He Knows…

God is amazing. He knows you. Every single hair on your head. He knows them all. That’s amazing to me! I was thinking about how well God knows me today on my way home from church…I currently attend a church with something like 800 members. We’re still considered ‘new’. I’m a pretty shy person so that can be a bit overwhelming; trying to get to know them all. I’m starting to remember names and faces on sight though…

While I’ve always been a Christian, I wasn’t born Pentecostal. I married into it. My husband attended a VERY small church. By ‘small’, I mean the only members were his family and a close family friend. Ten and half years later it’s still the same. That was my introduction to the truth. I wasn’t receptive at all. I was still pretty young and set in my ways back then so I wasn’t as open to listening. God knew that. Fast forward about 4 years. We moved and we started attending a different church. Basically the same as the first. He had lots of family and close family friends there, but there were also others. I went once, and never went again! A couple years later while I was helping my mother recover from knee surgery, my husband found another church in a different city! He had been going for a while and loved it. When I returned to Texas I agreed to visit though I hadn’t had many great church experiences in the five years it had been at that point. I walked in and knew I was home! However. Haha. It was maybe a month before I visited a second time. This church, located in Port Arthur was bigger than the first but smaller than the second. Everyone was lovely. They made me feel like I was already one of them even though they’d never seen me before. A lady there offered my family a home bible study. She. Was. Persistent. Haha. We said no but she keep asking. Finally my husband said yes and maybe a month later I was baptized in Jesus name! The following week I got the Holy Ghost and spoke in tongues! SUCH a great experience! I was a different woman from that point on! 5 years later my husband and I renewed our vows in that church. It was the perfect place for our little family of three.

Then hurricane Harvey happened.

My husband decided he no longer wanted to live on the coast and he had a sister in the Dallas area so that’s where we ended up. Of course, priority number one was to find a new church. He found one via Google and when we visited the first time, we got that ‘welcome home’ feeling that I’d had before. This new church was about 3 times the size of the last one! The one in Port Arthur was a medium sized church. There weren’t as many people so getting to know everyone was much easier. Here it’s going to take a bit longer but we’re getting there thanks to things like the monthly connect groups that are available.

All of these baby steps to get where I am today in my personal walk with God weren’t happenstance. They were planned in His perfect wisdom because he knew exactly what I needed to get where He needed me to be at that moment in my life.

That. Is. Amazing.

Cinnamon Rolls

Made cinnamon rolls tonight. From scratch. I am personally not a fan of using box mixes. There’s just something about working that dough with your own two hands that’s therapeutic…

It wasn’t the recipe I usually use. This recipe said it was a ‘quick’ version. They were right. It took roughly 45 mins to throw together. They tasted great! But I just wasn’t a fan of this particular method. It may work great for someone though so I’ll go ahead and post the link to where I got the recipe so you can try it for yourself…

https://therecipecritic.com/2016/05/quick-45-minute-cinnamon-rolls/

Patience

As a child I was told ‘Never pray for patience…’. They never said why though. It wasn’t until I was an adult and found a Pentecostal church that I finally got the answer. ‘…because with patience comes trials.’

Those trials, I’ll tell ya. They can be a headache! They are sneaky little buggers!! Just when you think life is going great, BOOM! Instinctually you want to ask God for patience to weather the storm but then you remember those trials and find yourself asking if you prayed for patience inadvertently lol.

So if you can’t pray for patience in this situation, how do you proceed? Below you’ll find some scriptures that might get you through those moments of stormy weather…

Deuteronomy 31:6 – Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he [it is] that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Philippians 4:19 – But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 12:9 – And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

When you have a few moments, pray and meditate over these few verses.

Be strong. Have faith. Be of good courage.

MOOD….

Eye of the Storm

Ryan Stevenson

LYRICS

In the eye of the storm

You remain in control

And in the middle of the war

You guard my soul

You alone are the anchor

When my sails are torn

Your love surrounds me

In the eye of the storm

When the solid ground is falling out from underneath my feet

Between the black skies, and my red eyes, I can barely see

When I realize I’ve been sold out by my friends and my family

I can feel the rain reminding me

In the eye of the storm, You remain in control

In the middle of the war, You guard my soul

You alone are the anchor, when my sails are torn

Your love surrounds me

In the eye of the storm

Mmm, when my hopes and dreams are far from me

And I’m runnin’ out of faith

I see the future I picture slowly fade away

And when the tears of pain and heartache

Are pouring down my face

I find my peace in Jesus’ name

In the eye of the storm (yeah, yeah)

You remain in control (yes you do, Lord)

In the middle of the war

You guard my soul

You alone are the anchor

When my sails are torn

Your love surrounds me (Your love surrounds me)

In the eye of the storm (in the eye of the storm)

When the test comes in and the doctor says

I’ve only got a few months left

It’s like a bitter pill I’m swallowing

I can barely take a breath

And when addiction steals my baby girl

And there’s nothing I can do

My only hope is to trust You

I trust You, Lord

In the eye of the storm (yeah, yeah)

You remain in control

In the middle of the war (middle of the war)

You guard my soul (yeah!)

You alone are the anchor

When my sails are torn

Your love surrounds me (yeah!)

In the eye of the storm

You remain in control (yes you do, Lord)

In the middle of the war (in the middle of the war)

You guard my soul

You alone are the anchor

When my sails are torn

Your love surrounds me

In the eye of the storm

Oh, in the eye of

Lord, in the eye of the storm

I know You’re watching me, yeah

Ay

When the storm is raging (when the storm is raging)

And my hope is gone (and my hope is gone, Lord)

When my flesh is failing

You’re still holding on, oh whoa

When the storm is raging (the storm is raging)

And my hope is gone (and all my hope is gone)

When my flesh is failing (my flesh is failing)

You’re still holding on, ooh

When the storm is raging (when the storm is raging)

And my hope is gone (and my hope is gone)

Even when my flesh is failing (flesh is failing)

You’re still holding on, holding on

The Lord is my Shepherd

I have all that I need

He let’s me rest in green meadows

He leads me beside peaceful streams

He renews my strength

He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to His Name

Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid

For You are close beside me

Changes…

We moved. Due to Hurricane Harvey we felt it necessary to relocate. Our home suffered no damage, (Thank You, Jesus!!), but my husband decided that he no longer wanted us to live so near the coast. We’re in the Dallas area now and absolutely loving it. I miss my church family but I’m loving getting to know our new church family! We attend First Pentecostal Church in Dallas, better known as Dallas First Church.

Deuce is quizzing on a new bible quiz team and he is loving it!

He’s in scouts and loving it. He’s also in a local public school which he isn’t loving as much but he is beginning to adjust.

That’s what relocation is. Adjustment. We must all go through a time of adjustment in our lives. Maybe that means new cities, or schools, or churches. Maybe that means adjusting to your new walk with Christ! Getting to know and following Jesus can seem overwhelming at first. You don’t know what to say or how to act now. It’s a whole new mindset that you’re learning, and adjusting takes time. That’s okay! No one expects you to be perfect. Least if all Him! The most important thing to remember is to try your best to live holy. A scripture that comes to mind is Joshua 1:9…

“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

Such awesome words to remember when changes or adjustments in your life hit you!

So just remember, He’s with you always! Throughout any and all changes that may occur. His footsteps are beside yours. He’s holding your hand, and when the weight of adjustment gets to be too burdensome, don’t fret. Just give it to God and he’ll take care of it!

Homeschool

So we’ve decided to homeschool Deuce this coming school year. He’s 9 now. We weren’t unhappy with the education he was getting at his previous school. We’re just looking for something different. Something a little more challenging. I’ve spent the last few months looking into different curriculum. So far we’ve decided on The Good & The Beautiful for language arts. It’s faith based which is important to us. We’re considering Saxon for math but there are soooo many different options for every subject, that the choosing gets overwhelming!! While he’s mentioned that he’ll miss seeing his friends, he’s excited for this new journey. Also, it isn’t like he’ll NEVER see them again. He sees them every Sunday, Wednesday, and Saturday at church. Not to mention bible quizzing (more about that in another post) starts soon so he’ll also see them there. I understand how important cultivating friendships are and I plan to do everything I can to maintain those connections. 

Our reasons for homeschooling vary. From financial to faith-based to cultural. It was definitely something that my husband and I prayed about before deciding. Now that the decision has been made, we’re all very excited. 

Are their any other homeschool moms/dads that want to weigh in on this subject? Or make recommendations?? Why did your family decide to homeschool? What have you all gained/lost from homeschooling? What curriculum options or books do you suggest?

100 Years for First United Pentecostal Church in Port Arthur Texas!

This past weekend our church celebrated 100 years! We commemorated this occasion with a ground breaking ceremony at the site where our new church will be located.

Awesome men of God (our pastor Darryl McCoy is in the center)

The events continued that night with a service at our current church with a sermon from Pastor Matthew Tuttle from Eastgate UPC. The message titled The Blessing is in the Basket was poignant and really spoke to me. It told the story of Jesus feeding the 5000 because of a little boys 5 loaves of bread, and 2 fish. That’s all he had, and he gave it ALL to Jesus! He had a family that, that could have gone to, and it wasn’t nearly enough to feed 5000 but he gave it anyway. And God made it enough. The little boy had faith that God would make it enough, and he was rewarded! Was I honestly giving all I could, or just the bare minimum? Am I missing out on a blessing because I don’t have enough faith in God to trust him to provide for my every need? Well no more! From now on I give my all to God!

Sundays message was just as awesome! Preached by Pastor Joey McCoy, it was titled The Ingredients for a Miracle. One thing I love about his sermons is that there’s always a funny story or anecdote! This time he spoke on baking chocolate chip cookies and how when he found out there were eggs in it he was sure that it was a mistake! Cookies only needed a few things: Flour, sugar, ‘some kind of powder’, and chocolate.
Also he noted the length of time it took to actually make the cookies. Toooo loooong! He preferred the quickness of the pre-made frozen kind. But you know what? Miracles don’t always happen quickly. And sometimes the ‘ingredients’ needed aren’t what you expect!

Ugh I just wish you could have been with us this weekend to experience history being remembered, and history being made!

Summer’s Over

Well it’s that time of year again. Time to get new school shoes and pencils and whatnot. This year Deuce will be going to public school. He went to the Christian Academy last year but his daddy is teaching at a school in a different district so for ease of transportation (we are a one car family) he will be car pooling with dad.

School starting again also means schedules and lists. I’ve had planners in the past and they just haven’t worked for me. So what does one do in that situation? You guessed it. Pinterest! After a late night scroll or twenty I came across an idea that I loved.  I’m calling it The Book. I printed out some calendar sheets I found free online and put them in a three ring black binder. I added notebook paper for prayer lists, menu options, and random notes I might need to write down. I’m still working on a cover design, but I’m definitely digging what I have so far.

Ladies Shut In

So Thursday night and all day and night Friday I was at a women’s lock in at Anointed Tabernacle in Beaumont Texas. So many words come to mind when I think of what I experienced for the last day and a half. The most prevalent though, is AWESOME! You’ll find that I use that word a lot lol. I saw women getting the Holy Ghost for the first time, I saw women being baptized in Jesus name, I heard prophecies. I saw an angel! The spirit was really moving in that place and I feel so blessed that I got to experience it all.

On the last night a man came in. I watched as they lifted him from his wheel chair and laid him on the alter. They laid hands on him. They prayed over him. I watched as the spirit overtook him. I watched as he lifted his hands to God. I watched the tears flow down his face as he spoke in tongues, and I rejoiced with him! When they put him back in his chair, I watched as he wheeled a lap around the sanctuary! Seeing the pure joy on his face as he went down in that water and came up a new man was a beautiful sight to behold.

There was so much I didn’t know when I got there. How to pray was one of them. I always felt silly praying; in public and in private. I’m naturally a shy person which plays a part in my finding this difficult. There was a lady there who sat and talked to me for about two hours. She was so helpful and I will forever be grateful that I had the opportunity to speak with her. They handed out packets when we got there. They were filled with all kinds of goodies about praying and fasting. She was kind enough to take some time and answer some questions I’ve had for awhile and have been too embarrassed to ask. I told her things about myself that I had never told anyone else. It was such a cleansing and eye opening experience!

Going forward, I hope to grow in Christ and build on the things that were revealed to me in listening to Sis Warner, and the last prophecy in particular.

Sunday Dinner

Made my guys lasagna for dinner. Sr said it tasted “gourmet”. I’ll take it! Lol. We had garlic bread and there were brownies for dessert.

No pictures of the brownies though. Sr got to them rather quickly.  I made them with my (new to me) Kitchen Aid mixer. It was given to me by a really sweet lady in our church. I’m LOVING it and can’t wait to use it this holiday season!