Last week Tim found the song, "The more I seek you"by Kari Jobe. I remember singing this song in college at our college church service and how powerful the words were/are. It took all within recently not to break down in tears... in a good way. Below are the lyrics, but this song starts out, "The more I seek you, the more I find you.... the more I find you, the more I love you". I just love that. God is not hiding from us, He is waiting for us to look to Him... to rest in Him... to experience His love.
Everyone grew up with different life experiences which lead them to understand God in a certain way. Alot of times I am finding it's been a negative experience of legalism, not being good enough, or misinterpretation of who God is. The truth is, The more we seek Him through His Word (the bible), the more we find Him... a true understanding of who He is. Not what our parents taught us as children, not who our culture says He is, but a true, loving, gracious God that the bible teaches. The more we find Him, the more we love Him. When God reveals himself to you(Roman 3:11 "there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God", Luke 19:10 "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”) It's all you can do... love Him. When we know who God truly is, you can't help but be thankful that a powerful, humble God loves us in all our imperfection, bitterness, and brokeness. God is not expecting us to be perfect or to obey a list of do's and don'ts. He desires for us to recognize our need for a Savior and to know we are dead in our sin and can only experience true freedom and life in Christ.
"One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple."
Psalm 27:4
"For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened."
Matthew 7:8
The more i seek you,
the more i find you.
The more i find you,
the more I love you
I wanna sit at your feet
drink from the cup in your hand.
Lay back against you and breath,
hear your heart beat
This love is so deep,
it's more than I can stand.
I melt in your peace, it's overwhelming
The more i seek you,
the more i find you.
The more i find you,
the more I love you
I wanna sit at your feet
drink from the cup in your hand.
Lay back against you and breath,
hear your heart beat
This love is so deep,
it's more than I can stand.
I melt in your peace, it's overwhelming
I wanna sit at your feet
drink from the cup in your hand.
Lay back against you and breath,
hear your heart beat
This love is so deep,
it's more than I can stand.
I melt in your peace, it's overwhelming
I wanna sit at your feet
drink from the cup in your hand.
Lay back against you and breath,
hear your heart beat
This love is so deep,
it's more than I can stand.
I melt in your peace..
Psalm 63:5 "You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy."
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Storm
It's funny when you are going through a storm in your life, sometimes you don't recognize it as a storm until you are coming out of it. We moved to Austin a little over a year and a half ago and man, it was such an exciting time, but such a hard time in our lives. Tim had just graduated from seminary, we had our first child 2 days later, became parents, moved to Austin, helped start a new church (North Village Church), started an apartment ministry at our complex, Tim started a new dog walking business and worked for the church part time, experienced the loss of my close cousin, and we started all over with community.
Wow, crazy to list it all like that. Needless to say, lots of transitions at one time. Tim has always been conscious of spreading out our transitions in life, but this was out of his control. At the time, all of this played a toll on our personal life, our marriage and our involvement in the lives of others.
There were moments of feeling overwhelmed and inadequate in my role as a wife, a mother, a pastor's wife, a leader of an apartment ministry, and the list continues. God used that season in my life to soften my heart and open my eyes to reveal this sweet truth... God alone will satisfy. God never promised life would be perfect, but He did promise He would ALWAYS be there. I am so thankful for a husband who is a constant encouragement, God follower, and the stable decision maker. We knew God called us to this place and to trust He is taking care of us and He alone will sustain us. Did I see this from the get-go? Capital N-O. I knew the idea of God being our true satisfaction to be true, but did not trust this to be true in my life at all times. I tried to do so much out of my own strength and ability and would just fail. How draining this was.
"I sought the LORD, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears. "
Psalm 34:4
God was telling me to run to Him.
"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed
is the one who takes refuge in him"
Psalm 34:8.
I memorized this verse years ago, but it comes up so often in my life. I have tasted and seen the Lord is good. I am blessed when I take refuge in Him because He desires for me to know He is my protector who is faithful and good.
I am so thankful God is living and active. He loves me so much.
We all go through different seasons in life. Some are short, some are long, some are never ending. No matter what it is, God is good. He is faithful. "being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6
Going through this crazy season has been a transforming time -opening the eyes of my heart to the beauty of the Lord. Having a sweet marriage with a gentle, tender man, mothering a beautiful toddler girl, sharing with other ladies my life and story, and being encouraged by God's Word has helped me be thankful for the time I have been given with my family and friends. We are not promised tomorrow and need to embrace every moment.
Our lives have slowed down tremendously and we are out of the storm for now. I am now able to see how God alone sustained us and satisfied us in hard and sweet times. So thankful for this "golden nugget" of truth. Thankful for a God who loves me in my weakness. When I am weak, He is strong. I know this to be so true in my life.
“Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the wilderness
and speak tenderly to her."
Hosea 2:14
Be encouraged, sometimes God leads us to the desert so He can speak tenderly to us and reveal His sweet love to us. He alone will satisfy.
Wow, crazy to list it all like that. Needless to say, lots of transitions at one time. Tim has always been conscious of spreading out our transitions in life, but this was out of his control. At the time, all of this played a toll on our personal life, our marriage and our involvement in the lives of others.
There were moments of feeling overwhelmed and inadequate in my role as a wife, a mother, a pastor's wife, a leader of an apartment ministry, and the list continues. God used that season in my life to soften my heart and open my eyes to reveal this sweet truth... God alone will satisfy. God never promised life would be perfect, but He did promise He would ALWAYS be there. I am so thankful for a husband who is a constant encouragement, God follower, and the stable decision maker. We knew God called us to this place and to trust He is taking care of us and He alone will sustain us. Did I see this from the get-go? Capital N-O. I knew the idea of God being our true satisfaction to be true, but did not trust this to be true in my life at all times. I tried to do so much out of my own strength and ability and would just fail. How draining this was.
"I sought the LORD, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears. "
Psalm 34:4
God was telling me to run to Him.
"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed
is the one who takes refuge in him"
Psalm 34:8.
I memorized this verse years ago, but it comes up so often in my life. I have tasted and seen the Lord is good. I am blessed when I take refuge in Him because He desires for me to know He is my protector who is faithful and good.
I am so thankful God is living and active. He loves me so much.
We all go through different seasons in life. Some are short, some are long, some are never ending. No matter what it is, God is good. He is faithful. "being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6
Going through this crazy season has been a transforming time -opening the eyes of my heart to the beauty of the Lord. Having a sweet marriage with a gentle, tender man, mothering a beautiful toddler girl, sharing with other ladies my life and story, and being encouraged by God's Word has helped me be thankful for the time I have been given with my family and friends. We are not promised tomorrow and need to embrace every moment.
Our lives have slowed down tremendously and we are out of the storm for now. I am now able to see how God alone sustained us and satisfied us in hard and sweet times. So thankful for this "golden nugget" of truth. Thankful for a God who loves me in my weakness. When I am weak, He is strong. I know this to be so true in my life.
“Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the wilderness
and speak tenderly to her."
Hosea 2:14
Be encouraged, sometimes God leads us to the desert so He can speak tenderly to us and reveal His sweet love to us. He alone will satisfy.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Christmas 2010
Christmas this year was so fun. It's always fun with my love and me, but it was definitely fun when you had a child. The joy of sharing the reason for Christmas, gift giving, and family traditions. It's been such a joyous season.
These are the Christmas gifts Neela took to school for her class. Her gifts for the teachers were Christmas blankets with a creative card. Neela was so excited. :)
We enjoyed Austin Christmas festivities and had fun in the great semi-warm weather during Christmas!
Of course we had to have a Daddy/Daughter shot. She loves her daddy. :)
Christmas morning: Hilarious... So Neela found a bag of marshmellows in the pantry and took the liberty to open the bag and start her own breakfast. So as we were getting ready in the bathroom, she sat down on the bathroom floor eating until we headed to the living room to open gifts. Before I tried to steal them from her, she stuffed her mouth full. It was so funny! Where do they learn these things! :)
This was Neela's favorite Christmas gift Christmas morning... ELMO DOLL!! Wow was she pumped. She carried that sucker around all morning with her and still does. He sings ABC's and she definitely getting great at her alphabet song. We are working on recognizing the letters. :)
Ok, so I think doing Christmas gifts and Christmas stocking all in one day is way too much for a 1 1/2 yr old. She was not as interested in her stocking at first, but then got excited when she saw the SILLY BANDS!! This girl is all girl. She loves jewelery and purses. So she put these suckers on that morning and wore them until her naptime. So funny. :)
Christmas Day evening we went to Shubhra's home (my sister) and had a big celebration with my extended family. It was really fun, full of food, games, and laughing. :) Of course Neela gave Sanjay plenty of hugs while we were there. She loves spending time with her cousins.
Hilarious story! Ok, so Tim's dad (aka Paw Paw) dressed up as Santa Claus at Shubhra's Christmas party. Normally, Neela is terrified of Santa and will not go near him, but this time when Santa came down the stairs she was waiting at the end of the stairs for Santa to be before her. When Santa looked down at her she said,
"Paw Paw!" She was not tricked by the costume and knew Paw Paw right away. It was so funny!
The day after Christmas, we went to my parent's home for Christmas with Tim's parents. They stayed with us for a few days during the Christmas break. We had such a great time with them. :) My love and me.
These are the Christmas gifts Neela took to school for her class. Her gifts for the teachers were Christmas blankets with a creative card. Neela was so excited. :)
We enjoyed Austin Christmas festivities and had fun in the great semi-warm weather during Christmas!
Of course we had to have a Daddy/Daughter shot. She loves her daddy. :)
Christmas morning: Hilarious... So Neela found a bag of marshmellows in the pantry and took the liberty to open the bag and start her own breakfast. So as we were getting ready in the bathroom, she sat down on the bathroom floor eating until we headed to the living room to open gifts. Before I tried to steal them from her, she stuffed her mouth full. It was so funny! Where do they learn these things! :)
This was Neela's favorite Christmas gift Christmas morning... ELMO DOLL!! Wow was she pumped. She carried that sucker around all morning with her and still does. He sings ABC's and she definitely getting great at her alphabet song. We are working on recognizing the letters. :)
Ok, so I think doing Christmas gifts and Christmas stocking all in one day is way too much for a 1 1/2 yr old. She was not as interested in her stocking at first, but then got excited when she saw the SILLY BANDS!! This girl is all girl. She loves jewelery and purses. So she put these suckers on that morning and wore them until her naptime. So funny. :)
Christmas Day evening we went to Shubhra's home (my sister) and had a big celebration with my extended family. It was really fun, full of food, games, and laughing. :) Of course Neela gave Sanjay plenty of hugs while we were there. She loves spending time with her cousins.
Hilarious story! Ok, so Tim's dad (aka Paw Paw) dressed up as Santa Claus at Shubhra's Christmas party. Normally, Neela is terrified of Santa and will not go near him, but this time when Santa came down the stairs she was waiting at the end of the stairs for Santa to be before her. When Santa looked down at her she said,
"Paw Paw!" She was not tricked by the costume and knew Paw Paw right away. It was so funny!
The day after Christmas, we went to my parent's home for Christmas with Tim's parents. They stayed with us for a few days during the Christmas break. We had such a great time with them. :) My love and me.
Monday, January 3, 2011
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