Never say "NEVER"!!

I know you’ve heard that saying before, “I’ll NEVER do that!”  I’ve said it too!  Truth is, we should never say that we’ll never do something because most of what we say we’ll never do, is THE very thing we end up doing!  When I was a teenager, our youth director would encourage us to do right and stay out of trouble.  He sounded like a broken record.  And yes, I got tired of hearing it, but I never forgot it either!  I remember several teens saying “Don’t worry, we’ll never do that!”  Most of them ended up doing things they never thought or said they would do.  That’s one of the reasons to stay faithful in church and in your daily devotions!  Not to brag, but I’ve been having my “be still” time with the Lord since I was a teenager.  I remember reading something as a kid that has stuck with me: “Never start the day with the face of your soul unwashed.”  I learned very early that it’s so important to put God first and everything else will fall into place. Have I ALWAYS done that??  No, not always, but Praise the LORD times are the exception and not the rule!

I am so grateful for God’s Word!  As much as all the “always” things of God are promised, it’s just as important to emphasize the “never(s)” He has promised as well!  Of course we’re familiar with the promise of “I will never thee nor forsake thee.”  But I found a “never” you might not be as familiar with!  It says in 2 Peter 1:4-10: “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.  For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.  Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:”  If I continue to add to all these things above, I will NEVER fall!  How AWESOME is that?? 

Farewell to 2011

As I look back over this year, I have to say it’s been great!!  However, it didn’t start out that way!  The New Year brought sickness to me and my family – a stomach bug that seemed to go on for weeks!  Then I pulled my back in February and couldn’t sleep in a bed for 5 months (although it seemed longer!)  All that aside…there’s a lot of good things that happened too!  In March, Lisa and I did the Daniel Fast for the WHOLE month!  If you’ve never done it, you should try it.  We managed to stick it out a whole month…wasn’t easy, but we prevailed.  April brought the threat of a Fed Gov’t shutdown (AGAIN) and NASA celebrated the 30^th Anniversary of the Space Shuttle Program.  In May, I got to see Space Shuttle, Atlantis, roll out to the launch pad for the last time.  It was also Lisa’s 50^th birthday, so we got to live it up in Hershey at the Chocolate Spa!  It was wonderful!! I was able to see Space Shuttle Endeavour land safely for the last time in June.  My good friend Shannon Dove and her family came home from Costa Rica on a medical furlough in July.  So glad she’s home now, but we’re still praying for answers and resolutions to Rick’s illness!  I also saw Atlantis take her last flight in July – very bittersweet and so ends the Shuttle Program!  My uncle passed away in July as well, so we made a quick trip to Alabama and enjoyed time with family amid the sad circumstances.  I experienced my first, and hopefully last, earthquake in August.  We also survived my birthday weekend amid the impact of Hurricane Irene!  I was able to visit the Glenn Research Center for the first time in September.  And then October brought one of the best vacations I’ve ever had thanks to God, Lisa, Melinda, and Sallie! J  Melinda came for a visit in November for Thanksgiving!  And here we are in December again…in spite of Lisa cracking her foot, we made it through all the extra rehearsals for the Christmas program at church! 

It truly has been a GREAT year and I’m very thankful for every part…not just the good parts, but the hard parts too.  The tough parts keep us depending on God and just when I need Him, He is near!  Can’t wait to see what next year has in store!! 

Blessings,

Dawn

Christmas Time's A-Comin'!!

Christmas is my favorite time of year!!  I love all the lights and decorations – they just make me smile!!

When we were growing up, we went to a fairly small church.  We always had a Christmas play and Lisa and I always got the most lines.  I wonder why?  At any rate, it was the same routine every Saturday up until the play…we would go to the church for practice with curlers in our hair (so our hair would look good for church the next day) and go over all the songs, poems, and lines of the play.  Then, the night of the performance came…yikes!  I remember it very vividly – I was in the 7^th grade and had been playing the clarinet for over a year.  I was asked to play Silent Night for the program.  Everything was going well, until I got to the part “all is calm; all is bright” and then I squeaked!  I just wanted to die right here on the platform!!  I tried to recover and stop, but the more I tried, the worse it got!  Someone behind the scenes asked Lisa, “Why is she making that noise?”  Well, it wasn’t a noise I WANTED to make – believe me!!  I can’t remember if I played another verse or not, but that song seemed to last an eternity!! I finished the song and was so very thankful it was over!  To this day, Silent Night is NOT on my list of favorite Christmas carols!  LOL

Dying to Live

In order to live for Christ, we must die to sin and self daily.  Easier said than done!  This was in my devotions a few days ago and was a real blessing to me.  Enjoy!!

“A Christian has died to sin. Sin has no control over a corpse. Temptation can present itself enticingly and persistently, yet a corpse will not succumb! Before you were a Christian you were keenly susceptible to sin. Sin held you in its grip. When you became a Christian, your old self died (Gal. 2:20). Sin now has no more control over you than temptation has over a corpse. You have died to sin. You can still sin, but you are no longer in sin’s power. If you choose to succumb to temptation, you are rejecting the freedom from sin that Christ gained for you by His death.

God’s grace is a further motivation for us to resist sin. It was God’s grace that enabled Jesus to endure mocking, beating, and crucifixion at the hands of those whom He had come to save. It was grace that led God to forgive our sin despite our rebellion against Him. It is this same grace that God expresses toward us each time we sin against Him. Knowing this grace, we cannot continue to practice sin (Rom. 6:1–2). We cannot presume upon God’s forgiveness by committing further offenses.

You are no longer the helpless victim of your sin. The victory has already been won. God does not have to win a victory over your sin; He already has! You only need to apply His victory to each area of your life. If there is a sinful habit, an ungodly attitude, or an unrighteous relationship that you need to put to death, claim the victory of Christ’s resurrection today. Then you will be free to experience the abundant life that God intends for you.” ~Blackaby

So are you living to die or dying to live??  It's your choice!

I Believe...

I read this today and it was an encouragement to me...hope it will be to you as well!!

I believe today will be a good day because God made it.
{Psalm 118:24}
I believe I have all I need to accomplish His purpose in my life.
{2 Peter 1:3}
I believe nothing is too difficult for me because nothing is impossible for the God who lives in me.
{Philippians 4:13}
I believe even the biggest challenges in my life can be redeemed for my good and His glory.
{Romans 8:28}
I believe I am loved just as I am and called to become even more like Jesus every day.
{Hebrews 10:14}
I believe that He isn't finished with me yet and is able to complete the good work begun in me.
{Philippians 1:6}
I believe I am an overcomer, more than a conqueror, and nothing will keep God from carrying out His plans!
{Romans 8:32-39}
Can I get an "amen" or a "yoo-hoo"?
--Holley Gerth

About my sissy…

Well, it’s Lisa’s birthday weekend…although she has dubbed this: “the year of Lisa!”  I just wanted to tell you a little bit about her for those who don’t know her very well.

What can I say?  She’s 5 years older than me…yes, she’s older, although most people think I am.  I don’t know what to think about that!!  Hmmmm - Is it because I act more mature?  Ha, yea right!  She didn’t like me when I was a baby.  She couldn’t play with me like one of her dolls and I was getting most of the attention.  So after a few days of having me for a little sister, she was ready to take me back to the hospital – where Mom got me!  She picked on me all the time and beat me up!  But, if others tried to pick a fight or hurt me, she’d be the first to defend me.  You see, SHE could beat me up, but no one else better even try!  And even though she did things to get into trouble, I would usually confess so we both didn’t have to suffer the wrath of mom!  I have no idea why, and I question it now…lol!

There are many memories of growing up in church and interesting things that happened!  Like going to Christmas play practice on Saturdays when we were kids with rollers in our hair, playing “Silent Night” on my clarinet when I was in the 6^th grade and it sounded horrible, singing together with those horrible Easter hats on one year in the early 80’s, having Halloween parties and progressive dinners at our house, and spending much time at our youth leaders’ house. 

We were always friends, but not as close as we are now.  Since I was younger, I didn’t hang out with her or her friends much.  And I used to think other people were WAY more cool than my sister.  But eventually, we learned to like each other and become best friends!  I don’t think it was until after our dad passed that we became closer.  

Lisa is the one of the kindest people I know!  She will give you the shirt off her back if you need it!  She doesn’t like to see or hear of anyone in need or trouble because she will go right to work to help them – whether it be materially or financially!

The glass is always half-full with Lisa!  She is always so positive.  When I’m negative, she smashes my face (as only she can) and helps me look at the bright side.  She always says, “We have a lot!  We have no reason to complain about anything!” And she’s right!!

We have more fun than anyone I know!  We are always laughing and having a good time!  Of course there are sad times too…and if anyone knows Lisa, you know she can cry at the drop of a hat! 

She has always encouraged and pushed me to do and be better than I am!  I am very blessed to have her in my life!!  I love her very much and am so glad she’s MY BESTEST FRIEND!!  Happy Birthday to my favorite sister!! J

Wisdom from Mom

WOW!  It’s been awhile since I’ve written!  Guess life happens and the things you want to do, you don’t have time for.  Sigh!

With that said, since Mother’s Day was yesterday, I thought I’d write a little about my mom!  Of course, I think she’s the best, but I know most children think the same! 

While growing up, our house was always filled with a lot of love and a lot of people…whether it was kids she babysat, dinner parties she threw, or having church at our house (yes, we did that in a tiny apartment every Wednesday night for awhile before we got a building of our own), there were always people there!  People loved to come to our house…and still do!  I believe a big reason for that is MOM! 

One of the many things I have always appreciated about her is that she didn’t tell you she would do something unless she followed through.  And we, of course, thought the whole world operated that way.  We were in for a rude awakening when we found out they didn’t! 

She was very consistent with us…meaning, she was the same at home as she was in church.  We saw a lot of church kids whose parents were different at home than at church and we were very disappointed.  As we got older, we had to understand that people are human and you can’t change them, nor can you put them on a pedestal and think they will never fail you.  There’s only one perfect One and He is the “same yesterday, today, and forever.”  Also, she didn’t tell us a hundred times “if you don’t stop that, you’re gonna be in real trouble!”  She gave us plenty of chances to do right, but there was punishment when we chose not to.  Every kid needs boundaries!  Every kid needs discipline!  If you don’t show your kids who’s in charge, they’ll show you!  I’ve seen it happen time and time again! The Bible says, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6.  It’s so true!

I have found this to be very true: the older I get, the smarter SHE gets!  J

Well, that’s just a little about my mom!  I love her very much and am so thankful she’s mine!!

Dawn