will establish it (Proverbs 16:3)

Yesterday I worked a Job Fair hosted by KPLC and I was stunned to see and hear the devastation that some people are facing with job losses, corporate cutbacks, and layoffs... I am so blessed to have this wonderful job that I have and I left that Job Fair just praising God for the opportunity He gave me 9 years ago to come to work for KPLC.

We don't always have a choice about what happens to us in our jobs, but we do have a choice about the attitude with which we choose to work at our jobs... I absolutely LOVE my job and am thankful everyday for it... Do you love your job? Have you thanked the Lord today for what he's done for you? Are you living with an attitude of gratitude?

This attitude of gratitude goes into every aspect of our lives where we choose to serve others. Are you serving to get or give? I really think we need to ask ourselves why we do what we do. If for one moment we take our eyes off the focus of our service and place it on ourselves and what we receive from that service, then we will always find fault or feel ungrateful, or feel some other emotion that involves the need to be affirmed, accepted, applauded, or appreciated... This type of emotion will always give us reason to complain, criticize or become complacent in our service... Have you said, "Well, so and so does it, why can't I" or "They'll never know if I come in a little late" or "_______ likes ______ more than me. He's playing favorites!"

Don't let that happen to you...

Don't become a part of the problem... set your eyes on the One to whom we bring our praise and worship... Jesus Christ... then you can live a life that is free of emotional destruction... This kind of "What's in it for Me" Mentality is what keeps people in bondage and never free to fully serve with wholehearted abandon... We are told to "do everything as unto the Lord, remaining fervent in Spirit, don't lag in diligence (Romans 12:11) Don't do it for praise from men, but may your service always glorify the Lord.

Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before unknown men. Proverbs 22:29

Go excel in your service today!
Lea Anne

You have put Gladness in my heart...Psalm 4:7

2009-05-19T06:36:00.000-07:00

I am full of the joy of the Lord when I look upon these kids of mine. I am so thankful for them and wanted to take a moment to brag.

Ashton just received her Leap score and she scored mastery in three subjects and advanced in one. She gets to wear jeans every day til the end of school and I am so proud of her.

Ragan finishes her quarter and first year at La Tech this Friday. She's been on the dean's list every quarter and has grown into an independent woman since she's been away at school and I wouldn't want it any other way.

Keelea, I have to admit, is my little clone... I'm so sorry that she got most of my gene pool because this girl will be cursed with proficiency, perfectionism, and pressure to succeed her whole life... What a little genius she is and I'm amazed every day at how she handles the responsibility of life. She sets her alarm and gets up and ready for school on her own. This morning she was sitting on the couch waiting for me, having already eaten her breakfast and as we ran to the car, Ashton said, "I wish I had eaten." And Keelea had grabbed a breakfast bar and a glass of milk and said, "Here you can have this."

I mean, what other 12 year old does that?

I've had a conversation recently with one of my Sunday School students and after praying and seeking the Lord's heart I believe that He has given me a glimpse of His perspective on parenting, and instilling a little independence in my children.

My students' parents were the over-protective, over-bearing, overly-strict, over-EVERYTHING type of parents and she is really struggling with her independence and knowing who the authority in her life should be... I have had a little talk with the Lord about this particular topic and this is what I feel he's revealing to me.

God is a God of ORDER...He doesn't want our lives to be random or accidental. His will is that we "let all things be done decently and in order." (1 Corinthians 14:40) and when we pray to Him about it, He will help us do just that.

As an adult who is single, married, or divorced... God is our authority... as children, we are under the authority of our parents, but as an adult, we are under the authority of Christ. God will show us how to align ourselves under proper authority...

How does he do that, you ask?

Through our submission to Him... Submission is something we decide to do, not something that is forced on us to do. When we submit ourselves to the Lord, it is a condition of our heart... meaning we are willing to fall into proper alignment in accordance to God's will. Ask God to help you discern exactly to whom you are to be submitted and in what way. Don't just submit blindly or ignorantly. Know what you are doing. When your heart's desire is to do what's right and be in right order, God will help you find that perfect balance.

It seems so juvenile, so simple, yet so many people struggle with the submission concept... Basically, when you love God first, and others as yourself, then all your priorities fall into place and you will be in right order. Now, how do you know what your priorities should be? You ask God to show you.

If you are thinking, "This sounds crazy." I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO! I just have to ask you this... Have you stopped today and given God some praise? Have you thanked God today for loving you? Have you prayed for someone you know who has a need? Have you loved God first, above all else, and then others second, and yourself last?

If all you can remember thinking about, praying about, or talking about is YOU! then your priorities are wrong... As in NOT RIGHT!

I don't mean to sound harsh or unloving, but this is how submission works... God desires that "This mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." Philippians 2:5-8)

Our two most important priorities come directly from the Word of God. Jesus told us about them saying, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and the great commandment. And the second is like it; 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" (Matthew 22:37-39)

If you do this, I promise, that you will find yourself following the path of righteousness, and peace, and stability, and honesty, and holiness, and, of course, WHOLENESS!!!

Right standing with God and parents, and employers, and pastors, and everyone else...

Go give God some praise today...
I love you!
Lea Anne

One Proud Mama

2009-05-18T14:27:00.001-07:00

CONGRATULATIONS!!! DJ's has GRADUATED!!!!

Chantay couldn't have been more proud yesterday as DJ walked up to receive his diploma... I quit counting how many times I almost cried because the ceremony was absolutely beautiful. Something that a Christian private school can do that public schools can't is actually praise and worship the Lord, which they did in HIGH STYLE.... Wow!
What a memory... All my best goes out to you DJ...
I love you!
Lea Anne

The LIFE CHANGING POWER of the Holy Spirit

2009-05-10T16:50:00.000-07:00

I was praying for Ragan and she left to go back to Tech this afternoon and as I prayed I thanked God for the way he changed her life when she heard him speak to her at Student Life camp in 2005... He spoke this word to her heart

He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces
them finds mercy. Proverbs 28:13

When she heard the Lord speak this to her heart, she was immediately convicted of the sins of her past, and believe me, as a 14 year old then, she had A LOT of sins to confess... No child is perfect and the fact is that most 13, 14, and 15 year olds make a lot of mistakes in life as they try to figure out who they are and exactly who they want to be... Ragan was no different. But when I tell you that the summer God spoke to her and she HEARD him...WOW what a changed life she has had. So this post is about the Life changing POWER of the Holy Spirit.

What makes every other religion similar to Christianity, but what is the element that is left out of those religions? I am not that knowledgeable about other religions, because I only REALLY study the Bible, so if I'm speaking out of place, well just consider this post a random thought from an incredibly proud and happy Mom of my daughter, Ragan... but since her actions prompted this prayer and post today, I'll go out on a limb and state my claim...

We can sit in a circle and sing "Kum-ba-yah" like The Hare Krishnas(?) spelling?
Or we can go "Door to Door" with tracts and do good works like the Jehovah's Witness...
Or we can worship rocks, trees, animals and other inanimate objects like the Hindu...
We can pray and fast and travel to the Holy Land as the Muslim do...
What exactly do Buddhaist do? I don't have a clue... but I'm sure we could do it also...

There are many WAYS to worship and feel good about ourselves and our hopes to gain eternal life as I'm sure even the most atheistic person on earth has at least thought about, whether they admit it or not... But there is only ONE WAY that includes Jesus Christ in the form of the Holy Spirit who takes up residence in a persons life and because of that indwelling spirit on the inside of us, we are miraculously changed on the outside. Our lives are different because of that Holy Spirit that is GOD... He lives in us and guides us and changes us to WANT to be different...

I am a believer in once saved always saved, because once we have asked the Holy Spirit to live in us, he never leaves us... Others would like to debate that...but this isn't a debate, it's about the Life Changing Power of the Holy Spirit... And either you have it, or you DON'T...

If you are a believer, and this is ONLY for those who believe in Jesus Christ as your savior... Is your life different today than what it was before you asked Jesus into your heart? If you can say, "Yes", then thank God for the Life Changing Power of the Holy Spirit... If others around you say, "You're Different than you used to be." Then thank God for the Life Changing Power of the Holy Spirit...

If you can look at the hurting people around you and feel no compassion for them; If you haven't felt convicted about doing things that you know are wrong; if you haven't HEARD the voice of God, then I ask you to examine your life, ask a close friend in all honesty to speak up about what they think of you, if you know a Christian that you respect and who knows you well then ask them what they think about you and if the answer isn't "You're different than you used to be" then PLEASE stop right now and ask the Lord Jesus to save you and change you by the power of the Holy Spirit....

Oh my, I went off on a preaching moment, because I was actually bragging on my daughter, and thanking God for her... This weekend Ashton and Keelea were in a 50's dinner theater and Ragan came home to watch and I was so proud of their performance... They are all such Hams...(I was NEVER that way as a child, I was always so shy in front of people...) and after the show, they decided to have an impromptu party at my house... These are always better than the planned kind, because it's in the moment and all the parents are happy and they say yes to their kids coming over. We had around 30 kids and they decided to play "Capture the flag" in our neighborhood around 11pm last night. What we didn't know was that there was a party two houses down for a graduate and the parents had bought a lot of alcohol for the kids... Now we have our party with 30 from church playing and having a good time, and they had their house full of kids who were playing and having a good time (Same thing right?) Except one of the kids decided to drive drunk and almost hit one of our kids and my dog... ( I think that upset Ragan more than the kid, but I won't tell the parent) anyway, she marched up to the door and asked who the person was that drove the Silver PT Cruiser and the other kids didn't hesitate to say, "that's Matthew Meyers" and she marched right into the house and asked him to come out... He thought it was to move his car that he parked haphazardly on the street, but she said stand right here in front of me and let me tell you what you almost did. He didn't even see the kids in the street and she told him that one STUPID act like "Killing someone" would change his life forever because he chose to Drink and Drive... She said it's so simple but true, Don't Drink and Drive, you idiot... He said he was sorry and that he was giving his keys to one of his friends and she came home...

The greatest thing about that story, was there were 30 junior and senior high school kids that were watching how she handled that event... WOW, what a witness... She may have even saved a child's life by confronting that boy... Who knows, maybe he even saw something in her that would want to make him do things differently...

Again, it's back to the "WAY" we do things... We can do things differently than we used to because of sheer willpower, or we can be Changed by the LIFE CHANGING POWER of the Holy Spirit...Jesus Christ is the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE... Let GOD change us through the same power that raised Jesus from the dead... WOW... is all I can say... I'm so proud of her...

I have one more quick story of how she is witnessing to a boy at Tech. He has a couple of classes with her and he hasn't had a "Life Changed" experience yet... Oh, he thinks he's a Christian because he doesn't worship another God or anything, but he doesn't have a personal relationship with the Lord, Jesus Christ... YET! He is 20 years old, just broke up with his girlfriend and basically thinks his life is over because of that... He drinks every weekend and is basically just existing.. Ragan suggested that he hang out with her for a weekend and not drink and they did. On Thursday, she invited him to a concert on campus for extra credit in the class they both attended, and he went. A lot of kids from Calvary were there because they were music majors, including their College director... Talk about timing and intervention... You just can't help but be drawn to Kathy Nelson from Calvary... She reminds me of Paula Dean... Wonderful woman of God... Ragan invited him to church on Sunday but she had been up with Ryan all evening and night on Saturday because he had a stomach bug and she slept in on that Sunday... But this guy called her on Sunday morning and said, "Hey, are you picking me up for Church?" Oh, my goodness... It will have to be next weekend because she came home this weekend and it may have been a missed opportunity, but do you see how she is witnessing to others and leading them to Christ? It makes me so jealous, in a good way, that I want to follow her example.. I want to be that kind of Christian... One changed by the Life Changing Power of the Holy Spirit... (Sorry, didn't mean to go on again... I just get caught up in the moment...)

I didn't have a single camera at the dinner theater, but some of my friends said they would share their pictures with me, so I'll post those later of Ashton and Keelea...
I hope you've had a blessed day... I did...
Love you all,
Lea Anne

Stop trying to live by Christian Principals...

2009-05-04T13:39:00.000-07:00

What a timely word from my devotional today...

Dear God, Thank you for being orderly and powerful and loving and understanding! I need your help. You know there are difficult people in this world. There always have been and always will be. Some people can be avoided. Some people I must see and deal with, so I need to know what to do. When they are so wrong and their sin and stupidity affects other people's lives, but they do not want help nor do they listen to reason and good sense or even Christian counsel from others who have 'been there,' there really isn't much I can do. So what I need to do is ask you to please intervene. Please help me to not react and do or say anything wrong. Please open the other person's eyes, enlighten their mind, and speak to their heart. Draw that person (or those people) to you. Fill them with spiritual wisdom, increase their knowledge and maturity, and break down the strongholds that keep them from doing what is right and following your will. Please help. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, amen.

Stop Living By Christian PrinciplesTGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman05-04-2009

..."having a form of godliness but denying its power" (2 Tim 3:5).

God never called you to live by Christian principles. He calls you to live in relationship with the living God, Jesus Christ. One of the weaknesses of the Church today is that we teach people principles without the relationship.
The western church is big on ten step programs, "how-to" methods and acrostics to illustrate memorable ideas. There is a place for establishing principles to change negative behavior. However, we are not called to have a relationship with principles, but a living God.
Living by principles is the equivalent to living by the law in the Old Testament. It is rooted in the Greek system of learning and is dependent upon our strength instead of being led and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Principle-based living is powerless living. This makes our Christian experience a religion instead of a relationship. "But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law" (Gal 5:18).
We read about principle-based followers in the book of Acts, "The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people" (Acts 5:12-14). There was a group of followers who liked being taught but never entered the game.
The prophet Jeremiah tells us about the nature of God and His desire for every believer.
This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24).
Friend, have you been guilty of living a life based on principles instead of knowing the One who authored the principles? Invite Jesus to be Lord over your life and begin to spend time with Him every day. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you through every moment of your day.

I hope this ministered to you today as it did me.
Believing God...
Lea Anne

I don't know how else to help you...

2009-05-02T13:42:00.001-07:00

I so needed a word from God about how I was supposed to handle a situation with my cousin this
week. I have said over and over this phrase... "I don't know how else to help you..."
and in my quiet time last night, I was reading in Galatians and Paul said this in his letter to them...

Galatians 4:20..."I don't know how else to help you."

He has been pleading with the church of Galacia to stop reverting back to the same old bad habits that they were used to before they came to know Christ, but to live in freedom.

Galatians 4:12..."I plead with you to live as I do in freedom from these things..."

These so-called "Laws" that we have been told that we must live by to be Christian...

What exactly are those laws?

Are they man-made, or are they biblical?

Are you struggling to live a life of freedom?

Are you bound by something that you can't break free from?

My only advise to you is to replace the bad habit that you know you are bound to, with a life-giving habit...

Do something "good" when you feel like doing that "bad" something...

I thank God that he hears our prayer and that he speaks a word to our heart when we seek him...

I feel better knowing that I don't have to know what to do about the situation with my cousin, I
just have to do what Christ would do... And that is...Love...

Easier said than done so if you could remember me in your prayers tonight, I'd appreciate it.

Believe God Today fors omething BIG!!!
LeaAnne

My husband has another love in his life...

2009-04-25T18:55:00.000-07:00

HIM...I won't be late, tonight, I promise...

ME...I'll see you in the morning then...

HIM...Will you wait up for me...

ME...How about you wake me up...

HIM...He didn't even come home....(Sigh) what's a girl to do? How can I compete with this?

A boy and his toys!!!

70 is the number of YEARS old Dana's dad is and he still races!!!

(Click on the pictures to get a good view of the pit crew names)

I wish them luck tonight the first night with the new car...It's all shining and unbent...I thought I'd show you a picture of what it looks-like before it hits a wall...or another car...

Oh well, maybe he'll be home before dawn tonight...Can a girl hope for a night with her husband? We'll see.

LeaAnne

Opening Ceremonies

2009-04-25T18:39:00.000-07:00

Ashton and Keelea had opening ceremonies for softball today...here are a few pictures of them and their teams...

Ashton is on The Rapids...

Keelea is on "Las Chicas"

5 months with no window treatment....

2009-04-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

From the front of the house, the guest room is on the right and this has been what the guest room window has looked liked for 5 months... until this weekend. I decided to clean the window and put up a window treatment.

I bought this fabric before we moved in and I finally decided to sew a curtain...

Now when you look out the window, you see this instead of the paper shade

an Easter Lily planted just in time for easter... Isn't it pretty?

We're working on the landscaping... more photos to come. Just wanted to share with you what I've been up to in the house.

Love you!

LeaAnne

Make your Mother Proud! (Right out of the mouth of Solomon)

2009-04-13T12:09:00.000-07:00

Listen with respect to the father who raised you, and when your mother grows old, don't neglect her.Buy truth—don't sell it for love or money; buy wisdom, buy education, buy insight. Parents rejoice when their children turn out well; wise children become proud parents.So make your father happy! Make your mother proud! Proverbs 23:22-25

Since Ragan has gone to college, I don't get to see her everyday... I know that she is always busy and her facebook page has over 160 pictures of her in various activities... So I stole some of them to post on my blog page just to update you all on what she's been doing recently. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Typical Ragan, always laughing!!

Just Being Ragan

Ragan running a 5K marathon in January

La Tech Home Game

Ragan and Lee at the BCM HoeDown

Ragan's Mission trip to Las Vegas... (Been there and absolutely loved it!!!)

Ragan on the Strip in Vegas

Ragan at the Rain Forrest Cafe' in Vegas

Ragan and a friend at the Broadway musical put on by Calvary Baptist church to raise money for the Vegas mission trip!

Ragan and Josh at spring dance at La Tech

Ragan and Ashton and Keelea

Max in Ragan's Bed

Ragan and Ashton at Ashton's Birthday Party

I hope you enjoyed a look into the life of Ragan... I just wanted to take a moment to brag on this wonderful gift that God has given me... I am so proud of her and know that God has HUGE plans for her future.

Thanks for being a part of my life.

Lea Anne

A deliberate Leap in the opposite direction...

2009-04-08T06:21:00.000-07:00

There are some things one can only achieve by a deliberate leap in the opposite direction.
Franz Kafka (1883–1924), Austro-Hungarian writer

I have been having a time of understanding and resting in God's peace over a situation I'm having to deal with, and I've made a decision to do nothing... I know that doesn't sound like a good plan of action, but I have peace about the decision. If I do nothing, then whatever happens is evidence of what God is doing in that situation.

Sometimes we want to play God for people in our lives. That is God's job and since we can't know a person's heart, we have to sit back and watch their actions...
The bible says that we are known by our fruit... Gal.5:22 says the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control... If we are bearing this fruit, then it's pretty safe to say that our hearts are right...

Okay, here's where it gets a little sticky... what if we aren't demonstrating ALL these characteristics of fruit, just some of them... Does that mean our heart isn't right?

This is what God has been showing me... If we are better today than we were last month, or last year, or five years ago... then the fruit is being manifested in us... If we demonstrate a little more patience today than we did in our past life, then the spirit is working in our lives... A CHANGED life is what bears witness to a life saved by grace... A CHANGED life...

But be sure that the evidence of a life WITHOUT the spirit's saving grace... is also represented in a person's actions...

Gal 5:19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.

If your life has these characteristics, then I would challenge you to get on your knees and ask God to reveal the parts of your heart that are deceiving you... Break out of those sinful behaviors that lead to discord... Turn the opposite way that you've been going, and see if God can't work a miracle in your life.

I love you and I pray for you all daily... I am at rest today and I thank God for instilling that peace in me...
Lea Anne

Beth Moore Living Proof Live event in New Orleans

2009-04-06T09:31:00.000-07:00

I treated myself to a weekend in New Orleans and attended the Beth Moore event at the Super Dome this weekend. I received a fresh word from God through Beth and I encourage anyone who has never seen her in person to do so whenever you get the chance. The worship experience alone was worth the trip but the teaching was spectacular.

She was definitely "First Class"... It got me to thinking that God is an excellent God. Everything He does is first class, and we should strive to do no less in our lives... our Jobs, our homes, our extra curricular activities, everything, should be done with excellence.

This is what the stadium looked like with over 6600 women worshipping God. I was somewhere in the mix, but that wasn't as important as feeling the overwhelming presence of God there with us.

Excellence is my new word... I've said it three or four times in Dana's presence and he's called my attention to it. It reminds me of a worship song we sang in Ukraine... Romans 16:19 says, be excellent at what is good, be innocent of evil...

I want to be excellent...

Lea Anne

2009-04-03T06:30:00.000-07:00

The following is a prayer that I got this morning on my devotional email. I thought it was very appropriate for the circumstances in my life today... I hope it resonates with you this morning as well.

Oh Dear Lord, Thank you for your promises! Thank you for opening your arms and welcoming me to come to you, to find rest in you, to find freedom in you, to have abundant life in you. I cry out to you now for those who are heavy on my heart, for those who are going through the fire and those who are going through the valleys; for those who face difficulties and those who have come through trials and are triumphant because of you. I pray for your grace and mercy, your peace and love, your hand upon their lives. I pray for miracles and ministries. I pray that all who are weary will cry out to you and trust you. And I thank you so much for all that you have done and all that you will do. May your works and miracles in our lives be witness to the world that you are God. May you be glorified and souls be saved. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Give your concerns to Jesus today.
Lea Anne

Sometimes I can be stupid... I don't like being stupid!

2009-04-02T06:57:00.001-07:00

Okay, I have a confession to make... are you ready... I did a stupid thing yesterday.

I had to pay my cell phone bill before the service was "interrupted." Don't you love how companies try to make it sound better than it really is?

Anyway, I went on line and paid it with my check card... That was Tuesday... well last night, I got a text message that said if I didn't make a payment immediately, my service would be suspended... So I went back on line to check my bank balance and saw that the payment hadn't cleared my bank. I thought, maybe I didn't hit "submit" or something on Tuesday, so I went back online to Centennial and did it again... Now there are two posted payments to my account, which I didn't notice until after I hit "submit"... Oh well, now I sent an email to the company and said, would you please credit back to my card the extra payment, so that I don't face an overdraft!!

Do you think they care?

I know that God cares, and I trust that even in my stupidity, he has my back... God knows what we need before we even cry out to him, and he knows how to protect us from disaster.

I just have to admit my stupidity, and trust that he will work it out.

Have you done something stupid lately?

You can get over it, by simply admitting it and moving on...

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Love you, Big Brother, today is his birthday....

Believe for something great today!
Lea Anne

Living in the authority to break the power of the enemy

2009-03-31T07:38:00.000-07:00

Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Luke 10:19

I thank God everyday for protecting me from the dangers of the enemy. Point blank, the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy, but we can break free from that bondage when we trust in God to protect us...

He wants to protect us...

BUT... We have to do our part to receive this protection from God. We are to put on the WHOLE armor of God, so that we can stand against the wiles of the devil,
Helmet of Salvation
The breastplate of righteousness
Girding your waist with Truth
the Shield of Faith
The sword of the Spirit (THE WORD OF GOD)
the shoes of peace
(Ephesians 6:13-17)

We have to do this for ourselves... No one can do it for us... We are responsible to stay under the protection of the Lord... He never moves, we do...

So take the battle position and fight... Fight... for your safety, and health, and well being...

Read the scriptures to know what the Lord wants you to do, and then do it.

Stay faithful...
Lea Anne

2009-03-18T12:18:00.000-07:00

"O LORD, by your hand save me from such men, from men of this world whose reward is in this life" (Ps 17:14).

I was praying as I opened my emails this morning that the Lord would speak to me through my devotional and the verse above is what I read.

I needed that exact verse.

I had a battle yesterday with an advertising agency guy who came into town and signed up one of my biggest advertisers... Now I am praying for wisdom in how I respond to this guy.

I want to live for Kingdom purposes not, earthly ones, but when we get right down to it, we DO have to live on this earth... So we are responsible for making a living and paying our bills and feeding the starving children of the world... In this case it would be my starving children... So how do we handle the earthly needs that we have without becoming "of the world"... Anyone got a suggestion, I'm open to it...

I just pray to stay humble and on task of things that I'm asked to do and I know that my God is in control of the fact that I am now making less money on this client because of the agency...

I know that my God is in control...

Anyone know of a business that needs to advertise? I'll be happy to stop by and see them...

Just look forward to kingdom reward... I keep telling myself that.

Enjoy,
Lea Anne

2009-03-12T07:53:00.000-07:00

Colossians 4:5-6
Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.

I have opened my home to a relative of mine that basically has nowhere else to go and although I don't feel responsible for his future endeavors, I do want to take this opportunity to be a real life Christian to him.

Every day we have the chance to make someone's life a little better, or to be Jesus to someone and I thank God for that opportunity... I was studying in the book of Colossians and it is so full of advice as to how we should live so that our lives reflect the Christ that lives in us. Even though the verse above says to live wisely among unbelievers, we should take into consideration how we can encourage believers as well... If you are a believer in Christ, how do you express that belief? Do you believe that God is able to do anything? Do you believe that God cares about every part of your life? Are you living life as a believer? or do you live like an unbeliever?

We should take stock of how we live our lives and know that we are a witness to everyone we encounter... believers or unbelievers...

Just believe God today and take the opportunity to share that belief with someone else.

Love you!
Lea Anne

A prayer for the downtrodden

2009-03-09T08:26:00.000-07:00

Dear God,
So many needs have come before me today. So many people are standing in the need of prayer. Please intervene, heal, comfort, provide, have mercy upon all those who are sick, sick and tired of being sick and tired, unemployed, heartbroken, in bondage to addiction of any kind, tormented by emotional problems or mental illness, lonely, just up out of the pit of sin and walking in the light, in need of courage and strength, grieving, traveling, moving, going through changes, needing direction and wisdom, and so much more. Thank you, God, for your tender mercies, your everlasting love, your everpresence, and for hearing our heart cries. Help me to help others. Help me to remain faithful. Help me to make the right decisions and do the right things. Please help me that I will glorify you. In the name of Jesus I pray,
amen

19 Years and Counting

2009-03-03T07:23:00.001-08:00

Today is our 19th Anniversary. I have officially been married as long as I was single. I was 19 when I got married and I remember at the time thinking how grown up I was, how mature I was, how ready I was. WOW, what an experience.
I wouldn't trade these 19 years for anything in the world and I can honestly say that I am looking forward to another 19 years together with Dana. We are in the perfect place in our lives where we are still quite young, although I don't always feel it, and we can look forward to doing so much together when our children are grown and gone. Keelea is now 12 and Ashton 14 and although I don't want to rush these years with them, I do know how fast time flies. Just look at Ragan. She is already in college and on her way to beginning her independent adult life. In fact, remember her in prayer this week as she leaves today going to Las Vegas on a mission trip with her college department from Calvary Baptist in Ruston. I am so proud of that girl. I can not contain the joy that I feel when I think of her. I would be the last person to say these words, just a few short years ago, when we went through a serious rebellious era with her. But I thank God everyday that she heard Him speaking to her one time at youth camp and her relationship with the Father in Heaven changed her life.
I could go on and on about choices, and paths, and the consequences of our life decisions or the rewards of those life decisions.
Our God is So Good.
I thank Him everyday for the family that I was blessed to be a part of and I don't want to take for granted a single day I'm given to express that gratitude.
What are you thankful for today?
I am just so full of joy I can't contain it today and I wanted to share it with you today.
Love,
Lea Anne

Do you love your Job, or not!

2009-02-27T09:28:00.000-08:00

Today has been a crazy Friday... I love Fridays, so even a crazy one is okay every now and then. But I am amazed at how many people told me today that they hate their job... This job... the SAME job that I have and absolutely LOVE!!!
I'm just amazed at perspective... Two people can be going through the same thing, and one sees it one way and the other sees it completely different... Has that happened to you?
I just wanted to encourage you today. If you find yourself in a job that you honestly don't like, then don't waste another minute being miserable... Here are two things that you can do today to change that situation...
1. Get another Job!!!
or
2. Get another attitude about your job...

Both of these are doable and I don't want to hear anyone out there say "I can't"... Yes, You... Can!!
Start today living on purpose... be intentional about everything you do... Live life with joy... find what makes you happy and do it... Don't spend another day being miserable with something that is SO EASY to change...
Ask God to help you. He will you know... You have to just ask..
I hope that you are one of those that LOVE what you do... If not, maybe this could be food for thought... and I wish you the best.
Lea Anne

Can we dissappoint God?

2009-02-23T09:53:00.000-08:00

I just received a fresh perspective from God that I'm meditating on and I wanted to share it with any of you who happen to log on here... Any insight would be greatly appreciated...

Here it is... Can we dissappoint God?

Stay with me here... I believe that God knows everything about us and everything that we do, have done, or are planning to do in the future, right? If this is so, then He already knows the outcome of everything we attempt to do...

If we choose to follow him in obedience, then he is gracious and ready to reward us with blessing...

If we choose to willfully disobey his precepts, then we miss out on a blessing by God, and in most cases, we may even have to suffer a consequence for that disobedience...

Either way, God knows what we are going to do, and if we don't do the right thing, does that cause him to be dissappointed in us? Or, does he not expect a thing from us and when we choose to obey him he rewards us for it?

This is a little confusing when we think about it, because we have all these things that as Christians, we're not suppose to do, right? These things are for our benefit and prosperity, not because God wants to control us and tell us to not do something... God can't love us anymore than he already does at the beginning of our existence... He loves us SO much and he never changes, regardless of whether or not we obey him? right?

I just want to wrap my head around this new concept of God and strive to not grieve him in anything I do, but to always seek him and pray for the opportunity to be used by him to accomplish a kingdom purpose while I'm still on Earth.

Just food for thought,
Lea Anne

Daily Quiet Time

2009-02-20T08:51:00.000-08:00

I find the greatest pleasure when I'm curled up in a chair or fluffed up in my pillows with my Bible, Journal and a cup of coffee... I don't always do my Bible study in the morning, but when I have the time to Journal, that's usually when I do it. Saturday mornings are my favorite, when the girls are still asleep and Dana hasn't gotten up yet, that I can focus on journaling...

I would like to encourage you to keep a journal... I've got journals from as far back as 1991... and it is amazing how grown up I've become in the way I write. My journals are mostly prayers about my friends and family, or the things that I feel God is laying on my heart to desire, but some are of actions or attitudes that I may need help or forgiveness for... This is where I am amazed at the change the Lord has made in my life. I am truly a different person than I was just 5 years ago... So much more changed than 15 years ago... And just since New Year's, the Lord has done a lot of things in my life to change my attitude about certain people and problems in my world... I love the Lord and I love God's word... It speaks so clearly as to the things I need to be doing and thinking.

Right now I am studying Colossians... A great book on the true sovereignty of Jesus and what he did for us so that we can live forever with him...

I cherish my moments with my Lord and my journal... I just wanted to share my thougths with you today.

Believe the Lord for something GREAT today!
Lea Anne

I've been in God's Country

2009-02-18T07:57:00.000-08:00

I've been playing catch up since I got back from vacation from Lake Tahoe.. As soon as I can access a camera and download some pictures, I'll be sure to post them so you can see... There was such pure, clean, air and the snow was amazing... I've seen snow on other blogpages, but I'm not accustomed to it, so it still held a little bit of amazement for me...
I have missed blogging... it was in my thoughts as I was away, and it has taken me hours to catch up on everyone elses blogs... I kindof like it when it isn't updated everyday because it's easier to catch up...

I won't take up a lot of your time today, I just wanted to sign on and say hi...
I will ask for you to keep me in your prayers though... A lot is changing around me with work, and home and church, and I feel a little unsettled... not a bad kind of unsettled, just one that speaks of change coming.... I get that restless feeling every now and then and I know to be expecting something good from God... I don't want to miss any opportunity that comes my way...
Thank you for being a part of my life... I am so thankful for where the Lord has brought me and my family...
I'll post more of what's been going on after I play catch up at work.

Are you Believing God for something today?
I love you,
Lea Anne

Person of the week video

2009-02-04T08:54:00.000-08:00

I just had to share this video with you that I received today.. I just teared up when I watched it and it reminded me that we need to express our appreciation to our service men and women much more than we do... Or at least much more than I do... I just am so thankful that I live in America, land of the brave and the FREE!

I'm also thankful that I am free in Christ...

Enjoy!

Lea Anne

I've been Tagged!

2009-02-03T14:22:00.001-08:00

Thanks Heidi,
I feel as if I've finally arrived in the blog world because I've been tagged by another blogger... I don't know much about the blog world but I do know what "Blog Stalking" is all about now... I love to read about other people and hear about their lives... I know more about these bloggers than I know about my own family members. And do you know how many bloggers there are!!???! Millions, I suppose... Well here is my 4th picture from my 4th photo album in my documents.... I'm so excited, because I don't even know what I'm going to find...
Here it goes, I'm adding the "Add image" icon...

This is from Ashton's folder... She LOVE's taking pictures of herself... She is 14 and I happened to look through her camera last night and she must have over 200 pictures and most of them are of herself... Gotta love that!

Thanks for the tag... I don't know how it's suppose to work, or if it's like a chain and I have to tag someone else, so if you want to play along... You're tagged...

I love you!!
Lea Anne

The People did what seemed right in their own eyes

2009-01-23T06:10:00.000-08:00

What a fresh word I received last night during Thursday Night Amplified... I have to thank God for his goodness and the illumination he gives to his word... I believe that ALL scripture is used to teach, admonish, instruct and encourage us Christians, and sometimes when I read a passage I think "What in the world does this mean" or "Why would God allow this to be in the Bible." So it was with the scripture passage last night...

I'll try to be brief but it's so good, I have to share it with you... We're in Judges 17-21...

Right off the bat, the story opens with a women who has cursed the person that has stolen 1100 pieces of silver from her... Her son heard her curse and he came to her and said, It was me, I stole the money... Here it is...

Now this is how I received this... God is the woman here... He has spoken to us through his word that we are cursed in our sin.... For the wages of sin is death... Romans 6:23

We are the son... We can come to him and admit we are sinners and that we have done wrong... "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9

Now the story goes a little cock-eyed here... She takes some of the money and dedicates it to the Lord by making an IDOL with it...

What's wrong with this picture?

Do we take what is a gift from God, which in this case is forgiveness, and make it into an idol? Do we have right intentions, but wrong motives? Is church an idol for you... Something that takes up space in your life but doesn't really live in your heart?

Well, this story just prefaces the story that we were actually studying last night... This verse sets the tone for the following mindset in Israel at this time...

Judges 17 Verse 6 In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Jump ahead to Judges 19... It's an AWFUL story about a concubine who was beaten and raped and killed in an Israelite town by a bunch of renegade Benjamites... She belonged to a man who didn't even love her much less care that she was attacked, but because this injustice was done TO HIM through something he owned, he blew the thing right out of proportion...

Yes it was bad what happened to this woman, but people, please, when an injustice is done to us don't we do the exact same thing he did... We take that injustice home with us, we chop it up into 12 little pieces, then we send it out to all of our friends or people we influence and call for battle 'Just LOOK what so and so did to ME" we cry and cry over and over to as many people who will listen to us...

WOW what a word I received, and I have to refer you to the scriptures yourself to read the whole story... It's Judges 19-21...
Some things just need to be left at the threshold, dead, and done with...

But instead we pick them up and carrying around the dead weight of our past grievances... Let's leave them on the doorstep of God's grace and mercy.. and let GOD be our avenger... Let God handle the injustice... Let God help us through the pain and loss of whatever was taken from us through the injustice...

This was an eye-opener for me... I hope it changes your life as well...
Go bury some dead weight today!
Lea Anne

Can't we all just get along?

2009-01-20T09:22:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I think we get a little competitive in the ministry world because to be honest, aren't we always looking at others to see how God is blessing them, or comparing ourselves to others to see if we are better than they are? Do you find yourself looking at other Christians and wishing you were more like them?

It is up to us to become a better student of the word or to just stay where we are and never grow... It is our responsibility to be more diligent in becoming more like Christ... God is always on our side, drawing us to him, but we have to take the initiative to study and know him more...

Deuteronomy is full of promises from God... If you do this.... then I (God) will do this... Wouldn't you like God to set you "high above" the problems of the world... set you apart from the wickedness in our midst... rise above the pettiness of daily gossip... Wouldn't that be wonderful to know that God is in control of everything and when we trust him with everything, he will lead us into the place of peace and rest?

"If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. . . The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you" (Deut 28:1-8).

My heart has just been broken this week by the realization that some people are just plain mean...I came to the point over the last few days where I let God take me on his wings to a higher place...I stopped worrying about what others were doing and I asked God to show me what I should be doing to know him more... I focused on God and stopped looking at those that dissappointed me.

I want to issue a challenge to you for the next 6 weeks... Ready? If you aren't interested then stop reading, but if you are interested in being taken to a new height with God then read on...

Instead of talking about someone, tell someone what Jesus is doing in your life...

Instead of listening to others talk about someone, share with them a prayer that you are trusting God to answer in your life...

If I were to come up to you and ask you, "Tell me what Jesus is doing in your life today?" and you don't have an answer... then search out what the Lord is doing for you that is good and promoting you to another level and have that answer ready to share with others...

If you can't for the life of you answer this question... Then ask God to reveal to you what you need to change in your life in order to trust him a little more with something so you can share with others what you need them to pray with you about...

Let's FIND a reason to get along...
In Christ,
Lea Anne

Have you Faced a Demon today?

2009-01-18T09:46:00.000-08:00

I've already established that I'm a little weird and I have complete humility where this is concerned because I am just down right crazy where Jesus is concerned so what I share with you today is just an example of me being assured that God is on my side...

I've heard it said that if you haven't encountered Satan or one of his demons in a day, then you probably aren't doing enough for Jesus... Is that safe to say?

Satan leaves alone those that aren't a threat, right? So if you aren't sharing your faith, or witnessing to others, or taking a bold stand for Jesus at work, at home or at CHURCH, then it's probably safe to say that Satan will leave you alone...

Well, I faced a demon yesterday that appeared in the form of a man... He looked like a regular man, he talked like a regular man, well borrowing the fact that he talked a little like a crazy man instead of a regular man, but that's okay, because I'm a little crazy too, so that doesn't bother me or scare me at all... I know what I believe and I'm not afraid to hear what someone else believes... so I say bring it on...

That is until my spirit quickened within me so greatly that I felt the intensity of a demon... When I asked to pray for the man, with witnesses around, I just flat out asked the Lord to reveal to us the motivation behind the words and to take off any blinders that we may have on ourselves so we could see the truth, then I prayed that if any other spirit was present, that that spirit be bound and cast out and revealed as well...

I'll have you know, that within 90 seconds of the prayer, that the spirit of satan, jumped out of that man's mouth in a way that I thought, Be careful what you ask for because God ain't fooling around... His clear intentions were presented and the real reason he was there was revealed...

When I heard that demon speak, I rebuked it in the Name of Jesus and do you know what it did? It backed down and started crawfishing out of his statement.. He didn't have the guts to stand up and battle, he crumbled and cowered like the bully that Satan is.. He only talks a big talk but he has NO POWER over the name of Jesus... SPEAK THE NAME OF JESUS over your enemy today... It will flee because Satan is a liar and a bully and when you call his bluff, he has nothing...

People... there is an enemy and he is alive and well on the planet earth... He comes through the mouth of men, or women, (this isn't a feminist thing) and he wants to divide our homes, our churches, our relationships... He wants to kill, steal and destroy our lives... HE HATES JESUS... do not be deceived here.. If you are in the presence of someone who constantly complains, argues, divides, has dissension, or is just plain mean spirited... Do not listen to them... Walk away and do not argue with them.. They don't want to listen and learn, they only want to divide...

If this is you and you HEAR me today, then just ask God to forgive you and humble yourself, and then STOP TALKING about everything and everyone...

Share with people what Jesus is doing in your life today... Reveal a side of yourself that is humble...

I have to tell you, I got down on my knees last night, this morning, and then again in Sunday School and said, "JESUS HELP ME... forgive me. Thank you for loving me."

Are you a contructive person, or a destructive person... Decide today and then ask God to be your guide and your conscience... I will close with this scripture... May God Bless you and Protect you from the evil one.
HE DID ME YESTERDAY!!!

There is no one like the God of [you and me], who rides on the heavens to
help [us] and on the clouds in His majesty. The eternal God is [our] refuge, and
underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out [our] enemy before [us]
saying, 'Destroy him!' So [we] will live in safety alone; in a land of grain and
new wine (new Welch's for the Baptists), where the heavens drop dew. Blessed are
you, O [Child of God]! WHO IS LIKE [US], A PEOPLE SAVED BY THE LORD? He is [our] shield and helper and [our] glorious sword. [Our] enemies will cower before [us] and [we] will trample down their high places." Deuteronomy 33:26-29 NIV

You can't stay where you are and Go with God... "Be warned, kind of a long blog this time, sorry!

2009-01-17T04:32:00.001-08:00

In my quiet time this morning I was impressed with the need to write about our service to the Lord. I have had a lot of you tell me you read the blog and are encouraged by it and the ages of people that do so range from the very young to the much more mature in Christ... Through this blog, I want to be able to speak a clear word about what God is doing in my life that will demonstrate how I communicate with God as well as give insight into how God directs my decisions. So when I write in this blog, it is only because I feel God has laid it on my heart to speak to someone that day...

Today, I'd like to direct these thoughts to the mature in Christ.. Those that have been doing this thing called "Christianity" a long time. I'm talking as long as me or more, like 30 plus years... (oh, my goodness, I've been a Christian 30 years this June!) I can't believe where the time has gone and how fast it has flown..

Well, anyway, back to my thought...

In September-November of 2007, Dana and I went through "Experiencing God" By Henry Blackaby... Great study by the way... and one of the things that Henry said, was... "You can't go with God and stay where you are..." This sentence meant to me that we have to seize opportunity in ministry in order to go to the next level with God...

Let me try to explain this without messing it up... Are you still doing today what you were doing 2 years ago... 4 years ago... 15 years ago... 30 years ago? Are you in your comfort zone as far as service to God is concerned? You know you trust God to meet your needs, but are you trusting God to do more for you than just meet your needs? Are you EXPECTING God to show up in a mighty way and do something spectacular?

I think about the people in the Bible who God allowed to be used for his glory...

Moses.... Only one burning bush to my knowledge and Moses saw it...

The Parting of the Red Sea... Wow, Moses got to experience this too!! Lucky dog...

The Parting of the Jordan River... this seemed similar to the Red Sea, except the priest had to put their feet in the river first before it parted... and it happened in Joshua's time as leader so it is different than Moses experience...

Let's see... Gideon...Wow have you read the life of Gideon? In Judges 6-8... He defeated the whole Midianite Army with just 300 men!! You thought the movie 300 was made up, didn't you? Anyway...my commentary says that Gideon was slow to be convinced, but acted on his convictions... He asked for a sign from God and God did it... He asks for victory and God did it!

There are many other people who God used to do wonderful, exciting things in His name... He took them to places they would never have dreamed of going... All he asked from them was to "Trust and Obey" ... you may have the trust part down to such a close walk with God, but what about the Obey part? Is God asking you to do more for him than you want to right now? Is it because you are comfortable in what you are doing? You may be teaching Sunday School and have been doing so for years, but is that what God wants you to do for him today? He may want you to do a Bible Study with a group of people you don't know and don't feel qualified to teach, but He wants to use YOU to do it! "I'm saying a lot of this to myself, because I've recently volunteered to teach a Beth Moore study on Wednesday nights... and I've opened the college Department up on Thursday nights with a Bible study straight from God's word, so I trust every week for God to give me the material to talk on... It's very exciting right now and opportunity to share with others just seems to crop up all the time.

I would recommend the "Experiencing God" bible study... I learned so much and one of the things I learned was "God is always at work" and he uses his people to accomplish some mighty things in his name...

I just wanted to stretch you a little today and ask you to step outside of your comfort zone, maybe even step down from your comfort zone so God can raise someone else up in their faith, then trust that God has a new and better place for you to serve him.

God is Good, all the time...
I love you!
Lea Anne

2009-01-16T05:59:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time of fellowship and worship and bible study last night at Thursday Night Amplified... Such a sweet spirit of believers there... God is so good and He loves us so much and I can't help but believe that he is honored when a group of people get together to praise and worship him. Thank you Angela and Miriam for leading us in song and I want to thank each one that participated in the Bible Study.
I will leave you this thought as I received it from God... We are studying Ecclesiastes chapter 5 and the first verse says "When you enter into the house of the Lord, keep your ears open and YOUR MOUTH SHUT!!" Says it big as day... Keep your mouth shut...

WOW!! That's hard for me to do... But God said for me to SHUT UP!

So you may ask, How do we deal with sin in the church if we're suppose to be quiet?

This is where accountability partners and admonishment comes into play and if you are a true friend to someone who may be doing things against the word of God, then you go to that person outside of the church in a one-on-one basis, IN LOVE, and talk to them about it...

You don't talk to everyone else about that particular person's sin you go to the person IN LOVE....

Isn't God's word so relevant to today's situations... If you are struggling with knowing what to do, then read God's word and let him reveal it to you through his word... It is alive, and it cuts to the quick when we need it...

I love you!!
Lea Anne

If so and so is doing it.... it must be okay for me, right?

2009-01-15T06:14:00.000-08:00

“Don’t point your finger at someone else and try to pass the blame! Hosea 4:4

If you know that what you are doing is wrong and you continue to do it, it is sin...

Some people try to justify sin by saying, "Well, so and so is doing it and nothing has happened to her."

We aren't responsible for other people's actions. We have to do what we know is right for us.

If you find yourself in a situation where you know, without a doubt what the word of God says about it, and you continue to do it.. You are willfully being disobedient and you will not receive a blessing from it. The very thing that you are trying to obtain outside the will of God, will be snatched from you... but if you surrender your own desire for it, and return to God and let him lead you, he will then give you the desires of your heart.

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

This is harder to do than speak... We have to take responsibility for our actions and our thoughts... If we think it or speak it or do it, It is then up to us to change it... We will serve something in our life.. We are built to have a sovereign ruler over us, it is the law of nature... We are submitted to something... why not choose God to be that Something... Then everything else will fall into the place that it needs to be... you will have Peace and contentment with the Lord... And only with him.

What do you need to surrender today?

Ask God to reveal it to you...

Love,
Lea Anne

The things we think on...

2009-01-13T09:45:00.000-08:00

I want to research a topic that has been coming up in my mind a lot lately... It's about our thought process...

Can we control what comes into our thoughts?

We can control what comes out of our mouths, I believe anyway... but can we control what comes into our thoughts?

I was thinking about this because as I was praying the other day, and everyday since this happened, I have had some horrible thoughts just jump into my head, AS I WAS PRAYING... I mean how weird is that and as I ponder this topic, I wanted to ask if anyone else has ever had that happen to them?

I began to pray against the spirit of bad words and bad thoughts, because it had to be a spiritual attack to get me sidetracked from praying...

So I ask again, can we control the thoughts that come into our mind?

I think we can.... I just pray that we recognize an attack as it happens and then pray for the Lord to send us warriors to attack in the spiritual realm...

WEIRD... isn't it... I guess you could just say I'm weird...

I just always want to know that I'm recognizing a spiritual attack and be able to stand up against it...

The bible does say that what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart (Matthew 15:18)... but if our thoughts never get to the heart, let's say they pop into our minds, then we get the chance to say, I receive this or I rebuke this, then it never gets planted into our hearts, which in turn never comes out of our mouth, then we can control our thoughts...

What do you think?
Love you!
Lea Anne

Do you Believe God!

2009-01-05T08:34:00.001-08:00

I've heard a lot of people talk about how they believe in God, but some of those same people don't BELIEVE God... Do you really believe that God can do anything... That God did the things that the Bible talks about ... the big things like
Part the Red Sea... Lead the Israelites by a pillar of fire... Deliver the Israelites from Egypt and bondage... Came to earth in the form of a baby.... Raised the dead to life... Died and rose again to reign eternally in Heaven...
Okay so you may believe those BIG things about God... But do you believe the seemingly less important things about God? Do you believe that God loves you... That he cares about every decision you make... that he has plans for you, your present and your future... that he wants to meet your needs?
If you struggle with believing God for the Little things, I pray that you can start trusting Him today with a little more of your life... Instead of worrying about a little thing... Like where are the car keys... or what book do I start reading in the Bible... or why do my kids act this or that way... Why don't you pray about it first... Why don't you ask God what he thinks... Then Listen for his answer...

If you are new to the Christian faith, you may be asking, "How do I know if God answered those little prayers?"

You wait.... Until you know... Don't push ahead and answer it yourself... Just Be Still and wait... Then God, who is so mighty with exceeding greatness, will reveal it to you...

Ask God for peace and clarity for a decision you have to make today... Ask Him first, then wait expectantly for his answer...
I Believe..
Lea Anne

Happy New Year!!! Changing of the Times!

2009-01-02T06:56:00.001-08:00

As I start the New Year, I'd like to take a moment to reflect on all the things that I'm thankful for from this last year.
I'm thankful for Dana!
I'm thankful for the girls
I'm thankful for my new house
I'm thankful for my health...even all the aches and pains...
I'm thankful for my church and the college department
I'm thankful for my job...
I'm thankful for my Mom who gave me my values and brought me to church
I'm thankful for my brother and sister...
I'm thankful for my friends and co-workers

I'm just thankful that I am here and that I was placed in this day and age and that I know a savior like Jesus... I'm thankful for the joy that I have and the expectancy of good things in my future...

If you're like me, you don't want to live the kind of life where you are just barely hanging on. You don't want to merely eke out an existence, find a way to cope with your misery, or just get by... You want to have the abundant life Jesus spoke of when He said, "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" John 10:10.

I've just started reading "The power of a Praying Wife" by Stormie O'Martian and it has great insight into the way prayer can change us... Not other people, but US!! The change has to start with me (us) before God can work in the hearts of other people in our lives... If we harbor resentment or bitterness in our heart at all, our prayers are ineffective... We have to get rid of the hurt and anger and rage and pain in our own heart first... Only then can we offer prayers for others and they be heard... She even recommends that you get involved in a prayer group that has other people pray with you to relieve you of the junk that's in your life... You may be thinking... "Yeah, that's sounds wonderful... but how do I do that?" Here it is... brace yourself.... are you ready for this?...

You have to surrender the right to not feel hurt before you will ever feel better... (you may have even said before, "I'll never let anyone HURT me again." or something like that...)

If that's just too hard to do... If you are so miserable and just can't forgive... let me ask you something... Have you tried to? Have you said, "Lord, Help me to forgive?" "Lord, Help me to love"... It has to start with you.

I highly recommend the book."The Power of a Praying WIFE!!!".. Make this year a year of abundant living that starts with submission to Christ and laying down our right to feel the way we do... Tear down the walls that have been built to protect you from pain, and realize that we are made to feel things... sometimes it's pain, sometimes it's joy, sometimes it's love, sometimes it's sadness... In Ecclessiastes 3, it says there is a time for all things... Learn to recognize the changing of the times...
I love you!
Lea Anne

A Good Swift Kick in the Rear from God!

2008-12-31T06:51:00.000-08:00

This past few days I've been hearing a word from God about Priorities... I want to let you in on how I process a word from God...When I am conversing about a certain topic and I find myself talking about that topic a lot... Like it comes up in several conversations in a short period of time, and then I read about it in a book or in the scriptures, I always find that my spirit is pricked and it's something that I need to stop and listen to real hard...Hence the word "Priority" this past week...
I find that I am a very well balanced person... I have a pretty good handle on Home, Work, Church, and family... I recognize when I need to stop and take a break and I also recognize when it's time to take action and get things done...

Well, this Christmas I didn't go home to Mom's house... I honestly didn't think it was a big deal, because I had to work the day before and the day after, so all I had was Christmas Day off and I could just stay home and have dinner in Lake Charles, right? Dana bought all the food and we cooked and had a few friends over and had a nice day... At the expense of hurting my mothers feelings... Now I'll tell you how God shared with me his heart...

Here's my Priorities in a nutshell...
God
Dana
Kids
NEXT FEW CHANGE ACCORDING TO SITUATIONS
CHURCH
EXTENDED FAMILY
WORK

These priorities have become a "LAW" in my life so that I can keep balance and do what I thought was what God wanted me to do to keep sane and live in abundant joy... However, after reading the book "The Shack" I was hit right over the head with another perspective of God's "LAW"... First let me say that we are not under any LAW since Christ came to set us free from rules and regulations... We are now under GRACE... which I seemed to have forgotten...
Well in the book, the main character asks the question..."Does this mean we shouldn't have priorities in life?"... WOW, I was in the tub reading this and I sat straight up in the tub and reread the sentence... "Does this mean that we shouldn't have priorities in life?" This word, Priorities... the word that I have been muttering for days now, Priorities... the word that has lent balance to my life for all these years... Priorities... Priorities... we can't mess with my priorities... Was just thrown under the bus... God took it and said...
NO!!! The problem with having priorities is that we miss an opportunity to show grace... We miss an opportunity to LOVE OTHERS... I MISSED THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE WITH EXTENDED FAMILY... Do I still love them, absolutely, I just missed the opportunity to SHOW THEM I LOVED THEM!!

Does this make sense? The book went on to say that God doesn't want our priorities to be like a pyramid with him on top and then everything else listed in order of importance... That way of thinking can not be beneficial because we never know how much time to devote to the top one before the next one gets our attention... INSTEAD, he wants to be like a MOBILE... He in the center and everything else circling around him so that he is in everything in our lives and he shares in every part of our relationships within the different areas of our lives... He is equal, but the center....

I hope I am stating this clearly because when I get a fresh word from God, it's all I meditate on for a few days and I'm a little jumbled as I process it and then speak it, so this is the first time I've tried to write down what I'm feeling, so I may not have it all together yet.. Sorry if it's sounds like mumbo-jumbo... I just feel so relieved that I don't have to live under the "LAW" my own self-imposed law of priorities... I know that Grace is alive and well in my life and I want to share that more than anything else...

So forgive me, MOM, especially, for not coming on Christmas day and know that I've learned a dear lesson from our time apart... I love you all and wish you a very HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Lea Anne

My Favorite Things!

2008-12-26T09:22:00.000-08:00

I was looking on line at some other people's blogs and some of them were listing their favorite things... I never really stop to think about what my favorite things are so I thought I would spend a few minutes sharing with you what I like!

My Favorite luxury?
An afternoon Nap! Or a Massage!!!(I prefer the professional type but will take anything anyone is willing to give me..;-)

My Favorite book?
My tastes in books have changed over the years, and although I like a good romance novel... (I used to be addicted to Harlequin Romance novels and had thousounds of them) I now find that I like to read inspirational books from preachers or good bible teachers... I know that sounds like a "Religious" answer, but it is what I choose to fill my mind with now... Things that promote a better mindset and an overcomer mentality... Right now I'm reading "The Shack" and "Becoming a Better You"... I usually have two or three books going at once.. call me ADD...

My favorite Movie?
Light hearted comedies for sure...Overboard... The Family Man... The Family Stone... Back to the Future... that sort of thing... I DON'T like sappy, tear jerking type movies... I can somewhat abide Action films but not when they have too many curse words. So that leaves a lot of movies out...

My favorite scripture?
"Be not grieved and depressed, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold." Nehemiah 8:10...

My favorite topic to discuss?
My current walk with the Lord...What God has been doing in my life and how God is in control of everything... This puts a whole lot of people on edge and so I can tell that some people don't want to talk to me... It's still my favorite thing to talk about.

My favorite food?
Spaghetti or anything Italian... Olive Garden is my favorite.... Then Mexican... I love a good chicken enchilada.. Then Steak... Medium...and baked patato... YUMMY!!

My favorite snack food?
UMMMM.... all kinds.... chips/dip, oreos,

My favorite Coffee?
Eight O'Clock brand... creamer and three equals... Comfort food for me... I even like a cup at night before I go to bed...

My favorite person?
Why you, of course....

My favorite activity?
Blogging... teaching Sunday School... and I guess I could put my job here... I do love what I do...

My Favorite Magazine?
I love any kind of Home interior decorating magazine... I also love Woman's world, or For Women First...

My Favorite Boardgame?
Without a doubt it's Scrabble.... but I love Payday... I don't much like Monopoly...I have to think too hard... I like "Scene It"...

If I can think of any other "Favorites" I'll sign back on... what are some of your favorite things to do? If you don't have a blogger ID, then sign up and get one... It's free and easy I'd like some comments here!!

I love you all.
Lea Anne

Enjoy Whatever You are Doing this Christmas!

2008-12-24T10:07:00.000-08:00

And there you shall eat before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice in all to which you put your hand, you and your households, in which the Lord your God has blessed you. Deuteronomy 12:7

Whatever you find yourself doing this Christmas season, remember the one for whom the season is about. With all the coming and going, the having to do and doing, all the responsibility that the season seems to bring with it, remember to enjoy it... Sometimes we get caught up in the "Having to do" that we miss the "we GET to do"...
No matter what you do remember that Peace is not dependent on circumstances. Our peace and joy are found in the Holy Spirit.

Signing on the House on Woodside...

2008-12-19T20:14:00.000-08:00

We signed all the paperwork for the house today... It's official... We are house poor now... We have a great house, but a huge financial responsibility... I've been praying about this responsibility and although I've had this feeling the last few weeks about whether or not we were suppose to live in the house, I do have a peace that I don't have to know how I'm going to pay for it... Our family will have to do some serious budgeting and stay on track of managing our expenses, but I also don't believe that we will have to manage it on what we currently make. I feel this whole opportunity of how this house came to be, was an opportunity to step up to a new level of faith with God...

It has been my experience with God, that He won't give us more responsibility until we've proven to be faithful with the one he has already entrusted to us. If we aren't responsible with a little, then how can we be trusted with much... That is from Luke 16:10... This was a piece of scripture that the Lord spoke to my heart back in 2004 and I have been praying that I can be a little more faithful today than I was yesterday... The Lord is always faithful and one of the things that I know to be true is that our faith walk with God is strengthened when we put a little action behind our words...

Dana and I stepped out in faith last year in October when we put our house on the market... Then God led us here, now I will journal where God leads us next, and I am excited to share that journey with anyone who will listen...

Go trust God a little more today and see where that faithfulness leads you.

Love,

Lea Anne

College Christmas Party

2008-12-19T06:40:00.001-08:00

We had a BLAST at the College and Professionals Christmas Party last night. We had a little music...
A LOT of food....

And a whole lot of FELLOWSHIP!!!

THEN IT GOT NASTY!!! With the dirty santa gift exchange... I thought to save money, we could just rewrap something from home... and bring it... As I was cleaning up in the study, I found my copy of Back to the Future triology... All three Back to the Future movies in one sleek case... That will be good, I thought, then I thought again, "I can't give away my prized possession of Back to the Future!" I love that movie and I just watched it like a week ago on television... But I sacrificed it and it was the gift of the night!!! Here's Keith stealing it from Jason, who was number 4 in the drawing... then

Jason got to draw again... And the battle of the Back to the Future was born....

It was stolen about 15 times throughout the rest of the game...

Not that the other gifts weren't just as fun... Who wouldn't want this black, wood carving, white haired, guitar playing, vodoo doll? (Obviously, the original owner and the new owner is now Allison...)

Other great gifts included, stuffed moose, candles, coffee mugs, towels, shelf liners, a box of tissue (Drew actually stole that one from Paul because he had a cold) who'd of thunk that? ...christmas wreaths, angel plaques, etc..

I hope no ones feelings were hurt with all the stealing.... Candy was the lucky winner of the movie...

So when the fun of the gift exchange was over, we decided to play, Scene it!! It was so much fun and we worked in teams...

We finished the night up around midnight and I have to say we had a BALL!

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas!