Knocked down but not out!

My sweet 13 year old lab named Maggie got hit by a car Monday night. My church just started a 21 day Daniel fast (Monday was Day 1) and I knew there was going to be spiritual warfare but I wasn't prepared for this. However, I can say that God was right in the middle of it all and He reminded me that He is my provider! He provided everything we needed and has continued to as all of this has unfolded.

let me explain.....

We got the phone call Maggie has been hit at 6:30 on Monday night and I immediately called my neighbor, Lisa, because she has several dogs and helps us with Maggie allot and I was in a panic and thought she might know what to do. The lady who hit her called and said we should hurry and that she wasn't dead, but that is all we knew. So, my mind was picturing the worst and I just couldn't handle seeing her if it was really bad. Lisa volunteered to drive us to the accident scene so mom and I jumped in the car and we headed off. (By the way, mom had on her polka dot fuzzy socks and crocs and Lisa didn't have a bra on and I didn't look much better...these things never seem to happen when you are looking good! )

We got to the scene and I started sobbing as soon as I saw her and ran over to her lying in the grass with the rain falling down. A few people were gathered around and they told us they didn't see any blood or anything and that she was breathing heavy. The lady who hit her was so upset and she was crying and stroking her face. It broke my heart seeing her laying there so helpless. We didn't know if she had broken bones or worse, but we had to get her in Lisa's van and to the emergency vet quickly. Thankfully, Lisa had thought to bring towels and so we all scooted the towel under her and lifted her up and into the van. Lisa has a daughter that is in a wheelchair so her van was perfect because the inside as all open and I was able to sit on the floor with her for the ride.

Mom and I would have had no clue where to take her, but Lisa knew exactly where to go. As she drove I couldn't see anything because I was on the floor, but mom said she was running red lights carefully! It seemed like forever before we got there but we finally made it and they rushed her to the back. We sat waiting and the vet finally came in and told us that they did x-rays and she had no broken bones or internal injuries that they could see, but she did have a few cuts and scrapes and her heart was enlarged which is common in older dogs. We already knew she had a big heart :) They gave her some pain medicine and sent her home. Lisa surprised us an insisted on paying when we checked out..she would not take no for an answer. She said she loves Maggie and wanted to do something!

She laid in the garage Monday night and looked so miserable. She wouldn't eat, drink, or move and we were still worried about her. We monitored her on Tuesday and she still wouldn't drink and ate just a little bit. So, I got an idea to cup water in my hands and try to get her to drink it and she did. It was so sweet...she finally drank some water and then the next morning she seemed more herself. She drank and ate some more and seemed to be doing better. She tried to get up a few times, but couldn't so that worried us. The vet said since her paws were cut up that could be why she was having trouble standing and the fact she is 13 and probably really sore.

We are going out of town this weekend so we boarded her at our vet for the weekend so they can watch her. Last night, the lady who hit her called mom and said that she wanted to pay for everything and wants to come see Maggie when we get back. Mom explained that our neighbor paid for the vet bill and so she insisted on paying for the bill for this weekend and any additional treatment.

I have to admit that I did complain to God Monday night that it was the first day of the fast and my dog got hit by a car. He quickly reminded me how He was right there the whole time, providing everything we needed! God reminded me of all the ways He provided: the lady who hit Maggie called us and stayed with her until we got there (she could have left), Lisa's van was perfect (like a pet ambulance), Lisa was home and able to drive us to the emergency vet (we didn't even know where it was), Lisa thought to bring towels to pick Maggie up with (we weren't prepared), Lisa paid for the emergency visit, Maggie had no broken bones or internal injuries, the lady who hit her said she wanted to pay for the rest of her treatment!

My complaining quickly turned to praise!!! We serve and awesome God who knows exactly how to provide all of our needs before we even realize we need them! He knows everything that is going to happen to us before we do (that blows my mind). If life was always perfect we wouldn't be able to see God in this way and really get to know Him and His character. God never promised us bad things wouldn't happen, but He did say that "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart I have overcome the world" NIV John 16:33

New Year....New Me!

This is my first post of the new year. I love new things...new clothes, that new car smell, newborn babies, a new day, and especially a new year. It gives me time to reflect on the last year and set goals and make changes in the new one. I am so thankful that God must have known that we couldn't handle more than 24 hours and he created a new day too....I am glad I get a fresh start every 24 hours and that God's mercies are new every morning. That is how I feel about the new year too! It is a fresh start and anything is possible...I love dreaming about what could happen this year in my life and in the lives of friends and family...in one year things can change so much. My pastor said the other day that "God can do in 5 minutes what it would take us 50 years to accomplish.!" I am looking forward to all God has in store in 2011!!

I usually make new years resolutions, but this year God gave me more of a theme for the year instead .

The theme He gave me is........discipline!

As the new year began I started thinking about areas in my life that needed to change and what my resolutions would be and God showed me that they all had to do with being disciplined in different areas of my life...spiritually, physically, socially, emotionally, and financially.

Spiritually

I want to be more disciplined in my spiritual life and spend more time with God each day. My favorite time of the day is in the morning with God..I call this my quiet time with Him. I usually read the Bible, pray, listen to music, write in my journal, whatever God leads me to do, but I have to confess there have been too many mornings where my alarm goes off and I hit snooze and only end up having 5 minutes with God or none at all. This is why I want to be more disciplined in this area and go to bed earlier so that I can wake up rested and spend time with God every morning...quality time not rushed time!

Physically

This year I want to be healthier. I want to learn to cook healthier foods and eat healthier. I have been pretty disciplined with exercising this past year, but I want to try something new like taking a dance class this year, taking a Zumba class, go hiking...something fun! If you have any really good, healthy recipes please share!!!

Socially

This one might seem a little strange but what God is showing me is that I need to be more disciplined in this area and choose my friends carefully like it says in Proverbs 12:26 "The righteous should choose his friends carefully, for the way of the wicked leads them astray." God showed me that this applies to facebook too! I just recently got on facebook for the second time. The first time I got on there was about a year ago and I got freaked out when certain people from my past tried to reconnect with me and I just got off. I think facebook is great for people that were Christians all their lives, had Chritstian friends in high school and college and they want to reconnect with everyone, but for people like me who were not Christians in high school and part of college it can be very dangerous and a reminder of a past you have left behind. I know I may sound like I am over exaggerating, but God says to leave the past behind and press on to the new things He has in store. God showed me that I need to go through my "friends" on fb and weed out the ones that remind me of my past in a negative way and make room for the new "friends" He has and will put in my life that remind me of my new life in Him!!

Emotionally

This area is one where God showed me I need to be more disciplined in guarding my heart. The Bible says in Proverbs 4:23 "to guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life" NLT. For me this means being disciplined in the things I allow into my heart. For example, the t.v. shows I watch, the music I listen to, the things I spend my time doing, what I look at on the Internet, the books and magazines I read, etc... Your eyes, ears, and mouth are all gateways into your heart. God has shown me some things in my life I need to let go of. One example is not watching "The Bachelor" this year. I love that show and it is so entertaining to watch, but such and ungodly example of dating. I read two books in college after I rededicated my life to Christ that completely changed my view of dating. One was "I kissed dating goodbye" and the other "Passion and Purity." After reading these books I decided to give up dating and trust God to bring my husband into my life in His time and His way. Of course, I will go on a date if I am asked and I feel okay about it, but I won't continue to date that person if I don't feel like God is leading us together in marriage. So, I need to guard my heart from watching a show that is completely opposite of God's way of dating...the women are throwing themselves at this man they barely know and they all want to marry him...they are all kissing him and trying to basically seduce him.....I could go on and this could be another post so I will stop and maybe right one later, but you get the idea.

Financially

I am excited to start this year on a new budget...I am going to do the envelope system and see how that works. My friend Britni and her husband do it and I have tried it before but never stuck to it. I am pretty good already with my money, but I really want to start saving more and the envelope system will help. If you don't know what the envelope system is...it is where you take cash out of each paycheck and literally put it in envelopes to use for specific areas like gas, groceries, entertainment, etc... When the cash runs out that is all you get until next payday. It is harder for me to spend cash so it really works for me.

My prayer for 2011 is that God will helps me continue to be more disciplined in these areas and that this truly is a new year..new me!.

Family Christmas # 2

Christmas #2 was at my aunt and uncle's house with mom's side of the family

Grammy and 4 out of 5 of her kids..one of my uncles couldn't make it this year


Sweet Alyssa

Grammy and Mom

Jaxon

We always get a $10 gift and do a gift exchange

Grammy opening her presents

Aunt Lynda and "little" Jimmy although he is not that little anymore

Alyssa opening her presents

Daddy helping jaxon open his present

Aunt Sandy and Savannah with their gifts

My cousin Jeff and his wife Chelsea

The whole group minus a few who weren't able to make it

I love Christmas time...remembering the birth of Jesus, the hustle and bustle, shopping for the perfect gifts, gift wrapping, the time off work, baking and cooking, all the good food, getting Christmas cards in the mail (although I forgot to send mine out this year), Christmas decorations, nativity scenes, putting up the Christmas tree, looking at Christmas lights, listening to Christmas music but most of all I love getting together with family and friends the most....we are so blessed and I am so thankful for the family and friends God has given me!!

Merry Christmas again!!!!

Merry CHRISTmas!

This year my family and I celebrated Christmas at Ross and Stephanie's house in Louisiana. We celebrated it the weekend before Christmas and the whole family was able to be there. With my dad and brother's work schedules that is a miracle! We had such a great time just being together, relaxing, cooking and baking, playing cards, and watching old Christmas home movies (for the record, my parents got a video camera just when I reached the awkward stage and Steph and Glenn were still adorable)

Grammy peeling apples for the apple pie

The guys grilling steaks for Christmas dinner. I love my dad's steaks..the best steaks I have ever eaten!


Stephanie and Jenn

Merry Christmas to you and your family!! I pray your Christmas is filled with family, friends, much laughter and joy!! Jesus is the reason for the season!!

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to

worship him. ~ Matthew 2:1-2

Thanks be to God for his unspeakable Gift— indescribable, inestimable, incomparable, inexpressible - precious beyond words. ~Lois Lebar

Sorry, Santa!

I had a kid in my class the other day burst into tears and start crying almost uncontrollably. When I asked her what was wrong she said that all the kids were telling her in P.E. that there was not a Santa. Then she told me she knew he was real because she saw him at the Mall. It might be funny, but it got me thinking about when I found out there was no Santa.

I still remember exactly where I was...my mom and I were in the car watching my brother practice baseball at the Little League fields. I was working on homework and I remember asking her out of the blue if Santa was real or not (I like the girl in my classroom had heard kids saying he wasn't). I sat waiting for the answer hoping it wasn't, No! Then, my mom told me., "I think it is time to tell you that No, Santa is not real and neither is the Tooth Ferry or the Easter Bunny." I could hardly believe what she had just said and I remember being so mad and telling her, "I didn't ask you about the Easter bunny or the Tooth Ferry!" It's a funny story, but it wasn't funny at the time. I was crushed...I couldn't believe that my mom and dad had lied to me and made me think for years that something was true when it really wasn't. I felt so deceived and silly for ever believing it. You see, I grew up in a non-Christian home and we REALLY believed in Santa (a big, fat, jolly man that came down the chimney and brought me presents on Christmas Eve and had a sleigh and reindeer and lived at the North Pole). I was so disappointed to find out it was all a lie! To make it worse, I now had to "act" like Santa was real for many more Christmas's for my younger brother and sister.

After I was saved, I was confused about the whole subject (Santa or no Santa). I looked around and found many Christian families that included Santa in their Christmas and others that didn't. I asked questions to both and got so many conflicting answers that I just ended up more and more confused. So, I started asking God what He thought about it. He started to show me that the devil has a counterfeit for everything God does and that the devil has deceived many by using "Santa" as the symbol of the Christmas season instead of Jesus which is the whole reason for it anyway!!!

The devil even goes a step further by having parents lie to their children and tell them from a very early age that this man dressed in a red suit slides down their chimneys and will deliver their little hearts desires if they are good (that is what we were told, you know the song, "Santa's checking his list to see if you were naught or nice"). Then one day they have a talk and tell their child it was all "for fun" and not true at all! It is the perfect set up to deposit doubt and unbelief in the heart of a child. Perfect plan of the enemy! I can almost see him laughing saying. "haha, now when their parents tell them about God and Jesus and all the Bible stories from now on they will think it is all fake too." It plants seeds of doubts and unbelief in their hearts.

God also showed me that little children go sit on Santa's lap and whisper in his ears the desires of their hearts and hope they get them all under the tree on Christmas morning. It parallels our relationship with Jesus and how He calls us His children and promises to give us the desires of our hearts if we seek Him first. (Psalm 37:4)

One day, out of the blue God also showed me that if you scramble the letters of SANTA you can get SATAN!!!! Coincidence or not?

I understand that many families just make it more of a "fun" thing at Christmas to do and don't teach their kids that Santa is real, but my question to that is...why Santa at all? Shouldn't the focus be on Jesus and not Santa? Isn't Jesus enough? After all the whole reason for CHRISTmas is Jesus being born. God said in Isaiah 42:8, "I will share My glory with no Man, nor My praise to carved images." Why does Jesus have to share His birthday with Santa anyway?

I don't have kids yet, but I am not going to be a very popular parent in the world's eyes when I do because my kids will not be getting presents from Santa, the Easter bunny will not be hiding eggs in the backyard, and they won't be getting money from a Tooth fairy when they lose a tooth. I know this is my personal opinion and many people won't agree with me, but I hope if nothing else it made you think about God's view on the subject! Pray and ask God yourself what does He think...not what your pastor thinks or a friend thinks or even what I think, but what does God think about the whole Santa thing. God is still revealing things to me about this all the time.

"Do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is..His good pleasing and perfect will" Romans 12:12

Christmas in the Country

Mom, Grammy, and I traveled to Ross and Stephanie's house this weekend to go to "Christmas in the Country." It is a weekend Christmas celebration that their town does every year. It was their first time to go, so none of us knew exactly what to expect.

Ross and Steph's Christmas tree

My sister...Stephanie

Pictures in front of the tree before we left

(Me and Grammy)

We woke up early on Saturday morning and went to a store called "Grandmother's Buttons" for their sidewalk sale...we got there 30 minutes before they opened and there was already a long line. I love this store...it has all these antique buttons that they use to make jewelry with and they also make really cute handmade jewelry. The jewelry normally costs more than I would spend on earrings but with the great sidewalk sale we all found some really cute earrings and necklaces and I stocked up on Christmas gifts!!!

Waiting in line

Sidewalk Sale

Grandmother's Buttons

Ok..I had never been before so I didn't realize that within minutes all the jewelry would be gone! At first I was just walking around browsing and looking at everything until I realized the jewelry was going quick. I learned that you have to start grabbing earrings you think you like and put them in the bucket they give you and then decide which ones you want to buy because all the jewelry was gone in no time!

I love all the beautiful homes downtown...I could just drive around and take pictures all day (does that surprise you?)

The town Christmas tree

We drove in on Friday night after I got off work so we missed the town Christmas tree lighting. Stephanie said it was so small town cute...the whole town came and they lit the tree and then fed everybody in the town hall. They really do live in a "Steel Magnolia's "town..love it!

Ross manning the youth fundraiser sale

This is Jeff...the town barber (yes, THE town barber)

There was a trade days in the park

Carolers

Live music

I loved shopping in all the cute boutiques and shops

Grammy taking a break from all the shopping...I say it all the time, but I can't believe this woman is in her 80's!!!! I want to be her when I grow up!

Tired from all the walking around

Ready for the parade

Waiting for the Christmas Parade to start

The church children's ministry float

I won't bore you with all the pics I took of all the floats, but these are a few of my favorites!

I love John Deere tractors

The Cajun Night Before Christmas

I love this one...these guys really went all out decorating their float :)

We went shopping at a nearby Outlet Mall after the parade instead of staying for the "peep show" so we drove by afterwards to see which houses won. FYI-the "peep show" is where all the historical homes downtown (I thought it was going to be the Plantation Homes) put up their Christmas lights and decorate their front rooms and you get to "peep" in them and then vote on the one you liked the best. This house won first place.

I love this little white church with Christmas lights!!!!!

Third Place

We also celebrated Mom's birthday..which was on Monday, December 6!

Happy Birthday Mom!!! I love you!

Christmas in the Country was so much fun and we are planning on making it a yearly tradition!