Truth is Hope

dietliend wolf via pinterest

I have something I just have to share with you all!  Last night as I was frantically catching up on my BSF lesson (follow the link for more information) I read this amazing verse that got me so excited I just can't hold it in.

For God did not destine us for wrath but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 5:9

Now I've read the entire New Testament a few times and 1 Thessalonians is one of my favorites so this book isn't new to me but this verse is entirely what I NEEDED to read.  What I NEED to share.  You see in our culture my heart has been pounded by all the lies of Satan that he feeds to people saying that we are to hate those who sin.  I'm sure you've all seen the doomsday people yelling, have read their signs of hate and I am saddened to say that I've been at a loss as to what to say in response.  At a loss until last night.

With this verse I have not just the words to say by HIS WORD to say in response.  This has given me such hope, joy and peace.  That is what the truth does...it gives HOPE breathes life into the dying and offers encouragement to those in need.  When you know what TRUTH gives you can more easily see lies for what they are...hopelessness.

Now I'm spreading the truth to you and I hope you read this in full...YOU ARE NOT DESTINED for wrath, not because of what you've done but because of what CHRIST has done...you need only to accept the truth and reap the benefit of HOPE, LIFE & LOVE.

I promise to be back tomorrow with more crafting but with news as exciting as that I just couldn't keep it to myself.  Can you blame me?

A Princesses Kit to a Happily Ever After Marriage

source flickr.com via Ksenia Pascal via Pinterest

As little girls most of us dreamed incessantly about fining our Prince and getting married.  I remember thinking as a young Princess in Training that a wedding was simply the Prince dancing with the Princess, kissing her soundly and then everyone lived happily ever after.  The villain was dead, the threat was over what awaited my favorite Prince and Princess was wedded bliss.

However, having found my Prince I discovered that there is more to a wedding than just a dance and a kiss and that happily ever after is a lot of work.  So I have what I like to call ‘A Princess’s Kit for a Happily Ever After Marriage.’  

A bag. 

source vandco.bigcartel.com via Vanessa Christensen via Pinterest

If you’re gonna have a kit you’re gonna need something to store everything in.  However, this bag isn’t just any bag it is a visual reminder to you, Jenna that you need to “store up treasures in heaven.” (Mt 6:19-21) ‘For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’ Right now you are so excited to be getting married.  You’re heart has been captured by your fairy tale Prince and in your heart he always will be.  Yet you must always remember who first stole your heart, and has truly made you a princess.  That by putting God first you will always be the wife your husband needs.

Body Wash. 

source hotbeautyhealth.com via Shannon Spiegel via Pinterest

Every princess is gonna need to shower in the morning so she’s clean and ready for the day.  Yet I find that this is the best time of the day to talk with the Lord, to ‘cast your cares upon Him.’  Prayer is an essential part of marriage.  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Philippians 4:6) You must constantly be in communion with your Heavenly Father about the ponderings of your heart.  Pray for your husband, that he will be the leader you need.  Don’t be afraid to tell God to talk to your husband for you and above all remember to ask God to guide you as you take on the role of wife.

Deodorant.

source etsy.com via Melissa Blom via Pinterest

Yes, it is true that even princesses have a certain ‘odor’ to us all but this goes further than any perfume or deodorant.  ‘For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.’ (2 Cor 2:15)  As you embark on this new life we must constantly remember that we are ambassadors for Christ and that you will stick out in the world.  This is good.  So when you’re out with your husband watch your actions, are you showing others how you love and respect him?  True submissiveness in a loving, godly relationship built on mutual love and respect is foreign to the world and is a powerful tool for spreading the gospel.   Stay on your guard for those who are watching you interact with your husband and may your aroma always be pleasant.

Toothbrush and Toothpaste.  

source urbanoutfitters.com via Nina Burk via Pinterest

With all your public engagements as a princess you’ll want to make sure your teeth are clean and your breath is fresh.  ‘Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.’ (James 3:5) Guard your mouth in dealing with your husband.  Words are immortal.  So think before you speak.  Trust me when I say that at some point (probably multiple times) you will nearly bite your tongue in half to keep yourself from saying something you’ll regret.  This is a great time to go brush your teeth and remember that you love your husband and that he loves you.  That even if you are seriously considering physical harm to him, what you both truly desire for each other is the very best and what is needed is fresh breathe to remind you of how  you’re words must be honest, but kind.

Sunscreen.

source marthastewartweddings.com via Kerry via Pinterest

The limelight is bright on the fair skin of our Princess and she’ll want to protect her beautiful skin from burning.  Stay on guard Jenna for ‘the sin that so easily entangles us’ (Hebrews 12:1).  In every marriage there are seasons.  Joyful times and sorrowful times, times of plenty and times of drought.  Temptation is always at the door knocking and we must be prepared.  Marriage is work, probably the hardest work of your life (yes, harder than working at Starbucks at 4am).  However, it will be the most rewarding and dare I say enjoyable work too.  Be proactive.  Date your husband, never stop talking to him, read books on marriage or blogs.  You can never know too much about communicating with your husband or how to make a marriage last. 

Aloe Vera.

source thoughtbyangel.blogspot.com via Pranava via Pinterest

Even sunscreen can wear off when we least expect it.  Sunburns are painful but quick and reliable treatment can keep the pain low and the scars at bay.  No matter how perfect life seems sin can blind side you, in your life and in your husband’s life.  ‘Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.’ (Col 3:13) Forgiveness, Grace and Mercy are crucial to a happy marriage.  Forgiveness is the Aloe Vera to a sinful sunburn.  And just like Aloe Vera works best right away, so too does forgiveness.  FORGIVE quickly and completely. Sometimes it’s yourself that you have to forgive.  Other times you have to forgive a hurt that the other doesn’t understand.  Whatever it takes don’t hold a grudge, for it is a poison that will seep in and destroy your happily ever after.

Tissues & Snickers.

source chow.com via Jaime Eggleston via Pinterest

source hollandcox.com via Dawn Ramirez via Pinterest

Tears and laughter are a part of every person’s life.  If you have to make a choice between crying or laughing, laugh…I mean Snickers always trump tissues, right? Embrace the moments of happiness and sorrow and share them with your beloved.  Don’t hide your joy and don’t bury your pain from your husband even in the smallest of matters.  It is hard to be that vulnerable but it is so necessary to create a new life as man and wife.  Remember to eat your fruit together every day for a healthy spirit. ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.’ Gal 5:22-23

Last, a Tiara. 

source katelandersevents.blogspot.com via pc brown via Pinterest

Of course our princess is going to need the crown to complete the look, what Princess doesn’t have one?  A tiara is a loving reminder to you that you were bought at a price and because of that great sacrifice you are truly a Princess of the Most High God. ‘The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.’ Romans 8:16

The world will constantly be sending you and your beloved a barrage of temptations that will leave you dissatisfied.  What is more Satan will try to persuade you that you deserve better.  At these times you are going to need your kit to remember that while wedded bliss and happily ever after aren’t just for fairy tales, but to achieve it you must work for it.  And should you misplace your kit or forget what you need to do look no further than the Spirit living and working within your heart.

...in keeping with the Fearless Friday theme I thought I'd fearlessly share this devotion with you all.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

{{hugs}}

Buffy

Cleaning and Grace

So I've been thinking a lot about grace lately. You might think that it has to do with the five little children that run around the house who call me Momma (well, Thaddeus cries it more than speaks it). While it is true that my children need grace what has really sparked this is my house.

Lately I've been struggling with keeping up with the house work. Partly because, well let's be honest, I don't want to do it. It isn't that the work is hard, boring or time consuming, it is however something that I really have to work at. I am not a neat freak by any stretch of the imagination and while I do enjoy a clean environment, my thoughts are usually so focused on what is going on at any given moment that cleaning...well it usually gets shelved.

Now, don't start to freak out here the house is somewhat clean...the kitchen needs to be mopped but I can say that even on the days I mop it (the kids always spill something on the floor just after I mop it). However, orderly is not necessarily a word I would use to describe it. Housekeeping is one of my short comings (no I'm not perfect, shocking isn't it?) and I am coming to accept that I will have to make the conscious effort to keep the house clean.

I am starting to see that most of my problems with keeping up with the housework is myself. I have too high of expectations, or worse I think that other people have higher than normal expectations. Constantly I'm waging an inner battle with myself somewhere between self-loathing and self-pity. I hate that I choose playing on the computer or doing crafts or even writing over taking care of the dishes. I know that it only takes 15 maybe 20 minutes to wash up the dishes after each meal. Why then do I sit down and do something knowing in my heart that those dishes won't get washed anytime soon? However then the good old self pity comes into play, it tells me that Husband doesn't help out enough, that I have 5 screaming children and woe is me that I just couldn't possibly be capable of taking care of it all by myself.

Yet I want to. I want to have a clean home, not necessarily clutter free, but clean. I'm not signing up for seasonal deep cleaning, or vacuuming every day. What I want is functional and quick. So because of this on going problem I have become addicted to cleaning regimens like no one else. If there is a plan out there guaranteed to keep your house clean you can bet I've tried it. The problem lies in that I can't keep up with a program for more than a month or two.

Somehow every plan just isn't perfect for me. Somewhere along the lines I've become an expert in justification. Thus I start telling myself it will be okay, the kids want a happy Momma more than a clean house. That I won't care in 40 years if I mopped the kitchen today just as long as I was having fun with my kids. While that is all very true, it still doesn't abdicate me from my responsibility. That I don't want my kids to grow up and struggle over housework like I do. Parenting is about teaching and training and I want to teach and train my kiddos to clean.

This battle I have with cleaning reminds me a lot about my battle with grace. Grace is such an easy gift to accept from the Lord and yet I so often turn it aside because I want to earn it myself. I want to do it all on my own, I want to come before the Lord worthy before accepting His gifts. Yet just like I can't keep up with my housework, so too I can never be worthy enough to earn the sacrifice that Jesus made on my behalf.

Ephesians 2:8 & 9 read "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by work's, so that no one can boast." God knew from the beginning that we would need a Savior, that we would fall and that we would never ever be able to rectify our relationship with Him. That we would need grace and he determined to give us just that and in such a way so that 'no one can boast.'

This is such a good reminder to me. That grace is given to all...EQUALLY, meaning that the friend with three cars and a huge house gets just as much grace as I do with my five kids and small home. There is only one person who was perfect and He is the reason I can enter heaven, JESUS.

The grace God gives to us isn't just enough but an abundant grace. Which is perfect, because I know that I need grace enough to share not with my children, husband, family and friends but with myself. I need God's grace to help me to remember that a clean house won't get me into heaven but a clean heart will. That my responsibilities are still the same but at least with grace I can tackle them with God's help and not all on my own.