Pursuing God in Conversation

God spoke a book and God lives in the words He spoke!

He is constantly speaking to me using His Words!

today He said in John 1:12 that I am His child

and in John 15:15 he said that I am His friend

and in Romans 5:1 He said that it is just as if I had never sinned

and in Matthew 5:13-14 He said I am the salt and light at my work place

#2 Accelerated Program

Phase Red Day 2


Dear Dad and Mom,


I'm coming to the end of my 2nd day. It's been a little more challenging now that I have actually started basic. I got smoked for about twenty minutes the other day 'cause my battle buddy talked during chow. We were in the pit today for a while too. I hope everything is going well at home. How's everyone doing? Yesterday I had a really hard time 'cause the drill sgt. got right in my face and screamed. There is this accelerated program that they select 20 privates to go thru a quicker training and usually graduate 5-6 weeks early. I'm going to try my hardest to get into it. They make the decision after the third week. If you guys send me anything please make sure it's stuff I need, like calf high white socks, soap, deodorant, toothpaste. stuff like that. I get to go to church tomorrow.I'm so happy. Hopefully I'll be able to call you guys soon. We will be getting our weapons soon. They don't give us much time to do stuff we want so I have to write this letter in class. Privates are just asking questions so it's not big deal. Please write soon. I need to know that all of you are doing well, It's important to me. Please pray that I'm able to prove myself to the drill sgts so I can  come home sooner. It's my number one goal right now. Tomorrow I get to sleep in until 6 am. I'm happy about that. After my first 3 weeks, I have a chance of using my cell phone a little bit. I miss you guys so much ... so so much. It's pretty sad 'cause I haven't even been gone for 2 weeks. Well I don;t know what else to say. I guess I'll just talk to you guys when I do. I miss you all and I love you Ash

I am happy to be thinking already mid May about Memorial Day

(a time when we remember our soldiers)

In honor of this time of year I am writing and posting past letters home from my soldier

who is set to deploy in the beginning of 2012.

At one time that seemed like a long time away

but now it seems closer than I really want to think about.

Feel free to read some other great posts by women

impacted by the war here:

Guest post at Sugar in My Grits

I remember praying


3 John 3:4 “I have no greater joy that to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”

then she made a decision to follow Christ

I remember her baptism on Easter Sunday

then at 14 years of age she joined the Plymouth Explorers .... read the rest of my post here as I have been invited to be a guest this Memorial Day Weekend ...

http://mommiesblog2011.blogspot.com/

Thanks Jessica for allowing me to be a part of your event .... Blessings, Beth

my mom's reciepe for Hershey Pie

I was over at my daughter's the other day and she showed me this family recipe book that she is making on her computer. It was a combination of several recipe's she has collected in her almost 5 years of marriage.

 I was impressed to say the least and I thought mmmm ... ah ah how could I copy her idea?

Then I found this blog during some computer time and decided to link up every once in a while and post one of my favorites so ... today I'm linking up my Hershey Pie recipe here:




From the Kitchen of Kay Walker (my mom)

Hershey Pie
Ingredients:
20 large marshmallows
1/3 cup milk
1 large Hershey chocolate bar (plain or almond)
1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
1 graham cracker crust 8 oz

melt first three ingredients on low heat stirring often. Once melted take off heat and let cool.
Stir in heavy whipping cream until well blended. Pour into graham cracker crust.
Refrigerate until firm. Serves 8.

"Hey God, I loved my mom and loved that she passed this recipe on to me. I appreciate You providing me a convenient store to pick up all these ingredients easily. Now since I want to glorify You with my body, help me to eat only a small piece of this pie on special occasions. Help me not to over eat ... thanks, I love You!"

In His Arms, Beth

Conversation in my head

Sometimes it's good just to write down on my heart the conversation I am hearing in my head ....

"Beth, you are my disciple and you have been justified and are complete in me. I love you!"

Happy Wednesday!


and a part of me wishes I had woken up to these voices ....

yet an even bigger part of me is praying for North Minneapolis and the destruction they have experienced due to the tornadoes.

thankfully my daughter's home was protected they have just been inconvenienced by no electricity since Sunday

Who and what are you praying for today?

Remaining In His Arms again and again,
Beth

Try this Prayer!

So I wanted to find a Tuesday blog hop and I found one here called dot, dot, dot ,,,, and I immediately thought it might be something like that punctuation mark I use a lot ...

I guess it is a "anything you want me to try" blog link up and it does not seem to be active today but I thought I would link up anyways and let you all know that I want you to  try .... this prayer when praying for those who do not know Jesus yet ...

"Father, please send your Holy Spirit to work in the heart of _(insert name)________________
________ to Jesus and make  _______ a kingdom labor."

Drum Roll ... the winner is ....

Ladies, (you know who you are)

Thanks for visiting and entering the give-away!

I have to say that I love the way each of you is serving the Lord! You are bringing important, vital encouragement to those around you each and every day. You have brought encouragement to me through sharing how you are serving the Lord.

Now, drum roll please .... the winner of the Dayspring give-away is:

 Heather at High Heels and Scuffed Sneakers

You can visit her here, but I acutally loved this older post of hers and took the liberate to copy it here 'cause it was such a powerful post .... Congratulations Heather!

http://highheelsandscuffedsneakers.blogspot.com/

but I acutally loved this older post of hers and took the liberate to copy it here 'cause it was such a powerful post .... Congratulations Heather!


Saturday, December 5, 2009

Dawn

I went to see the movie, The Blind Side. I was greatly impacted because it reminded me of a personal story. The story is about a young man that receives unconditional love from an unsuspecting family. The young man, Michael, did nothing to deserve the love from the family... but most importantly the family did nothing to deserve the love from Michael. To know more about the movie, you'll have to watch (or you can read the book if you'd like). The movie impacted me differently than a regular viewer.... I would suspect that you may watch and hope that you had the opportunity to love someone like Michael or that your circumstances would allow your family to help others in a bigger way. However, for me, I have had the opportunity to give and receive love like the family in The Blind Side.

Here's my story:
When I was in the sixth grade, the Lord brought a homeless disabled woman in our lives. My mother was the first one to realize the magnitude of love that could be given by Dawn. After recently suffering from a miscarriage and realizing that God had called her to mother another child, my mama was open to the idea of helping someone in need. With an aching heart, my courageous mama invited Dawn into our home. The length of Dawn's stay with our family was unknown but mama was determined to keep her until she was safe.

When Dawn entered our home I did not know much about her past or her current situation. What I did know was that Dawn had suffered from a brain injury and had to take a lot of medicine. As a sixth grader, I also knew that my parents moved me out of my bedroom and made a make shift room in the garage of our home for me. When Dawn entered our home, we did not realize that we would have the pleasure of watching her develop into something that the doctors deemed impossible.

Since our time with Dawn, her medications have reduced significantly, her memory has improved and she has easily transitioned into part of our family. It has not always been the easiest road; financially, emotionally and mentally... but it's been the road that has been the most rewarding. Dawn has had many ups and downs-financially our family struggled to make sure that we were able to meet all of her needs. However, I will never regret the road we travelled to have her. Dawn is something so special!

Dawn calls me "Sissy". Actually, almost all of Dawn's friends call me "Sissy" now too. Dawn has the ability to make my heart smile like no one I have ever known. She does the funniest things. Her quirks make her special and make me love her more. Dawn's resilience is inspiring and her laugher is contagious. God gave my family a gift when they blessed us with Dawn.

After watching the movie The Blind Side and thinking about my own life experiences, I was reminded how special life can become when you reach out to others. I know that my family has done a great deal for Dawn by providing her with a life that she otherwise my not have had... However, I never fail to remember the things that Dawn has done for our family. She has molded us into the individuals that we are today. She has shaped the woman I am and taught me to love others not based on where they come from, what they look like or how they act. I have been shown that you truly can love people for what's on the inside... Try it sometime and see how you feel!

The Power of Being Forgiven

Lessons from the parables in Luke 7:36-50

Spiritual pride leads to condemnation and judgement of others
Spiritual brokenness leads to humility and contrition before others

The act of true forgiveness flows from grace
The experience of true forgiveness produces authentic love for God and others

True forgiveness precedes true love
True forgiveness is complete and free

If we trivialize sin, we will trivialize forgiveness
Great sinners will become great lovers of Jesus when we grasp how great is our forgiveness

Love for Jesus and forgiveness of others is the prime evidence of the power of being forgiven

What He Pours Out

desiring gratitude to be my only response to what He pours out on my behalf


continuing to count …

601. each strand of sorrow has a place within this tapestry of grace

602. thru the trials I’ll choose to say: “Your perfect will in Your perfect way.”

603. green grass

604. the sound of water

605. warm cup of milk

606. a trip to the library

607. more time to write

608. a Vera Wang jacket purchase for myself

609. a trip around target

610. a sunny outside reading spot with coffee (the reading time not the coffee was the highlight)

611. going to sleep thinking about the mother’s I know

612. a mother’s day package from the TX daughter and granddaughter’s

613. waking up to the daughter’s and the mom’s day choir tradition.

614. a photo shoot with friends and family

615. an outside recess day

616. a celebration of a friend’s last year at Edinbrook

617. how deeply grateful I am that by Your Spirit I am alive with Christ.

618. the clouds that appeared as cotton balls

619. a card in the mail sent from a friend

620. the power of the written word penned

621 the sun glistening off the water

622. grateful that He will open my eyes so I may see the wonders in His word

623. the ability to at times to reflect the image you want me to be

624. a Friday night show with my daughter and friends

625. Monday morning alarm

626. a project planned

627. a number of guests at RW

628. being treated to lunch and enjoying the fellowship of the mentors

629. the sound of the rain on the skylight

630. the beginning of a new week

631. prayers prayed for those hit by the tornado

632. knowing that son-in-law, daughter and grandchildren are safe and well in their north Mpls. home

Investing in Women who will Invest in Women

I went on a bike ride tonight ...


I could not stop thinking about our last meeting tomorrow night. How even though it's our last meeting it could be just the beginning for our guests.

Maybe they have read the word but have never studied the word. Maybe they have studied the word but have never applied it to their daily life. Maybe they have no real deep friendships ... women who will pray for them, cry with them, and invest in them.

Real Women has changed my life and my hope is that it has changed yours too and as Andrea has said that we will be prepared to thank and praise God for the amazing things He has done in us this year.

I have a dream that one day every woman at NHC will be engaged in the study of the word through EX 2:2, Generations Bible Study, Precepts or Real Women. What are you dreaming?

Sometimes I wish I could just articulate my heart for women who are younger, women who are older, and women who come from different backgrounds, cultures and upbringings. Women who are married, single, widowed and divorced. I have a deep desire to make disciples of women who in turn will make disciples .... And I can't think of a better place to do this than Real Women.

I have so loved this year knowing that I am "doing life" with Judy, who mentored me so many years ago before WBS. And with Kathy, a dear sister who I have prayed with long before Real Women. And with Karen who graduated with me and helped me through my study in EX2:2. And with Sally, a new person to NHC and a new friend and ministry partner.

Thank you ladies for investing in women. It is my hope and prayer that each of you will continue the path of Real Women that you have started or continued this year. You are loved!

In His Arms,

Beth

"I have a great need for Christ; I have a great Christ for my need." C.H. Spurgeon

If you are reading this post as a follower or guest and want to know more about Real Women leave a comment with your e-mail address and i will get back to you.