We have now lived in the great Northwest almost 8 months. Wow, time is flying! This feels more and more like home each day, and I honestly believe that it's just been a God-given grace on me to feel that way. I miss my family and Texas, but God is truly becoming my home.....so it doesn't matter where I'm at! I'm also learning to be content in all circumstances. Not an easy idea to grasp or walk out daily, but God is SO faithful, how could I not get there! (And thankfully He is also VERY patient!)
I want to give a very specific encouragement for you. I have really been praying and seeking God's face and He is beginning to share some ideas with me that I feel are for SO many! So all that I write here, is done so prayerfully and I take it seriously. I hope that you do also. Take it to heart, and to prayer for yourself. GOD IS IN THE BUSINESS OF RAISING THINGS FROM THE DEAD! Hello?! He raised Jesus from the dead! THE sole reason that we can live on this earth and have hope and assurance for our eternal future! Thank You, Jesus, for dying for our sins! And thank You, God, for the plan of His resurrection for us all!!! God wants to bring back to life things that have "died" in your life. Even the stuff that has been dead for so long, you've either forgotten it existed or are believing the lie that it is over for good! Nothing is beyond God's repair or touch! NOTHING! And I can hear you saying, "but you don't know about 'this', Charity!" And you are correct, I do not, but God Almighty DOES! And He is ready and waiting to come in and resurrect your dead places! Your marriage, your finances, your hope, YOUR GOD-GIVEN CALLING, your relationship with your children and/or family, YOUR.....you fill in the blank. I believe the Holy Spirit is speaking to you now! God can, and will, breathe life back into these situations and they can become fruitful and living again!!! Believe it! And all you have to do is ask Him into that place that is dead! So, on one hand it is very easy, just ask Him to....and HE WILL!!! But on the other hand, this also means that you now MUST loose control of said circumstance so He can do what He needs to in order to bring about life, real, living, breathing life! I long for it! I hope you do also. And I hope that as you read this things are being brought to mind that need a fresh breath from the Lord! And, I'm willing to take this a step further on my part, because I believe that is what God is asking me to do. If you want to get serious about your dead things becoming alive again and really release this stuff to the Lord to do his thang :) Then email me, Facebook me, or comment here if you don't care that others see it. Let me know what you want me to know and I will pray with you, and for you, about what God is doing. I'm not just saying I'll pray, I WILL pray! And I hope that you will do the same in response to what God is doing! As we release control to God of our limp, lifeless stuff (REALLY let it go) He can and will come in and breathe on us and our things!
Easter is right around the corner, the commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ! Let's make THIS Easter the first one we commemorate (act of remembering a person or event) our dead stuff being resurrected! Amen?! God can and He will, He's just that awesome!!! Thanks for reading my blog. I pray that God is stirring dead things in you already! Let me know if I can pray. I long for us to have the gleam in our eye, the skip in our step, the all surpassing peace of God, LIFE again!
"What you're after is truth from the inside out. Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean, scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life. Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing. Don't look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health. God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home. Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways. Unbutton my lips, dear God; I'll let loose with your praise. Going through the motions doesn't please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you. I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don't for a moment escape God's notice." Psalm 51 : 5-17 MSG
Monday, April 11, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
January 2011
Instead of telling you why it's been so long since I've done this, and waste your time, I'll just get right to the point! :o)
We are doing really well in Washington! It has not been easy, by any means, but God is so very faithful (duh!) and even though being stretched and maturing is not a fun process; I am learning to be more grateful for each hardship and each victory is sweeter than the last! And I am extremely excited in my spirit and don't know why. And honestly don't care if any other wonderful things happen, as long as God keeps my spirit lifted and encouraged!
A few Evans updates: Leah is losing teeth at a rapid rate (poor girl looks homeless), but I'm hoping they all start coming in soon so you can understand her again, lol. We let Connor's hair grow out (really I should say Darrell let it grow out, because I have hated every moment of it) but I think it's finally starting to rub off on me....it's kinda cute. (KINDA!) And Zachary, after much practice, is saying McQueen correctly....thank You, Jesus! I know everyone always says it, but it's SO true...they grow so fast. Where has the time gone?!?!
I've been thinking and praying on a lot of things lately. I have a really good God-idea brewing (I think) and hopefully I can develop it more and share it later. But here is a small part of the beginning of what God has been speaking to me:
“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
“‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
“Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him." Matthew 21: 28-32 NIV
It's the follow through that is of most importance to the Lord. It's not how you start, but how you finish! (Thank You, Jesus!) And all we need to do is repent and believe the way of righteousness. Believe that in God you are righteous, you don't have to DO anything to "attain" it. Repent and believe. Believe that He finds you NOT GUILTY (the enemy will try and convince you otherwise, once you have asked for forgiveness it is GONE, no longer to return!), believe that only in Him are you righteous (all you have to do is choose to be in Him, say outloud: "God I choose You over me, over my loved ones, over anything in this world"), and believe that it IS this simple to get it right. Whew, I don't have to be perfect, because in Him I am.
"As a priest, Christ made a single sacrifice for sins, and that was it! Then he sat down right beside God and waited for his enemies to cave in. It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people. By that single offering, he did everything that needed to be done for everyone who takes part in the purifying process. The Holy Spirit confirms this: This new plan I'm making with Israel isn't going to be written on paper, isn't going to be chiseled in stone; This time "I'm writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts." Hebrews 10:11 MSG
Rest assured, child of The Most High, it's the ending that is most important. And we are not at our end yet! So--- dust off, stand up, and believe! He is who He says He is, you are who He says you are, and ALL things are possible with Him!
The word 'impossible' should not even be used in our vocabulary because "...WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE." Matthew 19 :26 NIV
We are doing really well in Washington! It has not been easy, by any means, but God is so very faithful (duh!) and even though being stretched and maturing is not a fun process; I am learning to be more grateful for each hardship and each victory is sweeter than the last! And I am extremely excited in my spirit and don't know why. And honestly don't care if any other wonderful things happen, as long as God keeps my spirit lifted and encouraged!
A few Evans updates: Leah is losing teeth at a rapid rate (poor girl looks homeless), but I'm hoping they all start coming in soon so you can understand her again, lol. We let Connor's hair grow out (really I should say Darrell let it grow out, because I have hated every moment of it) but I think it's finally starting to rub off on me....it's kinda cute. (KINDA!) And Zachary, after much practice, is saying McQueen correctly....thank You, Jesus! I know everyone always says it, but it's SO true...they grow so fast. Where has the time gone?!?!
I've been thinking and praying on a lot of things lately. I have a really good God-idea brewing (I think) and hopefully I can develop it more and share it later. But here is a small part of the beginning of what God has been speaking to me:
“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
“‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
“Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him." Matthew 21: 28-32 NIV
It's the follow through that is of most importance to the Lord. It's not how you start, but how you finish! (Thank You, Jesus!) And all we need to do is repent and believe the way of righteousness. Believe that in God you are righteous, you don't have to DO anything to "attain" it. Repent and believe. Believe that He finds you NOT GUILTY (the enemy will try and convince you otherwise, once you have asked for forgiveness it is GONE, no longer to return!), believe that only in Him are you righteous (all you have to do is choose to be in Him, say outloud: "God I choose You over me, over my loved ones, over anything in this world"), and believe that it IS this simple to get it right. Whew, I don't have to be perfect, because in Him I am.
"As a priest, Christ made a single sacrifice for sins, and that was it! Then he sat down right beside God and waited for his enemies to cave in. It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people. By that single offering, he did everything that needed to be done for everyone who takes part in the purifying process. The Holy Spirit confirms this: This new plan I'm making with Israel isn't going to be written on paper, isn't going to be chiseled in stone; This time "I'm writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts." Hebrews 10:11 MSG
Rest assured, child of The Most High, it's the ending that is most important. And we are not at our end yet! So--- dust off, stand up, and believe! He is who He says He is, you are who He says you are, and ALL things are possible with Him!
The word 'impossible' should not even be used in our vocabulary because "...WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE." Matthew 19 :26 NIV
Monday, September 13, 2010
THIS week!
Well, we are officially starting "launch team" meetings this Wednesday (9/15). Please pray for us and with us, that God would guide and lead ALL of us. We will be having these gatherings every Wednesday night and then eventually we'll start a saturday evening/sunday morning service. I'm really excited about what God is going to do with all of this. This area is in desperate need of authentic, unconditional love. We still need someone to watch the kids (basically our three, lol). If we can't get someone, and obviously someone that I'll trust, then I will have to do it. And I'd really prefer to be with Darrell and help get the vision going, and be able to meet all the women. (Pray about that too, please!) I'm not sure the exact role God has for me here and at Refuge, but I am SURE that after this Wednesday and the next few He will lay it out, plain as day. And I'm excited to have a more focused purpose here!
The kids are doing well, adjusting still, but very good. Leah has started Kindergarten and really enjoys it, and her new sweet friends. (Makes my mommy heart happy.) Connor is growing up before our eyes, getting taller, looking more like a little boy and not a toddler. :/ And Zach is still living in is own world, and Lord help us all....there are pumpkins out now, so of course, he is always pointing and yelling out: "f-unkins!". I don't think it is 'reality' yet that we live here, but with school and the church starting up I believe things will start settling in nicely, looking forward to it.
Thanks for all the sweet comments and encouragements. It is wonderful to know you've got my back =)
I am loving the new, Tenth Avenue North, song: "This is Where the Healing Begins" you should check it out if you remember to. I think that is what God is doing now, breaking down some old stuff in us so He can heal us, and we'll move forward whole!
"Be good to your servant, God; be as good as your Word. Train me in good common sense; I'm thoroughly committed to living your way. Before I learned to answer you, I wandered all over the place, but now I'm in step with your Word. You are good, and the source of good; train me in your goodness. The godless spread lies about me, but I focus my attention on what you are saying; They're bland as a bucket of lard, while I dance to the tune of your revelation. My troubles turned out all for the best— they forced me to learn from your textbook. Truth from your mouth means more to me than striking it rich in a gold mine. With your very own hands you formed me; now breathe your wisdom over me so I can understand you. When they see me waiting, expecting your Word, those who fear you will take heart and be glad. I can see now, God, that your decisions are right; your testing has taught me what's true and right. Oh, love me—and right now!—hold me tight! just the way you promised. Now comfort me so I can live, really live; your revelation is the tune I dance to. Let the fast-talking tricksters be exposed as frauds; they tried to sell me a bill of goods, but I kept my mind fixed on your counsel. Let those who fear you turn to me for evidence of your wise guidance. And let me live whole and holy, soul and body, so I can always walk with my head held high." Psalm 119: 65-80 MSG
The kids are doing well, adjusting still, but very good. Leah has started Kindergarten and really enjoys it, and her new sweet friends. (Makes my mommy heart happy.) Connor is growing up before our eyes, getting taller, looking more like a little boy and not a toddler. :/ And Zach is still living in is own world, and Lord help us all....there are pumpkins out now, so of course, he is always pointing and yelling out: "f-unkins!". I don't think it is 'reality' yet that we live here, but with school and the church starting up I believe things will start settling in nicely, looking forward to it.
Thanks for all the sweet comments and encouragements. It is wonderful to know you've got my back =)
I am loving the new, Tenth Avenue North, song: "This is Where the Healing Begins" you should check it out if you remember to. I think that is what God is doing now, breaking down some old stuff in us so He can heal us, and we'll move forward whole!
"Be good to your servant, God; be as good as your Word. Train me in good common sense; I'm thoroughly committed to living your way. Before I learned to answer you, I wandered all over the place, but now I'm in step with your Word. You are good, and the source of good; train me in your goodness. The godless spread lies about me, but I focus my attention on what you are saying; They're bland as a bucket of lard, while I dance to the tune of your revelation. My troubles turned out all for the best— they forced me to learn from your textbook. Truth from your mouth means more to me than striking it rich in a gold mine. With your very own hands you formed me; now breathe your wisdom over me so I can understand you. When they see me waiting, expecting your Word, those who fear you will take heart and be glad. I can see now, God, that your decisions are right; your testing has taught me what's true and right. Oh, love me—and right now!—hold me tight! just the way you promised. Now comfort me so I can live, really live; your revelation is the tune I dance to. Let the fast-talking tricksters be exposed as frauds; they tried to sell me a bill of goods, but I kept my mind fixed on your counsel. Let those who fear you turn to me for evidence of your wise guidance. And let me live whole and holy, soul and body, so I can always walk with my head held high." Psalm 119: 65-80 MSG
Monday, September 6, 2010
Wow, we've been here 2 weeks!
So it took me longer than I thought to get a blog up and running. And I've had SOOO many conversations with the Lord that I thought would be good to share on here. And so many funny things the kids have done....I mean, hello, a four day trip - at least 10 hours each of those days, in the mini van (alone!) with all three kids! And some of the hilarious conversations between Leah (who thinks she is the boss), Connor (who puts up with Leah thinking she's the boss for about 30 minutes), and Zachary (who lives in his own world, all the time, and every once in a while will say something hilarious from where he 'lives'). Anyway, I thought I'd just give a few of the small things I can remember from the last two weeks, and then try doing a better job of getting on here more often. :o)
So, as many of you know, Zachary is going through a faze of saying most words with an 'f' sound. "I f-oke my toy, where's my f-anket?, can i have a f-ownie?" (broke my toy, wheres my blanket, can i have a brownie) Darrell drove the huge rental truck with all our belongings to WA and we followed behind him in the minivan. And EVERY time we stopped for gas, bathroom break, to eat, etc...Zach would be yelling from the back seat, "is dad out of the f - uck yet?!" So embarassing! We'd be going into gas stations or restaurants and he'd say, "Dad, you drove the f-uck?!, can i get in the f-uck?!" ETC. So this one time we're heading into a large trucker station (those are better: more snacks, bigger bathrooms, etc) and Zack says, "Where's my f-uck and dad?" And a biker guy, outside enjoying a smoke, starts laughing histerically. Because when you run this sentence together fast, like Zach talks...you can imagine what it sounded like. And the guy says to me: "he's saying it now and he'll be saying it later." And I thought, "oh no he won't! I'll be washing his mouth out with soap!" Oh, the joys of boys....
The entire drive there I'm trying to prepare myself that this isn't vacation, lol, I'm actually moving VERY far away. But it was hard to get that through my head, one because to an extent I'm still in denial, and two we were driving through beautiful parts of our country and staying in hotels. And each time we stopped we let the kids swim and run around to wear them out and try and help from sitting in their carseats for so long. So it was like a vacation. And as we drove I'd be telling the Lord that I trusted Him and that I could do this....etc. (Kinda siking myself out). So we're about 2 hours from the house on the last day of driving, and I'm starting to get nervous. (But the time in the car was SO good for me, no adults to talk with and the kids were usually coloring, listening to music or watching videos....they were EXCELLENT for their ages on SUCH a long trip....of course....lol!) Anyway, I just start telling the Lord that I'm a little scared. New place, totally different than 'home', and so VERY far away. But it was BREATHTAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL! I mean, we were going through these huge mountains (real mountains....not like the 'hills' in TX). And you'd come down and around a huge side of the mountain and see this amazing lake glistening in the sun. And it was so cool and clean! There were HUGEMONGOUS evergreen trees all up the sides of the mountains and dispersed every once in a while were a few trees that were already turning golden colors for fall....ahhhh, amazing. And as I looked at this vast country that I don't have enough words to describe it's beauty the Lord says to me, "this is magnificent and stunning. And it's NOTHING compared to your true home, (Heaven). This is a drop-in-the-bucket to what you will see and experience. The place you were ultimately created for!" And I thought, wow, this is absolutely stupendous...and its nothing. Because our God IS that big! Then He went on to comfort me that no matter where I'm at in life, here in WA or in TX, He is the constant. Not the weather, the scenery, the buildings, not Darrell, not even myself. He is the one who makes everything glorious, who makes everything comfortable. So if I'm relying on a house, a person, or anything but Him, I'm going to be anxious and uncomfortable. But He also knows that I am human and will, time and again, fall into relying on things I can see. And He is patient with me and gently reminds me and nudges me along. That's what faith is all about. Believing what you cannot see! Not always easy, but we need to make this our new habit! Rid ourselves of the old stuff, the old ways we ALWAYS use to do it. It starts in our minds, really.
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:1,2 NIV
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you."
Romans 12:1,2 MSG
So, as many of you know, Zachary is going through a faze of saying most words with an 'f' sound. "I f-oke my toy, where's my f-anket?, can i have a f-ownie?" (broke my toy, wheres my blanket, can i have a brownie) Darrell drove the huge rental truck with all our belongings to WA and we followed behind him in the minivan. And EVERY time we stopped for gas, bathroom break, to eat, etc...Zach would be yelling from the back seat, "is dad out of the f - uck yet?!" So embarassing! We'd be going into gas stations or restaurants and he'd say, "Dad, you drove the f-uck?!, can i get in the f-uck?!" ETC. So this one time we're heading into a large trucker station (those are better: more snacks, bigger bathrooms, etc) and Zack says, "Where's my f-uck and dad?" And a biker guy, outside enjoying a smoke, starts laughing histerically. Because when you run this sentence together fast, like Zach talks...you can imagine what it sounded like. And the guy says to me: "he's saying it now and he'll be saying it later." And I thought, "oh no he won't! I'll be washing his mouth out with soap!" Oh, the joys of boys....
The entire drive there I'm trying to prepare myself that this isn't vacation, lol, I'm actually moving VERY far away. But it was hard to get that through my head, one because to an extent I'm still in denial, and two we were driving through beautiful parts of our country and staying in hotels. And each time we stopped we let the kids swim and run around to wear them out and try and help from sitting in their carseats for so long. So it was like a vacation. And as we drove I'd be telling the Lord that I trusted Him and that I could do this....etc. (Kinda siking myself out). So we're about 2 hours from the house on the last day of driving, and I'm starting to get nervous. (But the time in the car was SO good for me, no adults to talk with and the kids were usually coloring, listening to music or watching videos....they were EXCELLENT for their ages on SUCH a long trip....of course....lol!) Anyway, I just start telling the Lord that I'm a little scared. New place, totally different than 'home', and so VERY far away. But it was BREATHTAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL! I mean, we were going through these huge mountains (real mountains....not like the 'hills' in TX). And you'd come down and around a huge side of the mountain and see this amazing lake glistening in the sun. And it was so cool and clean! There were HUGEMONGOUS evergreen trees all up the sides of the mountains and dispersed every once in a while were a few trees that were already turning golden colors for fall....ahhhh, amazing. And as I looked at this vast country that I don't have enough words to describe it's beauty the Lord says to me, "this is magnificent and stunning. And it's NOTHING compared to your true home, (Heaven). This is a drop-in-the-bucket to what you will see and experience. The place you were ultimately created for!" And I thought, wow, this is absolutely stupendous...and its nothing. Because our God IS that big! Then He went on to comfort me that no matter where I'm at in life, here in WA or in TX, He is the constant. Not the weather, the scenery, the buildings, not Darrell, not even myself. He is the one who makes everything glorious, who makes everything comfortable. So if I'm relying on a house, a person, or anything but Him, I'm going to be anxious and uncomfortable. But He also knows that I am human and will, time and again, fall into relying on things I can see. And He is patient with me and gently reminds me and nudges me along. That's what faith is all about. Believing what you cannot see! Not always easy, but we need to make this our new habit! Rid ourselves of the old stuff, the old ways we ALWAYS use to do it. It starts in our minds, really.
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:1,2 NIV
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you."
Romans 12:1,2 MSG
I'm still growing up in Him, and fortunately for me, He is patient with my process (and yours). And for now, I'm clinging to Him and Romans 12 so I will be changed from the inside out.
When I am completely out of control, ugh, but: He can be completely in control, whew, thank You Jesus!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)