Surrendering Dreams

We all have dreams. We all have visions, desires, goals. I've been thinking. If you want to build a house, you must first consult an architect. He has the degree and the necessary know-how to bring about just what you need. At the consultation, you sit down with him or her, tell them what you desire in that house, and then you must TRUST him/her to draw up something that will at least MEET your expectations, and hopefully even EXCEED them. If you don't trust that architect, and want to try to do the work for him, you might leave out something very important or hinder his work so much, that he gets frustrated and gives up on you! You have to trust that he knows what you desire for your home, let him do the work, then he will show you what he drew up. You might be surprised at the things he might have drawn up, things you would have never dreamed possible, or even thought of at all! Because he is a master at what he does. He's drawn many homes and has experience in his field. He should be able to be trusted.

I said all that to say this: God is the master builder of our homes, our lives. I remember praying a while back about some dreams and desires I had and was wondering WHY I wasn't seeing them fulfilled! My heart was hurting and broken because inside, I knew I had to surrender them to Him if I was ever going to get peace of mind. I remember telling the Lord in that prayer, "God, I have dreams that are NOT sin, they are not bad! In fact, Your Word PROMISES these things! But I feel like I have to give them up! WHY??? Other people have their dreams fulfilled!! Why not me??? I don't want to give them up! I'm afraid I will never be happy! I'm afraid I will never see those dreams fulfilled if I surrender them!"

How little I knew... God is my Master Builder! He is building my home the way He wants it and I have to learn to trust that He will build it right, and most often build it better than I ever could have! And you know what else I have learned? We don't say we surrender our dreams, as to annihilate them, but give those dreams to God, let Him make something beautiful out of them, and place them in the "building plan" He has for you! Just like I would desire a huge kitchen in my new home, the architect knows what I want, but I have to let go, let him know my desire, then STEP BACK and let him do what he does best!!!! I could take the work from him, too scared to let him do it, because I'm afraid he won't make my kitchen right, and thus cheat myself out of a fabulous kitchen, all because of my FEAR of LETTING GO and trusting the builder.

I hope you understand my point. God CAN and  SHOULD be trusted as the builder of your home. He knows your desires, He knows what you have need of, and He's already got it all figured out in the 'plans', so please don't hinder His work by tying His hands with your doubt, fear, unbelief, and lack of trust! He can do the work, and He will do it better than you could ever imagine!

If you will trust Him.

Counting Blessings

Hallelujah! My beautiful, but often stubborn, daughter has finally mastered riding her bicycle without her training wheels. She's been trying to ride without those dumb wheels for a while now, but has been too scared to let go, but now, TODAY, she has decided to conquer it all on her own! What a shock to look out the window and see her just SAILING past the window like she's been riding for years! This mommy is proud and so thankful!

The white bass are hitting down at the river now. It sure is early for them. They don't usually hit until late April til Early May. I think this whole world is messed up. But hey! It makes for nice family outings! After Darren got off work yesterday, he came home, loaded up the fishing gear, I loaded up the cooler and picnic supplies, and we headed down to the lake and ate sandwiches and fished, enjoying our rare family time together! So thankful for the day we had, making memories as a family. We caught a couple of bass last night and then Darren went fishing again early this morning and caught a couple more nice sized fish, but he had to go to work, so couldn't stay. He will go again tonight. I'm hoping for a good catch! Just wish I could go, but he won't get off work in time to come get us before it gets dark. I'm wanting some fish!

I'm going to try my hand at doing some fried chicken a bit different. I like the skin ON and my skin gets too hard sometimes. We will see what happens. If it looks as good as it's sounding to me right now, I will post pics later. (I came back and posted this pic.. Here is my chicken after it was done... Please overlook the towel under it.... It had to drain on SOMETHING! :) But the chicken was good!)

This woman is thankful for the warm weather we have been blessed with and looking forward to many more days of nice sunshine and warm air! So thankful for God and His promises! And His faithfulness! The verse that says 'the trying of your faith worketh patience'? It's been going through my mind a lot the last couple of days. I've been dealing with some health issues that are troubling me, and I feel like it's a trial of my faith! I will come out on top, with the Lord's help! I know what God has said and I know what He's promised, and He will hold to His promises! Of this I am confident!!!! This is a pic of what God told me to buy and pray over, so I bought TWO pairs! I'm praying for twins!!!! :)   Call me whatever you want! I believe God will move! I don't know when or how, or if it will even be by ME giving birth to them, but God has heard my desire, this I know, and He will move for me!

One last thing, this is what my sweet hubby bought for me for my birthday last year and I have loved this thang!!! I love primitive themes and wasn't real crazy about Americana until I saw this bedspread! I won't have any other! It is 'til death do us part' on this one! LOL!

Today, I am just counting my blessings and savoring them slowly. The days will come when I will feel challenged to STAY focused on them, so I want to take the time to soak it into my brain all the good things HE has done for me and how blessed I REALLY am.

I am blessed.

The Mark Lowery Influence

I'm trying to decide if Mark Lowery is having a positive influence on my 7 year old daughter or a negative one! She is good with one-liners, and she uses them liberally and often at all the wrong times! He often refers to his mother in his "speeches", alluding to his childhood, referring to himself as a hyper-active child. In his childhood, according to Mark, he had testing done to see if he had mental problems, only to find out he was very normal (I still think his mom needs to get a 3rd, 4th, and 5th opinion, or as many as necessary). According to him, his mother said, MARK! I was hoping you at least had brain damage! What an inspiration to my growing daughter! When she gets frustrated with me, she says, MOM! I was hoping you at least had brain damage! How can I correct my daughter when she is so plainly influenced by what WE call CHRISTIAN comedians? LOL!!! He often talks about his mother being a screamer. He asked the question - "Do you know what a SCREAMER is?" I hear those words ringing from the lips of my daughter, a healthy helping of air from her lungs accompanying them! In her way, she's telling me that I am screaming, or SHE is screaming and wants to make sure I know what a screamer is! We were going down the road the other day, and she made the remark that garage doors were going to fly open any minute. Again, referring to Mark Lowery 101, he said everyone knows when his mom hits that "certain pitch" when garage doors all over the neighborhood start flying open. Ugh.... And you know what? Mark isn't the only 'influence' in my darling daughter's life! No thanks to Rodney Rathbone from Adventures in Odyssey! He was carrying a jar of bees in his backpack and was seeking revenge on a teacher when another student discovered what he was going to do and threatened to tell! Rodney grabs him by the shirt collar and says, "If you tell Dr. H, I'm gonna POUND ya!!!!" One night, when Moriah was around three years old, she kept getting out of bed for some reason or another and I kept telling her to get back in bed. Finally, I told her if she got out of bed again, I was going to spank her and she said calmly, serenely, and SERIOUSLY, "If you DO, I'm gonna POUND ya!"
WHAT?
 Sorry.. But I had to laugh!!!
We had this conversation once: Moriah, doesn't it bother you that Mommy works her head off around here and you don't help? ~ Her answer: Mom, I'm just trying to get some use out of you!
Ugh!
What do you do with a daughter who is full of one-liners and is full of wit and grit? I must tell you...
Life is never dull around the Jones' home.

Stars Shine Brightest In The Darkest Night

I'm not a fan of darkness. It implies fear of the unknown, fear of losing your way, no light to see by. I hate the dark. A lot goes on in the dark that without light, it's hard to distinguish what 'that noise' was. But, there are some things I like about the dark. No, I still hate the dark, but I could not enjoy the stars at night if the sun was out. Because of the darkness, I can enjoy the stars, for they are beautiful, and the darker, the better. I look at the stars and am constantly in awe of how big our God really is. I'm amazed every time I see the stars. A beautiful sight, and it doesn't cost a single penny to enjoy God's creation in such a marvelous display!
But yesterday I was reflecting on some of my past and I am still amazed at how great God's grace is! There are 'dark' times in my life I wish I could go back and erase. Situations that were out of my control and I wish had never happened. I KNOW it wasn't God's will for some of the things I faced to happen, but instead of letting it go to waste, God used it to make something beautiful out of it! I stand amazed so MUCH because of how far He's brought me! I was thinking back on a certain situation not of my own making when I was young and although it was a lonely time, a 'dark time', a time of tears and unhappiness, no friends and no one to talk to, God used it to do something in my life that I thought would never be. People told me I would never BE anything and would never DO anything and it was very discouraging. I tried hard to pray, not understanding why people felt that way and why they felt they had to tell me. It was a dark time to me. Now, the amazing thing is, when I think back to that time, yes, I remember the loneliness and the hurt, but I remember the 'shining stars' better! All I can think about was what God did in my life at that point and the hurt and loneliness is a faint memory. It was during this time, when I had been told I would never be or do anything, that GOD Himself began to teach me how to play the piano! I loved going to the malls, but at that point in my life, I was DESPERATE to forgo the shopping excursions just so I could be at home alone, to play and sing to my hearts' content! It was my time of service and praise, since I wasn't allowed to go to church at the time. That was MY church time! I didn't see it then, but looking back, I see how God was carrying me, even though I didn't feel like He was. I felt like I was struggling, trying to make sense of all the confusion in my life, but 'now I see how He was there for me' (words to the song "I never would have made it) and carried me! So, although the loneliness was there and the darkness was there, when I look back at that time in my life, all I see is the STARS, not the darkness. I wouldn't see the stars if it hadn't been so dark.
So, as much as I hate darkness, I try not to focus on it because that's when stars shine the brightest.
I never would have dreamed I would be where I am today. Most people might look at me and not see much, and that's okay. I know where I come from and where HE brought me from, and believe me, I am doing things and going places I thought I would never go or do!!!! There have been many dark nights in my life, but God in His mercy, wisdom and grace, has not allowed them to go to waste, but put some stars there to remind me He was there and He carried me! So when I reflect back on past troubles and trials, I don't see the pain, hurt and loneliness.

I see STARS.