'Voice of Truth'

One of the songs that has recently really spoken to me & resonated with my spirit is the Casting Crowns song, "Voice of Truth" The lyrics are the song of my heart. Wish I were better at listening to the voice of truth instead of the waves & the giants.

Voice of Truth
by Casting Crowns

Oh,what I would do to have
the kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves
To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown
Where Jesus is,
And he's holding out his hand

But the waves are calling out my name
and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
time and time again
"Boy, you'll never win,
you'll never win."

But the Voice of truth tells me a different story
the Voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the Voice of truth says "this is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of truth

Oh, what I would do
to have the kind of strength it takes
To stand before a giant
with just a sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound
of a thousand warriors
shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand

But the giant's calling out
my name and he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
time and time again
"Boy you'll never win,
you'll never win."

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
the Voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the Voice of truth says "this is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of truth

But the stone was just the right size
to put the giant on the ground
and the waves they don't seem so high
from on top of them looking down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
when I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
singing over me

But the Voice of truth tells me a different story
The Voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
And the Voice of truth says "this is for my glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me (calling out to me)
I will choose to listen and believe (I will choose to listen and believe)
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of truth

I will listen and believe
I will listen and believe the Voice of truth
I will listen and believe
'Cause Jesus you are the Voice of truth
And I will listen to you.. oh you are the Voice of truth

My '35 weeks' Belly Photos

Self-portraits of my pregnancy belly at 35 weeks!

Is God ever Silent?

Question:

Is God ever really silent or does it only seem like that to us sometimes because we aren't really listening or just can't hear Him for whatever reason?

I began to wonder this the other day while listening to BarlowGirl sing, "I believe in God even when He is silent."

Then I had a dream last night that was full of dialog with God where through many methods He kept pointing out how we often fall into patterns of using objects & routines as ways of communicating with Him. As an example from my dream--If we find Him behind a curtain then we tend to keep going back to that curtain expecting Him to be there to speak to us every time. We turn the curtain into the object of our attention rather than the living active God who only used the curtain for His purpose in our life once and is now wanting us to be with Him elsewhere.

Back to my question--Is God ever really silent or can we just not hear Him when He speaks because we get so far out of touch?

One could argue that if in no other way--His voice is always present in His created world as described in Romans 1:20 "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead" and Psalm 19:1 "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." But are these "declarations" from nature remotely equivilant to God actually speaking to us through His Holy Spirit?

What do you think...is God ever silent?

One Year of Blogging!

It has been one year since I started this blog! 132 posts in one year...not too shabby. I gotta say that it hasn't been quite the journally-opening-up format that I had envisioned when I began but it sure has been fun and has become a much more prominent aspect of my life than I anticipated. When I began I was familiar with only one blog...Shay's and now I read & follow nearly 40 different blogs and am always exploring blogs around their borders. I love having a place to share peices of my life, things that I have moved me and photos of my children. It's fun to think that there may be someone else finding pleasure in the things that I have to say & the photos, quotes, & videos I have to share. It gives me a satisfaction that was lacking before I became a member of the blogging world.

Blogging has really been a valued part of my life this year and I hope to continue this hobby for many more years! Thanks for reading & thanks for sharing!

Sixth Anniversary

Yesterday was the sixth anniversary of my wedding day when I said "I do" to the greatest guy I know. I originally had planned for Russ' parents to watch the kids while Russ & I went on a weekend trip to Denver but since we decided to remodel I decided it would be more prudent to skip the mini-vacation. However, knowing I would be a bit down if we sat around the house all day, Russ and the girls and I went on a quick day trip to Cheyenne. Russ gave me roses & we ate breakfast at Micky D's before skipping church & town and driving away from the Sunday routine.

We didn't do much. Did some light shopping, browsed a furniture store & Lowes, ate lunch at Qdoba & dinner at the Olive Garden. Nothing much. Started for home about 7:30 ish. Jasmine left her "Woobie" at a gas station on the way home & so she's been a bit distraught about that. We're going to have to make a trip to retrieve it soon, I think. We got home about 9:30 and put the girls to bed & snuggled and talked for awhile. It was a nice day. Nothing wild & crazy but I was just happy to get out of the house.

Any day spent with the man I love is a good day.
Happy Anniversary, Honey.
I love you.
(Eden took this photo outside The Olive Garden. She was so cute holding up that big camera! She looked at it and said, "It has Jasmine's eyes in it!" Sure enough!)

My Brother

Today my brother, J., turns 27. Since he thinks cards are a waste of money I decided to honor him in this way instead. He is one of the most generous, sensitive, caring guys I know. We haven't always got along and he sometimes has a hard time expressing affection but I know that he loves me and I very much love & care about him even though I am not the best at showing it either.

We had so much fun as kids. With just two years age difference and living in the country we were each other's primary playmates when we were young. We spent a lot of time exploring the ranch & messing up Grandpa's hay bales. We stayed up late playing Clue & Stratego. We got up early together to watch Saturday morning cartoons.

We fought a lot, too. We spent a good deal of time arguing, wrestling, pulling hair, & gouging with fingernails. He read my diary and I dipped his toothbrush in the toilet. We'd call Grandma to intervene over the phone when Mom wasn't around and we just generally had a normal, healthy sibling relationship. ;)

After we both hit puberty, we didn't spend quite as much time together outside of our mutual extra-curricular activities, Speech & Theatre (although it was probably a lot more than a lot of siblings spend together during high school.) I don't know what he thought of me during those teen years but my affection for him only deepened. I was proud of him.

Now that we are both living our adult lives with our spouses & children, that has certainly not changed. We may not see each other a lot or talk as frequently as some siblings do but I love him and am so proud of the man (husband/dad/Christian) he has become. I adore his wife & his children and think that he does a fine job of taking care of them.

Love you, Brother. Happy Birthday! Thanks for everything.

Wordless Wednesday: "Piggys!"

Mensa joke

I am signed up with a daily newsletter that sends clean jokes to my email. This is today's and I found it quite funny. (I think I'd heard this story before but it still amused me.) It demonstrates how sometimes the smartest people miss the simplest solutions.

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Mensa is an organization whose members have an IQ of 140 or higher.

A few years ago, there was a Mensa convention in San Francisco, and several members lunched at a local cafe. While dining, they discovered that their saltshaker contained pepper and their pepper shaker was full of salt. How could they swap the contents of the bottles without spilling, and using only the implements at hand?

Clearly this was a job for Mensa! The group debated and presented ideas, and finally came up with a brilliant solution involving a napkin, a straw, and an empty saucer. They called the waitress over to dazzle her with their solution.

"Ma'am," they said, "we couldn't help but notice that the pepper shaker contains salt and the salt shaker..."

"Oh," the waitress interrupted. "Sorry about that." She unscrewed the caps of both bottles and switched them.

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Link to more jokes like this one: cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh

Splash Pad!

So this weekend my sister-in-law and her kids came for a visit and we finally made it to our zoo's new splash pad! The kids seemed to have lots of fun and I got a few cute photos.

32 weeks

Are people really this dumb...er, I mean 'uneducated'?

Expectations & Responsibilities: An Excerpt from 'The Shack'

I just finished 'The Shack' by Wm. Paul Young. Very intriguing read. In it the main character (Mack) engages in conversation with the Trinity. It certainly makes you think about our relationship with the Lord in a new way & challenges preconceived ideas about God. Certainly should be read with an open mind but taken with a grain of salt. Anytime a person (I find Wm. Paul Young quite bold!) dares speak for God it is dangerous, but if it is read with the right attitude this book is well worth the short time it takes to read it. I thought I'd share a passage that was especially interesting to me and give you a taste...

""But, argued Mack, "if you didn't have expectations and responsibilities, wouldn't everything just fall apart?"

"Only if you are of the world, apart from me, and under the law. Responsibilities and expectations are the basis of guilt and shame and judgement, and they provide the essential framework that promotes performance as the basis for identity and value. You know well what it is like not to live up to someone's expectations."

"Boy, do I!" Mack mumbled. "It's not my idea of a good time." He paused briefly, a new thought flashing through his mind. "Are you saying you have no expectations of me?"

Papa now spoke up. "Honey, I've never placed an expectation on you or anyone else. The idea behind expectations requires that someone does not know the future or outcome and is trying to control behavior to get the desired result. Humans try to control behavior largely through expectations. I know you and everything about you. Why would I have an expectation other than what I already know? That would be foolish. And beyond that, because I have no expectations, you never disappoint me."

"What? You've never been disappointed in me?" Mack was trying hard to digest this.

"Never!" Papa stated emphatically. "What I do have is a constant and living expectancy in our relationship, and I give you an ability to respond to any situation and circumstance in which you find yourself. To the degree that you resort to expectations and responsibilities, to that degree you neither know me nor trust me."

"And," added Jesus, "to that degree you will live in fear.""

If you want to know more, read the book and/or visit the website-- www.theshackbook.com