A Mother's Day Remembrance.

What you see portrayed in this picture is a love of two people.  They desperately want to share their love with the child of their own.  This has not happened, but they cling to the promise that God will someday provide.  In fact, they have experienced a loss of child before they were able to meet the little one.  With  Mother's Day approaching it is a reminder to my daughter of this loss.  Please take a moment to read her thoughts on this.

  Here is the link to her blog. http://jessjmercier.blogspot.com/2016/05/mothers-day-is-coming.html

   I ask you to take a moment and say a pray to all the mom's who have had experienced a loss of a child who was not born, or one that was taken before their time.

Listen...

Have you ever had a period in your life when you felt like no one was listening?  I have and to be honest with you it is so frustrating.  It even can be hurtful to you when you are trying to communicate a need or want, and you feel like you don't even exist.

 How about I back up a few steps and explain myself.  It was an amazing time of worship at church.  You could feel the presence of the Lord.  It was so refreshing like a cool glass of water on a sun parched day.  During the service a prayer was given, and we told to go before the Lord and ask Him to help us with anything that was keeping us from Him.  I laid some things down at the Cross and instantly He whispered in my soul that He was going to fight the battle for me.  I needed to relax and trust.  I felt a sense of peace come over me, one that I had not felt in a long time.  Like a warm gentle hug from your favorite person.  In grasped on the promise He gave for me and held it close to my heart.  I claimed the promise that God's word never returns void, and was reminded to put my trust in Him.  With every promise that God gives you the enemy is on the prowl to cancel.  To remind you that you are stupid and not worth anything.  Well, my friend these are lies and don't you dare believe them.  With all this being said I have been in a battle that I can't seem to overcome.  For every step forward I take I feel like that I am punched backwards a few hundred feet.  I have even spent time with the Lord crying out!! God!! You said to me, You promised me...Yes I have even uttered these words...WhY hAvE YOU left me???? The answer is He has not.  Did you noticed that I used the words I Have Been In a Battle...What I have done is taken God out of the battle and tried to fight it in my own strength.  He has not left me, I left Him.  I did not hold the promise He gave me about fighting my own battle as close as I thought I did.

Now as I try to grasp onto Him with all that I have, I take a moment and ponder what it means to listen to Him.  I imagine Him reaching down from the Heavens to me trying to wipe away my tears.  Waiting for me to let go and let Him take charge.  He gave me a promise and yearns to fulfill it.  I just need to take myself out of being in charge, and let Him be in control.  My friend it is no easy task to do.  I must admit I don't like it when I am not in  control.  Even worse if I can't fix the problem my whole world spins out of control. This is a feeling that I don't like at all.  Not on any level.  If you are like me in situations like these.  Take a deep breath, grab a cup of coffee, and go find a quiet place where you can talk to the Lord.  Ask Him to show how to listen to Him.  Ask Him to have patience, because you are a work in progress.  Ask Him to help you trust in Him and what He has to offer you. If you have trouble finding that quiet time put on some worship music, sit quietly, and sing to Him.  He is willing and waiting for you to come to Him.  Remember He does not leave us, we leave Him.  In the process we end up trying to do things in our strength.  Our Father has big strong shoulders for us to lean on and take refugee.  Try it you will find what you are looking for.  Just my 2cents, Missie

Trust

Here is a story of two amazing people,my  daughter and her husband.  On Christmas day they found out that they were expecting.  They kept the news to themselves, because they wanted to make sure, and and tell everyone when the time is right.  At 9 weeks, I get a text message from my daughter asking is if I was working.  I replied yes, and then she told me her and Justin would be stopping by my work.  They have a gift for me.  They came to my work, handed me a the gift said it was mine, but I could not keep it.  I opened it and it was a infant size BSU jersey.  Imagine my joy when I realized what this meant!!  Pure joy was on their face!! Then a test of my faith was given to me.

A few days ago I got the call...mom...the baby does not have a heart beat.  My world turned upside down.  I prayed with Jessica and just listened to what she had to say.  What makes this news so hard is that it is her second miscarriage.  When I had heard the news that they were pregnant, I knew God had been listening and answered my prayers.  Now I turn to Him and try not to ask why, but to let Him be in control.  I must admit it is not easy.  Right now my focus is on my daughter and making sure she is okay.  I do daily check ins and we talk, I ask how Justin is doing.  Her response is we are good, we are both grieving, and we are okay. I know God has a plan, and I have put my trust in Him.  Just know that if you are in a journey you are not alone...Just my 2cents...

Here is the link to Jessica's blog post about the baby.

http://jessjmercier.blogspot.com/2016/02/dear-baby.html

Expectations...

     a belief that someone will or should achieve something...Expectations...has been definitely a life lesson for the year 2015. I did not realize until this year that I would set a certain expectation of someone, then get upset if they did not meet them. I must admit this was a very hard lesson for me to learn!!  I would get emotional and almost hold a grudge if things did not go the way I thought they should. I would not throw a fit or anything like that.  I would just get disappointed and then wait for the person to fail, which caused me to be disappointed again.  Do you see the stupid viscous circle I was traveling in?  Then to make it worse I could not let it go, I would replay the thing in my mind over and over and over and over...

    Then I when I finally realized it, I went the opposite direction...I went into everything is my fault mode, meaning since I realized the problem and I knew I was the cause of it.  The effect of that was, I would be too careful as not to take an offense or get upset if things did not go as I expected.  That was not healthy on any level, I shall call this phase denial.  Fortunately enough I did not stay in this place of mind for to long.  

     Instead my denial returned back towards anger, but on a different level...I took all the hurt, anger and self-berating out on the person...In my mind I was like so if they aren't willing to change, why should I?  I would try not to set anytype of expectaion, that way I could not get disappointed.  ( Let me throw in a quick disclaimer this is not about any one person, it is how I handle every life situation.) The funny thing is the person never really knew I was upset.  I would have a greater than thou attitude, I will call this my passive aggressive mindset.  

     What happened next is I had a come to Jesus meeting...or should I say He had a meeting with me?  Jesus reminded me what grace was.  How His grace is freely given, and that I should be doing the same.  A spiritual light bulb came on, or if you will say a renewal of what grace is.  I do now what I should have done then, when a situation arises and I am frustrated, I turn it back to Him.  I ask for me to have understanding, to see the situation or person as He does, and I ask for me to have peace.  I ask for His patience in the waiting, or to just be able to let it go.  I also ask for help in realizing that the expectation I may be setting is unrealistic.  My prayer also includes that the person has a Jesus given conviction.  Meaning if they need to work on something, God helps them see it.  This is not to make me right on any level, it is just that we all have areas we need help with.  This journey has been a long painful one, but one that needed to be traveled.  My challenge to you is that you go in prayer an ask God to help you in any area that you need it.  By doing this you can give it to Him to help you with it...Just my  2cents...

R.E.M.A.I.N

     One thing I have learned this past year is, to remain in Him.  God is my forever constant.  In times of trial I know that I can look to Him and He will always be there.  I have to be honest with you, I  didn't always let Him be in control.  There where times I would take things into my own hands, and then I would end up with a mess.  Sadly, this was not an overnight process of my coming to understand this.  No, I would go about my day with my world crashing around me.  Then I would finally realize that I needed to let go.  When I made that decision my life would get a lot easier.  I am not saying that all my problems would go away.  I just now know how to handle them...by me giving it to God.
   
     Part of this awakening was when it came to my personal relationships.  I came to a realization that I was putting a lot of effort into people that no longer wanted to be my friend.  I must admit this sting for a while, but then when God showed me what I was missing.  Was my family begging me to see them. They need me to see them for what they are, very precious gems that the Lord gave me.  I am learning  to keep things simple and not let the things of the world stress me out.  I apologized to my family and refocused my energies on them.  I thank God for letting me see what was going on.  I did not want my kids to grow up not really having a relationship with me.  I want them to realize they are extremely important.   I am asking God to help me restore my relationship with Him, asking Him to keep showing me how to remain in Him and Him only.  At night as I close my eyes to sleep I say a prayer of thanks for things that He has provided for me.  I ask Him to walk me through my day, to tell me about my success and my needs to improve on. I ask Him to continue to help me see my family the way that He does, and to remind me daily how precious they are to me.  I encourage you to do the say, ask God to show you how to remain in Him.  Ask Him to show you your daily success and your daily need to improve ons.  Just know that there is no doubt and condemnation that comes from Him.  Just open your heart to what He has to say, have the confidence He is talking to you in love.  Just my2cents

Sharing a Fav!

Ezekiel 37:1-14New Living Translation (NLT)

A Valley of Dry Bones

37 The Lord took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the Lordto a valley filled with bones. 2 He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out. 3 Then he asked me, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?”

“O Sovereign Lord,” I replied, “you alone know the answer to that.”

4 Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! 5 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! 6 I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

7 So I spoke this message, just as he told me. Suddenly as I spoke, there was a rattling noise all across the valley. The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as complete skeletons. 8 Then as I watched, muscles and flesh formed over the bones. Then skin formed to cover their bodies, but they still had no breath in them.

9 Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to the winds, son of man. Speak a prophetic message and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so they may live again.’”

Through the eyes of man it seems

There's so much we have lost

As we look down the road where all

The prodigals have walked

And one by one the enemy 

Has whispered lies

And led them off as slaves

But I know that you are God,

Yours is the victory

We know there is more to come

That we may not yet see

So with the faith you've given us

We step into the valley unafraid

(Chorus)

We call out to dry bones,

Come alive, come alive

We call out to dead hearts,

Up out of the ashes,

Let us see an army rise

We call out to dry bones, come alive

God of endless mercy,

God of unrelenting love

Rescue every daughter

Bring us back the wayard sons

And by Your spirit breathe upon them

Show the world that You alone can save

You alone can save

(chorus)

So breathe, oh breath of God

Now breathe, oh breath of God

Breathe, of breath of God

Now breathe

(repeat 4x)

(Chorus)

We call out to dry bones come alive

Oh come alive

Oh come alive

~~Lauren Daigle~~

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew53fdyVVrY

This is the link to her video, it explains the message behind the song.  I have posted this type of message before, but it is something The Lord has put on my heart again.  It was a personal wake up call from Him, saying I am here to revive your dry bones.  I am here to breathe a new life into you.  I am here to give you a new hope and passion.  So, you see even if life or life situations seem bleak, or you are just going through the motions.  You feel like you may have lost your way.  Not necessarily lost your love or faith in God, but maybe you just need a fresh breath of life. Take a moment and ask Him to breathe His life into you.  You will be amazed when He answers...just my  cents

I am That...Girl!

Today I volunteered for the Idaho Wine Run, while my best friend ran her first 10k.  When I first got there I was feeling intimidated by all the women who were walking around getting ready to run.  All I saw was fit girls who looked this was going to be a walk in the park.  My volunteer position was first aide station one.  We handed out water, Gatorade and fruit.  As the first runners came upon us we all started cheering, and a sense of community started to settle in around us.  We started getting word of thanks, my response was no thank you!!! YOU are doing an amazing job keep up the good work, you got this!.  I would hear other runners encourage each other.  When the 5k runners came to us, I started to see women who looked like me...little do they know that they gave me so much encouragement just by them running by me.  While Jennifer and I was driving home we were talking about the run.  We both agreed to try get more proactive in getting in shape for the next run which is in November. We both agreed the running community is pretty much amazing and very accepting of other people.  All I heard was encouragement.  I have done a 5k, but mostly walking it and I loved every minute of it, but that was last year.  I had lost my mojo to work out and keep living a healthier life style.  When I told some of the other volunteers a little bit about myself, they said don't give up. Thank you! You lighted a fire of hope in me, I had forgotten about.  Another thing Jennifer and I talked about how we had read something to the effect of  when experienced runner sees a new runner who was just starting out.  Has these thoughts going through her head:  I am so proud of you! When you run by me, don't look down...look me in the eye, so you can see how much I admire you.  Keep up what you are doing and you will get there.  Well now it is my turn to give you thanks...for I am that girl who is scared to look you in the eye.  I don't want you to see me struggling or to see me about to pass out.  Thank you for willing to give me hope.  Thank you for your kind words.  Thank you for giving me the extra push to keep going...I am That Girl!!! Who can't thank you enough...just my 2cents