Just one of those days.....

Its been one of those weeks for our family where it just seems like we are mentally and physically worn down. It seems like any and every little silly thing that could have gone wrong throughout the week has. Nothing major or catastrophic but just little annoyances all week long that have been non stop. Maybe I give Satan too much credit but for me it always seems like when God is moving and He is doing big things Satan will try to use every little piddly thing he can to break us down mentally, physically and spiritually. It doesnt have to be a life crisis but anytime a roadblock is thrown in your way to interfere with your momentum and what God is doing it can be difficult.

One of the more difficult days for me this past week was Wednesday. It was raining like crazy (again), I was having some computer issues, I stepped in dog you know what in my favorite pair of tennis shoes, spilled a little glass of milk all over my dresser in between the drawers, I just felt blah and was having one of those days where I just felt like I couldnt catch a break. Do you know what I'm talking about? A day where you try to push forward and be optimistic and positive throughout the day but then the next thing you know you have dropped your favorite glass plate, dinner was nasty, another bill comes rolling in the mail, your late to an important appointment, communication between you and your spouse is just off, your kids aren't listening, the dog is even riding that last never you feel like you have in your entire body and seperately you can deal with it but all together you just feel like you want to hide in a corner and scream? That was my Wednesday as well as Scotts and Macies, so it was triple blah for our house that day.

I have shared this story on fb and with a few of my friends but Wednesday after I stepped in the dog stuff and got drenched by rain walking to get Macie from school her and I were talking about how her day was and the events of her day at school. Throughout the conversation I learned that one of the little boys in her class that she often talks about and seems to really like was upset with her. I started asking her why he was mad at her and the details were scarce and really she wasnt real sure of why. The more we talked the more information I got from the story and by putting the pieces together I learned that she was showing him something, or making a motion for something and happened to use her middle finger and he interpreted it as her flipping him off. The boy told the teacher on Macie and she didnt get in trouble but she was just so confused about the whole situation. We don't use gestures like that in our house or use curse words so I explained to Macie what using that gesture can mean and how it can be used for bad things. During my explanation a wave of disbelief and sadness rolled over Macies little face and she started sobbing uncontrolably. It broke my heart because I realized in that moment that a piece of her innocense was lost. She was clueless that it ever meant anything bad and the guilt she felt because of what it meant and the thought that her friend interpreted as her making such a negative nasty gesture towards him really broke her heart. The situation turned out ok but it just really bothered me.

It was a moment as a parent that I realized how harsh this world can be sometimes and how much it can completely take the wind out of our sails. This is a new journey for Macie and for Scott and I and life can be tough, there are going to be times where the world will throw things our way to try and break our spirits and tear us down. It was a reminder to me that even as adults at how difficult life can be for us and and how there are things even still for us that can really take us by suprise.  Satan will try and use 20 little disasters thrughout a day to work on our hearts and bring us down. Wednesday was difficult for us but that evening having Scott and I at praise band practice together with Macie sitting there hanging out with us after picking her up from Caravan (kids Weds night church) I just felt a sense of relief and peace because regardless of how yucky that day was God was still who He says He is, He was still powerful and mighty and loving and compassionate and singing and worshiping during practice I thought "ha ha Satan you still havent won, YOU WILL NOT BREAK OUR SPIRITS and YOU WILL NOT GET IN THE WAY OF WHAT GOD IS DOING!!!!!!" Thank You Jesus that even when we have terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days, God has still won and His mercies are new each day!

Just remember when your having one of "those days" that God is still good and everything may be going wrong that could possibly go wrong but thats what Satan wants, he wants to use those little disasters to pick and pick and pick at you until your focus is shifted from the goodness of Christ. Call upon the name of Jesus in those moments and hand the battle physically and emotionally over to Him. Allow Him to fight the fight and to have the victory against the enemy. Declare to the world that "I may stumble but I will not be broken, you have not one ounce of my strength, my joy, and part of my life Satan and I cast you out in the name of Jesus and declare that my God will still have the ultimate victory.

Instant gratification......

I have been thinking this past week about the many uncertainties in my life as well as so many others around me and how as humans we really hate this concept. We have quickly become a society of instant gratification. We walk up to a vending machine hungry for a tasty snack and expect to put our money in and have our treat fall quickly to the bottom of the machine into our grasp within seconds. But what if when we go to the vending machine, we put our money in the slot and then that metal corcsrew looking things turns only slightly causing our candy bar to get stuck? We all know exactly what happens but only some are willing to admit this i'm sure but we instantly become upset and start banging and shaking the machine because we are so bent out of shape that we can't have what we want now. I mean sure we put something into that machine and so we expect results right now!!!!!!!!!!

Think of all the things that we now have which gives us what we want when we want it. E-mail is the first thing that comes to mind, its so much faster than what we now call snail mail. We can get on the internet send an e-mail and within a matter of minutes receive a reply. Texting is also a new contributor to our instant gratification society. Instead of taking the time to call or e-mail we text. Some people like it because they can even text while driving so that not a minute is wasted out of their days, they can text and do other things all at once and get the information they need from another person right now. We also have drive thrus, we not only have food drive thrus we now have pharmacy drive thrus, car washes and who knows what else is to come. I often find myself laughing at the commercial where the woman pulls up to the drive through and has her eyes screened...i wouldn’t seriously doubt it if we didn’t have drive through optometrist someday the rate our world is going. Back to food drive thrus, i think its amazing you can call your order into a restaurant and they will bring it out to your car so that you can have a full course meal for your entire family within minutes. We now have microwave rice-a roni which only takes 15 minutes to make on the stove but yet they have cut it down to taking 3 minutes in the microwave, which by the way we have tried and I think its disgusting. But our marekting agencies around the world are continuing to make millions and millions of dollars off of our lack of patience.

We are a society that doesn’t have time to stop and be still....therefore when we are faced with a crisis we find ourselves completely overwhelmed that we can't have the answers right now!!! I have found myself in situations in the past where I cried out to the Lord for answers to my problems but under one stipulation I wanted them now!!! God doesn’t always tell us what we want when we want to hear it, and I am glad for this, because I think in a lot of situations if God gave us the answer right then we actually wouldn’t be prepared for it anyways. If He tried to show us the way we should go or the reason for something we would think it was just plain crazy and wouldnt be in a place to understand why. Psalm 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God." This verse makes me think God is saying, would you just chill out and be patient i got this under control....not you but I. Just like the rice a roni- sure we can have the answers much faster but in the end its really not what we were expecting and if we would have just waited a little longer instead of taking the quick fix than it would have been just right and much better. Psalm 37:7 "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men suceed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes." Dont worry about what is going on around us or what others are doing or the way their prayers are being answered, but instead focus on what God is going to do in your life as you wait patiently before Him placing your lives in His hands. During times of uncertainties in our lives we are required to be still and wait on the Lord...this is so hard for me and I am sure so many others because i have become accustomed to the instant gratification idea. But during those times where we must wait on the Lord we experience some of the most awesome blessings just because we have a few minutes to be still.

We have experienced this in the past in many ways but one in particular that i remember is when Scott was trying to find a teaching job. He had a few interviews and we started to become so frustrated because we didn’t understand why he wasn’t getting a job right now like we wanted....but in the end He ended up getting a job that was his top choice and if he would have gotten one of the other ones in the beginning yes we would have had our prayers answered quicker but it wouldn’t have been what was best for us.

Something I think about often is that I find myself feeling the most relaxed and rested at the dr’s. office. I know this sounds silly but when you are waiting for the dr. there is nothing else to do but just sit there and be still.....sure you have other things to do when you leave but until you get out of that office you can do nothing else but to sit and wait patiently. So I guess this is just an encouragement to take more opportunities to be still for a few minutes and to try and be less dependent on instant gratification...because like I have already said although its quick its not always best!!!!

You want me to do what???

This video by Beth Moore is one of the most touching and beautiful stories I have ever seen. I have seen this video and her tell this very same story on different shows and occasions and everytime I watch it I still get "God bumps" and become speechless. Watch this video and see what I mean.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Xtk5WgzZcYA

In this video Beth talks of a man she meets waiting for a flight at an airport. This man is an elderly, wheelchair ridden, fraile man. He has the longest most matted hair hanging down in his face and is a sight that grab the attention of everyone around. As Beth sees this man sitting there she feels a deep calling of the Holy Spirit on her in that moment to approach this man. Because Beth is so sensitive to the Spirits leading in her life when she feels the Spirit moving her in a certain direction she is obedient. This situation caught Beth off guard and made her nervous, it put Beth out of her comfort zone and although she though the Lord wanted her to witness to this man she learned that the Spirit was calling her to brush this mans matted, long, unkempt hair. She didnt know at the time that this man had been in the hospital and hadn't had any help getting his hair cut or brushed so that when he got home to his wife of many many years he would feel good and presentable for his bride, his love. Beth was obedient and this lead to her sharing Jesus with a flight attendant who witnessed this true act of what it means to be the hands and feet of Jesus. There are many times in life where I have felt the Spirit leading me to serve or be the hands and feet that Jesus would want me to be but instead I turned the other way. God doesnt always call us to witness to others by just preaching the Bible but just simple acts that are done with love and tenderness is a way that can truely reach into the heart of someone that needs to see Jesus in the everyday little moments in life.

Matthew 25:35 to 36 (NIV) ~ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.

Beth Moore could have walked away from the elderly man when she felt the Spirit saying she needed to brush his hair. He would have never known but instead she followed the Spirits leading and with gentleness and love brushed his hair and in that moment it was exactly what this man needed. We come to find through the video that this man already knew Jesus but that day He needed to know the love of Jesus in a simple human act. How much better would our world be if we followed the voice of the Holy Spirit in our lives each day and acted with love, gentleness, tenderness and compassion to those that need a helping hand? I just encourage you that if you feel the Spirit leading you to reach out to someone, regardless of whether its witnessing to them about the Bible or just providing a basic need go for it. The Lord will provide whatever you need in that moment if He is calling you to be used. He will provide the resources, wisdom and words to offer that person in that moment. It may seem scarey but I guarantee you will be blessed in huge ways for your obedience. The simplest things in life to us can mean the most to someone so desperate to feel loved and nurtured in that moment.

"I'm tired, pick me up daddy"

We had an amazing weekend as a family in the Cameron household. It was jam packed but filled with memory after memory I will treasure forever. Saturday we had Macie's last soccer game, then went to find pumpkins at the pumpkin patch, after lunch we decided to try and fly kites which was a blast but not too successful. The wind was crazy and by the time we were finished we all felt like we had the snot beat out of us. At this point it was only 1:00 and we were all exhausted. Walking home from the field we tried to fly our kite in Macie put on those puppy dog eyes and hinted Scotts way that she was tired and wanted him to carry her on his shoulders the rest of the way.


Seeing this it melted my heart and was a reminder to me about how often life wears us down. We feel like we go through the motions everyday of busyness and chaos and although we have joyous things we also experience hardships and sometimes it just gets exhausting. I remember a specific time in my life and it was a year and a half ago. I had just had my second emergency surgery in 8 months and was at a pretty low point in my life. I am sharing this because the Lord has delivered me from this period in my life and I really feel like someone will understand exactly what I mean today. I was miserable to wake up each day in the same circumstance. I kept thinking it was all a dream, that when I woke up in the morning I wouldn't be in physical pain anymore, I wouldn't have a giant wound and iv tubes connected to me. I would be able to go throughout my day like a normal 27 year old, I would be able to cook, clean, play with my daughter but I couldn't. For months I lived in this place of really feeling miserable, I never lost hope and always told myself that although I didn't want to feel like that any longer I had to for my daughters sake and that nothing lasts forever.

I know this sounds so basic but literally I remember waking up in the morning and the realization hitting me that nothing had changed and just sobbing because I didn't know how I would face another day like that. Scott can testify to this and was an amazing support for me during those difficult times. I remember coming to a point though where I just cried out to God and said "ok I give up, I can't do this anymore I need you to pick me up and carry me through this time." It was the same desperate plea that Macie gave her daddy this weekend when her little legs were so tired from the journey she had been facing that day, she just needed him to intervene, pick her up and carry her the rest of the way. For me it was about just getting by each day for awhile as best as I could. It was about trusting that God would sustain me in each moment, whatever that meant. Maybe it meant a good nights sleep, a painless visit from the nurse, a bath to feel refreshed, literally I lived off the little moments to carry me through to a time where the load was a little easier.

I admire the support so many people have given us but I felt like I needed to share this story today because I'm not superwoman, I try to be optimistic and strong through the difficulties life throws our way but I have had many moments of weakness myself. I am the person I am today and I face the situations in front of us today with optimism because I know where we have been before, I know what I have gone through physically and emotionally and although it could always be better I remember many dark times where things were much worse and I will praise my Jesus for that. I will praise my Jesus because seasons in life are only temporary and God will always provide what we need to sustain us in that moment. Lamentations 3:22-23"Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Whatever you are facing right now just know you don't have to do it on your own. You may feel wiped out, exhausted, not sure how you will get up in the morning and live the pain you are facing in your life another day. I don't know what your going through but I know that nothing can last forever. If you can get up each day and place your life in the hands of Jesus and trust Him to pick you up and carry you for awhile, allow Him to give you a break from walking the journey on your own feet alone, allow Him to be your strength. Like a father does for His child God wants to do for us His children, in our times of weakness and desperation He longs for us to turn to Him and say "please pick me up and carry me daddy I can't walk anymore I'm so tired."

It doesn't mean your days will instantly change but it will mean that you don't have to do it anymore on your own strength alone. It may mean just doing whatever you can to make it through the day and searching for whatever little moments you can each day to offer little flickers of hope in the darkness. I promise you if you hang on joy will come, seasons don't last forever and are only temporary. Thank You Jesus for where you have brought me and what You have brought me through, You have turned my mourning into dancing!

Embracing the person God has designed you to be....

There is something to be said about being comfortable in your own skin. This is so hard especially as women i think. Its not so much as being content with what we look like on the outside, our hair, our height, our weight, or the clothes that we wear but instead its about being ok with who we are. Its about  being ok with the person that God designed us to be. Every flaw, imperfection, passion, strength, all those pieces come together for a reason and finding a reason and purpose behind all that is what makes every person unique.

This is something I am really learning right now I feel. I never felt like I focused so much on self esteem kind of characteristics and being ok or not ok with them but I know there were often quirks in my personality that I wasnt ok with. There were things that I would find mysef doing that seemed unique and instead of embracing that I saw it as an imperfection. I know parents who love to help out at their childrens schools, they are involved with the PTA and sign up for every possible thing they can to help out with childrens ministries at church or sports and for me I don't really care for those things. I know this sounds terrible so let me explain. I looooove my daughter and feel like I am the best mom I can and know how to be and would do anything for my daughter. For her 6th Birthday this year I made cupcakes and decorated them with sprinkles and all and took them in to share with her whole class and would do anything I could to support and nurture her and be apart of her life but I don't feel like being inovled with Childrens things more than that is my passion or my strength. I enjoy music and like to sing but its not a huge passion of mine to be apart of the choir or to go Christmas caroling. Some people love selling things, having small businesses, being Avon or Scentsy consultants which I think takes a huge talent and special gift but its just not me.

I have learned that instead of seeing myself as not good at those things I change my focus to what I am good at and what I'm passionate about and thank God for giving me the gifts for those areas. I love writing and sharing Jesus through my life stories which is why I started this blog, I love being an encourager and giving little gifts to people I love. I love nurturing women and mentoring younger college age girls and sharing my life and experiences with them and helping them and praying for them. I like to make people laugh, I like cooking for my husband and family. I like being able to have a neat and cozy house for my family and try really hard making everyone who comes to our house feel welcome and comfortable. It took me a long time to truely be ok with who God has designed me to be. I still have my days where I wish I could sing like "Kari Jobe" or bake an amazing birthday cake unlinke my terrible baking skills. I have days I wish I enjoyed going to the zoo and looking at the animals or watching musicals but thats just not me and I am becoming ok with that.

I am becoming ok that although there are many things that just arent me or I may not be good at or be passionate about there are so many other things I am good at and am passionate about. Its about becoming ok with the things that God has created you for and nurturing that strength, its about truely embracing your uniqueness and knowing that although you may be different and you may not be able to do the things your friend can do its what makes you who you are. Psalm 139: 13-15 "Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother's womb. I thank you, High God—you're breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something."

I am learning that I have so many amazing friends and family that are all so different from me, I could name person after person and tell you how unique and talented they are but yet so different and so beautiful. I am thankful today that God chose to make me the person I am, with different quirks, strengths, passions and gifts. Whoever God has designed you to be I just encourage you this week to grab ahold of all those intricate details and be joyful in your own skin, embrace the beauty of who you are :)

Great Reminder....

I read this section from the book "Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free" and to me it was such an amazing reminder when we feel so out of whack and life seems crazy how constant and loving our God is.

In the midst of the roller-coaster ride our emotions sometimes take us on, we have to constantly bring our minds and thoughts back to the Truth. The Truth is, God is good, whether I feel like He is good or not. The Truth is, God loves me, whether I feel loved or not. The Truth is through faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ on my behalf, I am forgiven, whether I feel forgiven or not. The truth is, God will never leave me or forsake me; he is with me all the time, even when I feel alone or forsaken.

Thank You Jesus....

My praise today....

Thank You Jesus for the sunshine, thank You Jesus for the leaves that crunch below my feet. Thank You Jesus for seasons in life and the fact that those seasons are just temporary and always changing and bringing about new life, new discoveries, new beauty and wonder. Thank You Jesus for seasons in my life that have caused me to grow and change more into the wife, mother and woman You want me to be. Thank You Jesus that although the seasons can bring harshness and pain, Your mercies are new every morning and Your faithfulness always enough for my soul. Today I am reminded of how blessed I am each day, so I just want to say, thank You Jesus......