Author Archives: Live Abundantly Now

PRAISING GOD FOR TRUE FRIENDS

September 27, 2013 2:04 pm , 8 Comments ,

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They believe in me more than I believe in myself.

They never, ever try to compete with me or try to out do me when I’ve succeeded at something. They are happier about my successes than I am.

They squeal in excitement over my joys in life.

They cry with me over my heartaches and challenges.

They listen carefully when my heart is hurting. They pray for me when the battle is overwhelming. They cheer me on and encourage me to push myself further than I think is possible.

They don’t try to change me, but they do inspire me to be the best I can be. They love me just as I am. They are my true friends—always and forever.

“A friend loves at all times…” Proverbs 17:17 (NIV)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “True.”

The photo was downloaded at istockphoto.com

Five Minute Friday

 

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SHE SHINES AND SHE’S AN AMAZING DAUGHTER

September 20, 2013 3:08 pm , 4 Comments ,

Christa Marie 2013

From the moment I laid my eyes on her, I was overcome with love. She stole my heart. Her beauty is so much deeper than skin. She is kind. She is compassionate. There is an innocence about her that is breathtaking.

She loves Jesus with all her heart.

She loves people passionately. She gives generously. She has a heart for the poor and the needy. She lives her life in a way that puts others before herself. She loves children. She inspires me with her creativity. She has a heart of gold. The light of Christ shines through her spirit. She is Christa Marie, my firstborn child—my beloved daughter.

“Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.” Psalm 127:3 (NLT)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “She.”

Five Minute Friday

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Five Minute Friday: Mercy

September 13, 2013 4:19 pm , 6 Comments ,

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On a hot summer day, a week after my thirteenth birthday, I walked into my kitchen and saw my mother weeping. Her Bible was laying open on the table next to her, and in her eyes, I saw brokenness. I could feel the weight in the room. The air was thick with pain. I knew something really bad was happening. Suddenly, it felt as though my world was turned upside down.

My father asked my brother and me to take a ride with him in his car. Within moments of our driving away from our home, Daddy told us, “I’m leaving. I don’t love your mother anymore.” I was in shock. It wasn’t long before the pain began to rise to the surface of my heart.

My mother, who was and still is deeply in love with Christ, displayed His mercy in a way I had never seen before. In the days, and weeks following our devastating news, I watched closely as my mom responded with love and kindness. She spoke loving words about my daddy, saying, “We need to forgive him and pray for him.” She not only forgave him immediately, but she continued to love him in a Christ-like, unconditional love. She promised me that the Lord would redeem everything.

As painful as it was for me to experience such a loss and heartbreak in my childhood, I am grateful for that season in my life. It was during those youthful years that I began learning about the grace and mercy of Christ in a real and tangible way.

Now, thirty-five years later, I thank the Lord daily for His mercy and grace. It’s because of His loving-kindness and never-ending mercy that I can freely live in His love. I can love those who use and mistreat me.

His mercy enables all of us, as His followers, to love purely. His mercy heals broken hearts and makes life incredibly beautiful.

“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” Luke 6:36 (NIV)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Mercy.” Today, I had a hard time finding a good stopping point and wrote for about ten minutes.

The woman in the photo is my hero and amazing mother.

Five Minute Friday

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YOU ARE GOD’S TREASURED POSSESSION

September 11, 2013 10:30 pm , 6 Comments ,

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Condescending words roll off the tongues of people so easily. My heart jumps up and down in protest whenever I hear someone refer to themselves or others as “trash.” How could anyone refer to a person as trash? There could be nothing further from the truth. In God’s eyes, no one is trash.

There was a time in my past when I felt like trash. I had left the corporate world to focus on parenting. I no longer had titles to prove my worth. It seemed like storms were hitting us one right after the other and it left me feeling like a trailer ripped apart by a tornado.

From an earthly perspective, I was of no value to the world. It was during that time that God began showing me what a treasure I was to Him. As I spent time in prayer and truly seeking to know Christ better, I found scriptures that encouraged me and helped me see the truth about myself.

While I was reading through the Bible, I stumbled across a verse that seemed to jump off the page. “…I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,” declares the Lord Almighty.” (Haggai 2:23) As I meditated on this Bible verse, I pondered the words deeply in my soul. Could it be true?  Could I really be His signet ring?  Did He really choose me to be His treasured possession? His words melted into my heart and never again could words or opinions of a human being determine my worth. It was a revelation that changed me forever.

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As the years passed by and I fell more in love with Christ, I began understanding in a deeper way, how treasured I am. As I drew near to Christ, He drew near to me and whispered His loving words to my heart. I began writing the words I would hear in my spirit as I read the scriptures that spoke of Christ’s love for me.

As a young woman, I began writing these soft whispers that flooded my soul, and I have journals filled with words of affirmation and love. In 2009, I shared one of these love notes inspired by Jesus with a group of women at church. Today, I want for you to imagine Christ whispering these words to you.

You are My treasured possession…My beautiful daughter. You are royalty, a princess—an heir of My kingdom. I love you more than you can possibly imagine or know. There is nothing you could ever do to change My love for you. It is eternal. I love you because you are Mine. I made you in My image, for your beauty to be displayed to the world. The core of who you are is filled with gifts and talents—some of these you have discovered, others are waiting to be unveiled. Rest in My love —in knowing you are beautiful to Me. You are treasured. You are the apple of My eye. I love you just the way you are. No one loves you like I do.

Love,
Your Heavenly Father

Do you see yourself as the beautiful treasure you are to God? Every human is treasured by Christ regardless of his or her occupation, race, income level, physical features or anything else. He has dreams for every person’s life. He wants to use us and to transform us.

I pray you will always know that you truly are the apple of God’s eye and one of His most treasured possessions.

“For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be His people, his treasured possession.” Deuteronomy 7:6 (NIV)

“Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.” Psalm 17:8 (NIV)

Photography Credit: Michael von Borstel

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THE STOLEN RED CAR

September 6, 2013 4:09 pm , 2 Comments ,

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I knew something was wrong when I heard my husband’s sullen voice over the telephone. Michael spoke with a stressed tone and a sense of urgency. I was stunned as he said, “My car was just stolen. I ran into the convenience store at a gas station really quickly; when I came back out, my car was gone.” I didn’t get upset with Michael, but my heart sank into my stomach with concern as I listened to his words.

Thoughts went swirling through my mind. Actually the thoughts were more like race cars speeding through my head at ninety miles per hour. What are we going to do? How can this possibly turn out good? That car is necessary for us to make it.

The little red Honda that was taken from us that day had been given to us by a sweet lady in our church. God had laid it on her heart to give it to us during a very trying season for us.  It was about seven years ago that my husband was supporting our family by delivering pizzas  six to seven days a week while I home-schooled our children and worked various side jobs like babysitting and teaching dance to young children.

At the time we were given the car we chose not to have full insurance coverage because we needed to save every little penny we could. We only had liability insurance to cover the damage done to another person’s vehicle. I questioned whether or not that was a wise decision.

After I let the shock sink in, I hurried and picked up Michael in our other vehicle which was a huge station wagon that guzzled gas. As I was driving, I continued to ponder the reality of the situation. How could Michael use our gas-guzzling station wagon to deliver pizza? The cost of the gas would eat up the measly hourly wage he was making. And his tips were almost always barely enough to make a difference for our family.

Later, when Michael and I sat down to talk about our options, we realized we really only had one option. We had to pray and trust God to return our car.

We knew it would take a miracle. I had heard of stories when cars were stolen and later found fully stripped down. I quickly shut those thoughts out of my mind and prayed, “Lord, return to us what has been stolen. We need Your help. With You all things are possible.”

A sweet friend believed and trusted for the impossible, along with my husband and me. I was ecstatic when Michael received a call from a police officer a few weeks later. His words were sweetness to our souls, “We’ve recovered your car.” The police had found the car abandoned on the side of the road less than an hour from our house.

Amazement rose up in my spirit when we went to retrieve our car from the wrecker service lot. Not only had the car been returned. It had been upgraded. The thief had replaced our cheap hubcaps with alloy wheels.

We celebrated that day. And even though that hard season has been over now for a number of years, I’ll always remember how God used a little red Honda to show us that He truly does restore what the locusts have eaten.

“And I restore or replace for you the years that the locust have eaten…” Joel 2:25 (Amplified Bible)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Red.”  Today, I was typing as fast as I possibly could to be able to finish writing this story. It took me about fifteen minutes.

Five Minute Friday

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PRAISING GOD FOR A HEART OF WORSHIP

August 30, 2013 3:28 pm , 2 Comments ,

Fort c™tire d'altitude ˆ Douglas et Tsuga

I was in my early thirties the year I had the most darkness around me. I couldn’t seem to escape it until I began seeking Christ more wholeheartedly.

As I began learning to keep my gaze fixed upon Jesus rather than on my problems, I could see light at the end of the tunnel. Through prayer and fellowship with Him, the light began flooding out the darkness.

In those quiet moments of stillness and seeking, as I bowed before the Creator of the universe, I was overcome with the vastness of His being. Now sixteen years later, I realize that it was while experiencing painful trials that I was given a true heart of worship.

“A time will come, however, indeed it is already here, when the true (genuine) worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth (reality); for the Father is seeking just such people as these as His worshipers.” John 4:23 (Amplified Bible)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Worship.”

The picture was downloaded at stockfreeimages.com.

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Five Minute Friday: Last

August 23, 2013 12:46 pm , 6 Comments ,

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I had heard people proclaim, “I’m mad at God!.” But I had never experienced it myself until one summer evening. I had felt abandoned by the Lord at times, but this was different. I laid my head on my pillow one night and said, “Jesus, I’m mad at You.”

There was a breakthrough I needed in my life and it just wasn’t happening on my time table. So I blamed it on God. After several minutes, I fell asleep.

I woke up eight hours later thinking, “How ridiculous for me to be mad at Jesus. He’s the only One who can truly rescue me. Being mad at Him won’t help anything.” Within minutes of waking, I prayed, “Lord, forgive me for my silliness. Please forgive me for being mad at You.”

Right there, while lying in my bed, I said, “Lord, I surrender everything to You.”

Previously, I had surrendered parts of my life to Him and had been following Him for years and years. This was different though. It was a defining moment for me. It was the last time I ever tried to do things without His help and guidance.

And guess what? I received the breakthrough I was waiting on within weeks. At last, my life was permanently on the course that leads to abundance and beauty, leaving disappointment behind forever. I realized the day I surrendered everything to my Creator that I am free at last to live in His abundant peace forever until Christ returns.

“The thief only comes to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10 (NASB)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Last.”  Today, I wrote for about nine minutes, trying to find a good stopping point.

Photography Credit: Christa von Borstel

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REJOICING IN SMALL BEGINNINGS

August 16, 2013 3:42 pm , 6 Comments ,

We were ecstatic when my husband Michael was hired by a small German company after a two and half year season of him being without full-time work. But as we began to ponder the details, we realized that it wasn’t exactly what we had planned for. After all, my husband had returned to college and worked tirelessly earning a Biomedical Engineering degree. We had expected to have a better salary, better benefits, and most definitely hadn’t planned on Michael having to live in Germany for three months of training.

Without medical coverage for me and the kids, Michael worried that he may have been making a mistake by accepting this job. I wondered, “How in the world will I handle everything with my husband in another country?” After some time of wrestling with God, we surrendered to what we believed was his divine plan for our family, but not without reservations. It was hard to let go of our concerns without all of the dots connecting.

Still, we moved forward with faith. As I trusted God, I could hear His encouraging voice in my spirit. He reminded me of a scripture in Zechariah. “Do not despise small beginnings…”

Looking back, I am beyond grateful that I chose to trust God during that season of small beginnings. If we had not, our family would have missed, perhaps, the greatest blessing of our lives. Within months of Michael accepting the job with the German company, it was bought out by one of the largest corporations in the world. We were blown away by the medical benefits, the increased salary, the opportunity for promotion and growth. Who would have dreamed that our obedience in following Christ in the small things could lead to such grand, new things?

“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin…” Zechariah 4:10 (NLT)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Small.” Today, I wrote for about twelve minutes, trying to find a good stopping point.

 

Five Minute Friday

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NO LONGER LONELY

August 9, 2013 6:09 pm , 2 Comments ,

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I sat down at the dining room table and began sobbing as I faced the realities of the moment. There seemed to be multitudes of stresses in my life, and I felt all alone. I had taken the easy road and allowed a wall to go up between my husband and me that seemed to be ten thousand feet thick. It was in 1997 when I hit rock bottom.

I was desperate for Jesus. Through deep prayer, God showed me that I needed to forgive my husband in the same way He had forgiven me.

As I began to open my heart up again to my husband, he began to open his heart up to me. Brick by brick, Christ began taking down the wall that had kept us from the intimacy we both longed for.

The love we once had in our youth began to grow like a young, delicate plant, and eventually grew into a strong oak tree. Because of Christ, our lonely days are over. After twenty-eight years of marriage our love grows deeper with each passing year.

“My beloved is mine and I am his…” Song of Solomon 2:16 (NIV)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Lonely.” Today, I had a hard time finding a good stopping point. I wrote for about ten minutes.

Five Minute Friday

Posted in: Five Minute Friday, Marriage

BOLDLY SHARING MY STORY WITH STRANGERS

August 2, 2013 1:22 pm , 6 Comments ,

The Hope of Your Healing

On an ordinary day, in a check-out line, I turned around and saw sadness in the eyes of two women. They were wearing religious attire with their heads covered. I could see brokenness and fear coming from deep within their souls. I sensed within my spirit that Christ wanted for me to share a little of my story.

“If you haven’t met Jesus yet, He’s amazing,” I said with zeal.

I boldly shared my faith in Jesus not because I was condemning their lives. I shared that day and I share every opportunity I get—for one reason only—I want others to taste the amazing love of Christ. I want every person I come into contact with to know Him intimately, to know His love, to see how His story is truly the greatest, most life-changing story every told.

“For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die.” Philippians 1:20 (NLT)

I’m linking up for Five Minute Friday where Lisa Jo Baker and other awesome people write for five minutes flat with no self critiquing or no striving for perfection. This week’s prompt is: “Story.”

Five Minute Friday

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