A McDonald's Princess Crown

Last night as I stood in line at McDonalds waiting to get two twist ice cream cones and a caramel frappe (which are very yummy by the way!:)) I watched a Dad and his two girls order and then wait for their Happy Meals to arrive. The girls were anxiously waiting, not for their meal of course, but what prize would arise out of that beautiful bag of greasy greatness. :) I watched as their Dad handed them each their meals and both of them tore in to the bags to pull out........one with a princess crown and the other with a Barbie doll. Both of which are money toys right now at Mickey D's! However it blew me away as I observed their reactions.

The little girl that had gotten the princess crown immediately whispered to herself, "I got it!" with eyes as big as saucers while she pulled out the plastic princess crown. Her sister did not have the same reaction about her new Barbie doll, I could tell she was immediately disappointed. It was precious, because she looked up at her Daddy and simply said, "I didn't get it." with shoulders shrugged - forgive me for jumping ahead, but girls I am already crying!...okay, okay I'll get to the best part... - That's the great thing about having a loving Daddy because he didn't make her say another word before he was asking the girl behind the counter for a princess crown. Her face was preciously priceless. She didn't blink an eye as she traded that Barbie in for a princess crown.

Oh how magnificent the purity of that tender heart is to me. Girls, we are royalty. We don't just have a plastic McDonald Princess Crown upon our golden locks of hair. We, as daughters of the Most High King, are heirs to the Kingdom. And just like I have said before nothing fires me up more than when I look at Ainsley and her little friends that are coming up so many generations behind me. When I just observed those two darling little girls that stood in front of me at McDonalds my heart almost exploded with passion that cannot help but be moved into action.

I don't know how many people are reading these little thoughts on this little blog, but I know one thing I cannot stay silent. WE as daughters cannot soft sell the Joy of Kingdom living anymore. Throughout our day we should be passing out princess crowns left and right to every single daughter we see! And that could simply mean waiting to listen to the answer when you ask your friend, "How ya doing today?" Maybe you should spend your entire day giving compliments to other daughters that look like they could use a little boost. We all have friends that could use a cheerleader, is that you? It could mean letting go of bitter jealousy you’ve kept in your heart towards another daughter. Today that princess crown could mean releasing yourself to lavishly forgiving others. It could mean opening up your finances to give extravagantly to a daughter that the Holy Spirit prompts you to give to. One of my very favorite princess crowns to give is singing Jesus Paid it All with my sweet baby girl before she goes to bed tonight. Maybe you have been given favor in a certain area that would provide an incredible platform for the King to reach His daughters. Regardless, the time is now. I'm telling myself girls...Cari, the time is now.

Today I was reminded of the story of Esther. I have a ton more to share about this, but because of time (my little peeps are about to wake up from their sweet slumber and barrel into my somewhat peaceful kitchen :)) I will have to wait and share it ALL later...but here is the bottom line. Ester had been given favor in the kingdom. She knew that there was a plot to destroy the Jewish people. She had a princess crown. She could have stayed silent in her insecurity to approach the king and save her people. She could have made a choice to trust the humanity of the king, instead of the Salvation of the Most High King. She could have held on too tight to the princess crown she had been given. It was a risk either way, but Mordecai says it best to us today.....

"Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Do not imagine that you in the king's palace can escape any more than all the Jews. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?"

Esther 4:13-14

We have attained royalty for such a time as this. As daughters becoming all glorious within we have incorruptible princess crowns to hand out. Those sweet little girls will probably play with those McDonald's crowns a handful of times before they will get lost, left behind or thrown out. Don't we want to offer our daughters, grand-daughters, great-grand-daughters and great-great-great-grand-daughters the salvation of the King. And what better way than to offer them the lasting anointing as an heir to the Kingdom.

Please step boldly as you pursue the King. Don't shrink away from letting Him get to every area of your life ladies. Please don't allow insecurity, intimidation, doubts, guilt, shame, the thought that "oh I don't want people to think I'm too religious".....Girls, girls, girls....You are not alone and I'm telling ya everybody is searching for a princess crown. The King, our Father, just wants to make sure we trade in for the right one.

So to whoever reads this post today, you.....are.....loved. You.....are.....worthy. No questions asked, you can trade in that Barbie doll and receive more than a plastic crown. You can become a daughter of the King. And if you are already a daughter of the King and have somehow been led by the Holy Spirit to run your eyeballs across this post today.....please live like a princess. Don't be afraid to love, forgive, receive, speak, give and reach out to share the royalty you have been given for such a time as this, because you just never know who might be watching and just waiting to make a trade for a Princess Crown.

xoxo

New Car Smell

"I will give you a NEW heart and put a NEW spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."  Ezekiel 36:26

I don't know about you, but I like new things.  For example I love the "new car" smell, hmmm that's good stuff.  Most of the time to get that smell you actually have to purchase a new vehicle.  You can try all the air fresheners, even clean your car every day and still really not ever reach the maximum smell you had when you very first bought the car. 

I woke up this morning with Hope as I thought about all that God was in the middle of doing in the lives of His daughters.  There are so many AWESOME things going on right now and I just could not contain my overwhelming feeling of Hope.  When I was doing my quiet time I came across this verse in Ezekiel and it hit me in such a tender way.  I love this verse.  God has used it several times in my life and I even have it posted on my Facebook.  But this morning when I read it the Message in it was fresh and new and had that "new car smell" if you know what I mean.

I don't know too many people that haven't taken only a couple of deep breaths on this globe and haven't had some sort of "experience" that has taken away that new car smell to their life.  I mean you're born and it's trauma...you were just fine rollin' around in the warmth of your momma's belly and all at once you are spit out into the world naked, cold and on display....that's enough!  Fast forward several years and you have jr. high....need I say more :)....then fast forward even more and you have first loves, college, moves, relationship changes, family, marriage, house, kids and before you know it a partiridge in a pear tree :).  Honestly, those are the light hearted experiences of life.  What about those that have endured loss, grief, arguements, relational wedges, financial strain, pain of rejection, war, unexpected phone calls, lost kids, abuse, addictions, depression....in short feel as if because of the experiences life deals out they have lost their "new car smell" all together.  I've been there.  I've felt like the shell of a human I am could never produce a pretty smell again.

There is Hope!!!  And this morning I was so excited because what I feel like is lost in my life, God has actually decided that He will create a new heart within me!!!  That means He has the capablity to take what already exisits and make it NEW.  He is the ultimate air freshener!  And He doesn't have to get rid of me to do it.  He doesn't have to buy something new, He has the power to make ME new!!  He has the power to re-create in ME, that means what already exisists...the good, the bad and the ugly, a clean and fresh heart and life.  "Create in me a clean heart, O' God, and renew a steadfast spirit WITHIN ME." Psalm 51:10 Don't believe the lie that you are worthless.....if you are in Christ sweet daughter you are a NEW creation every single morning!!!!!!!!!  You have been re-created for a new and fresh work today.

 "The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.  They are NEW every morning.  Great is Thy faithfulness.  The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I have HOPE in Him." Lamentations 3:22-24

Let go of yesterday, I know I need to, and face this new day with confidence that you are a fragrant and beautiful aroma of Christ. You smell good sister!

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in His triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place." 2 Corinthians 2:14

Not a long post today, a simple thought really but I hope that it impacted your heart with great Hope.  Love you all more than I could ever express and I am praying for you!!!  Big hugs to you!!!!!!!

The Right Shoes Make All the Difference

I love shoes.  Really my favorite things to buy are shoes and jewelry!  They have the power to totally change your wardrobe, as well as your outlook on a terrible-horrible-no good-very bad day :)!  I found this cute wall hanging the other day while I was out shopping around and thought it was perfect for us here at Glorious Daughters!!  I don't know about you, but I have a busy, busy day ahead of me....and I'm thankful for that.  However, I could be tempted to throw on my Nike's and never look back or up to see where I am placing my feet all day long.  I could just take off in a dead sprint and still probably barely make it across the finish line at the end of the day.

Today let's pray about the shoes that we are putting on our feet.  Whether you slip into stilettos, strap on Teva's, flip around in flip flops, pop into your sneakers or scoot around the house in slippers all day you will make a choice to put on shoes at some point today.  Regardless of the shoes you select to go on your physical feet select your spiritual shoes very carefully.  Because that will determine the direction you are headed all day long. 

I woke up a little stressed out today about everything we have on our plate right now and am really tempted to wear my stressed out shoes all day.  Right here I am going to yeild my feet to Jesus and trust Him to lead me in peace no matter what is swirling around me today.  You know how it works when you wear the wrong shoes.  It is miserable!!!!  I mean wearing shoes that are too small, too tight, too narrow, too new, or too old can cause major havoc in a day!  You could end up with a blister the size of a pepperoni.  Wearing stressed out shoes all day is guaranteed to leave me with a pretty sizable blister. Let's slip into the most adorable new pair of shoes, but not just cute shoes powerful shoes.  Then let's take those cute and powerful feet and step where Jesus steps. 

"I've followed him closely, my feet in his footprints, not once swerving from his way.  I've obeyed every word he's spoken, and not just obeyed his advice - I've treasured it!"  Job 23:11

Love you and your beautiful feet and remember with the right shoes anything is possible!!! 

You have all you need....be beautiful!

If you are just joining us as we chat here on Glorious Daughters you might want to take a quick peek at my first post entitled Crossroads. Do you remember when I said that as we step down that road of “Life,” doubts immediately creep in. BOOM goes the dynamite ladies! No more have I typed that out than a whole slew of doubts hit me upside the head!! And today it is coming from within me. I doubt me. I doubt my make up as a daughter of God that could be equipped with all I need to be a loving and stable wife. I doubt my maternal makeup…I mean did God really know what He was doing when He placed Cade and Ainsley in my care?! Whoa! :) And then what about functioning in my community?! I mean who do I think I am anyway!? I don’t have the tools to make an impact. There is no way I am qualified to do what God is calling me to do?! It’s all there in your mind, I know it is….if I could just peel your brain back and look into that girl-head I guarantee there would be a overwhelming stack of “I’m not’s”. I’m not this. I’m not that.

Well, I have some news for ya….you’re right…you’re not. I hope that doesn’t hit you harsh, but in love we HAVE to let go of the presumption that WE in and of ourselves can do anything. The more time we spend on thinking about what WE as humans are made of and all the limitations that come along with us, the less time we will spend living an abundant life within the Kingdom walls! Ladies that is actually great news! You should feel free and easy and go and enjoy a cup o’ joe on me for that one! Why? Because you had nothing to do with the precious and perfect creation of you! That means you are PERFECTLY fashioned for the exact set of circumstances you find yourself in TODAY!

You’ve heard it a million times before, but prayerfully read together with me like it’s the very first time we’ve ever heard this beloved Truth…

“For Thou didst form my inward parts; Thou didst weave me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to Thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Thy works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from Thee, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth.” Psalm 139:13-15

Get that….you are not only WONDERFULLY made you where SKILLFULLY WROUGHT!!! The sweet leadings of your heart are only the expression of what the King skillfully, intentionally and purposefully positioned within your frame. They’re just looking for a way out! So being a wife, a mother, a daughter, a friend, a volunteer, a minister, a source of strength, a reliable voice only works when I am leaning into the promise that God is the ONE that fashioned me and ultimately the ONE being expressed. He knows me better than I know myself so I’m going to depend on Him to reveal how He intends to use this skillfully wrought woman! By releasing the control of how we were created and trying to manage and discuss, manipulate or overanalyze and just let it go we will break through that dam of limitation and watch the free flowing gifts of God wash over our lives in a way that we never thought possible.

Whether you come from a long and beautiful line of glorious daughters that have sought after the King for generations or you come from a line of daughters that just never took that chance of feeling Lavishly Loved or maybe you have come from a heartbreaking line of abused, rejected and betrayed daughters….there has been a family of daughters walk before us and they have set a path that we can choose to follow today!

“For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well. And for this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:5-7

There is a gift of God that has been set within your beautifully, wonderfully skillfully crafted frame today this day to be used for the Glory of The King (Ps 139:13-15). Whether it be literal family that has paved the way or you have received the Word to imply a spiritual family there are daughters that have walked before you and that confirms the sincere faith set before you this day (2 Tim 1:5-7). If you haven’t accepted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior please don’t wait. Receive the beautiful gift that He has created for you. If you do have the sincere faith set within you then start acting on that radiant gift. It is our choice as daughters to stop freaking out and start trusting and living out the expression that He purposefully set within us for the advancement of the Kingdom. There is a wonderful surrounding of beautifully skillfully wrought daughters that are already being led forth in gladness by the generations of beautifully, skillfully wrought daughters that have gone before us…I’m just joining in on the journey. Awesome! Praying that today our “Forbearing spirits would be that the Lord, the King, is near!” (Philippians 4:5) and that we would live accordingly!

Permission Granted to be PINK!

Thought I would add the link to find the awesome download from the PINK Impact Conference at Gateway church in Dallas, TX last weekend.  Definitely suggest checking it out and the videos are awesome and quick. 

http://www.pinkimpact.com/index.php?action=curriculum

The material continues to encourage our inheritance as daughters of God.  The theme of the weekend was Permission Granted, so perfect and I totally agree!  Permission Granted sweet daughter!!  Love you all so much today!!!

xoxo,
Cari

The Paint Set

A little while ago I was watching my kids use water colors to create the most amazing pictures. I mean of course I think they were amazing! They are my kids and to me they are little “Picassos” in the making! LOL! I wish you could see the creations that I am looking at. Ainsley informed me that one of her paintings was of an eyeball, which is hilarious to me because it does indeed look somewhat like a brown blob of an eyeball. And then Cade went nuts and tore off making like ten pictures using only a passionate swipe of his brush on each page. Those masterpieces are now drying all over my kitchen counters. I love it!

A thought hit me as I was instructing Ainsley on how to make the paint show up on her paper. When you open a new set of paints it looks beautiful. The colors are so bright and sharp. Seems almost like you could reach out, touch them with your dry paint brush and they would show up as the same dramatic hue on the paper. But that isn’t the way it works is it? You have to soak your brush in the water and then swirl your brush all over the paint before it will make a single radiant stroke on your paper. Before the masterpiece reveals the color you have to use the water. You definitely need both the paint and the water and you can’t use them separate from each other. Mix the two and the more liberal you are with each element the more definite the color and more glorious the picture.

It is the same with us. WE are the paints. God has created us to paint a masterpiece across this globe. We have every color we need to live a radiate life of faith. The only thing missing? The Water. You cannot move forward in life without the atoning anointing and powerful washing of the blood of Jesus. Yes, it is like water in that it washes you clean but it’s more than water. It is a cleansing agent like no other it is the Blood of Jesus. The more of Him that you use, the more vibrant the color of your life will be. I want to share the life mission statement the Lord started working in me several years ago and I have it written in the front of my Bible. I share it with you today, because I needed to be reminded.

“I am here to love the Lord with my whole heart, my whole soul and my whole mind but I only have a broken heart, a broken soul and a broken mind to offer. So I have to take those before the Father, The King so that He can appropriate the blood of His Son over my life and grow a tenacity, a strength, a steadiness, a wholeness on the inside. And as a result I can live with influence and power to withstand the overwhelming requirements of my outward calling.” – Cari Trotter, March 29, 2008

Nothing, nothing, nothing in my life or yours will have power behind it if we are not soaking ourselves in the full measure of God’s splendid grace and redeeming blood. Unfortunately I’ve tried to do projects for God without a single drop of Water on my paintbrush and all I can say is that it doesn’t work. But I have also had the privilege of cooperating with the Lord by submerging my whole self in His Water and being involved in incredible works for the Kingdom that showcase His divine Glory and Authority over my life.

My kids love to use the water cup I give them when they paint. I mean usually I just have to get ready for puddles of water everywhere when that paint brush hits their hand. If we would be so liberal with the healing Water of Christ in our lives what would happen? I think the King probably feels the same way about His daughters as I do about my kids..we are all just little “Picassos” in the making. He’s just waiting for us to dip our paint brush in His Water to make a masterpiece.

"When I run I feel God's pleasure"

Okay so I have one more post to do concerning our week’s worth of worship together. Obviously your worship to the Lord should never stop, however He has new jewels to reveal. We want to continue to build our princess crowns with all the jewels that God has to offer. To do that we have to walk down from the mountain and walk out into our every day experiences what we learned while we spent time reveling in God's glory and goodness worshipping on the mountain.

The last post I have on my heart to write for this week’s topic I actually had a couple of days ago. Truth be told I got scared to post it up because again anything I post or encourage you to do is only a result of something God has asked or is asking of me. This post falls under the category of “is asking” which definitely makes me shake in my new spring wedge sandals. I don’t have life figured out. The little that I know pales in comparison to the simplicity of the Truth my kids share with me every day. The worship I offer the King I’m afraid goes up in the meekest of forms. And I hesitate more times than I would like to admit when Jesus’ calls me to a deeper obedience. However a long time ago I made a distinct decision to pour all I have into what I believe. Toby and I like to refer to it as seeing just how deep the rabbit hole of Christ really is.

Let’s go down a little further into that rabbit hole today. How are we offering worship by using the combination of the gifts and resources we have been given, the talents that we possess, the dreams God has placed in our hearts and expressing all of that in the location we have been placed? That is a form of worship. Your abilities, talents, gifts, resources and time are all ways in which we worship the King.

My challenge is this…Are you connected to the Spirit deep enough to recognize what gifts, talents, resources and abilities you have been given to bring glory to the King? Are you still enough to hear the call on how you can bless God with what you are doing in a day? Are you courageous enough to answer? And then are you disciplined enough to walk it out?

I have been called to write, and not just on this blog. God has called me to formulate the expression of Glorious Daughters into a book. To take the intimate and very intentional road He and I have walked together into a form that has the ability to bring Him glory. That is why I am shaking in my new wedges!! I’m not worthy or qualified, but that’s a good thing because it is undeniable whose work it will be. It is also time to step over the line and make Glorious Daughters into a full blown ministry. My heart aches to minister to others. As a whole I will merely be offering back to God what talents He has so graciously offered me. It ALL belongs to The King.

Where do your talents lie?

Are you a teacher? Teach for God’s glory and offer that as worship to the King. Are you a coach? Coach for God’s glory and offer that as worship to the King. Do you work in the professional world? Work as you are doing your work unto the Lord and then allow that to be a fragrant form of worship to God. Are you a student? Learn with God in mind so that as you grow you can increase opportunities to worship God and encourage others to do the same. Are you an artist or designer? Create, imagine and express and while you’re at it worship the King! Are you an athlete? Compete to bring God the glory. Are you a parent? Train them up with all the Love you have to offer! Are you a volunteer? What a beautiful way to express God’s heart and worship!! Are you a musician? Practice, sing, play and illuminate your world with beautiful sounds that bring glory to God and ultimately worship the King.

I love Chariots of Fire and have added a clip to further express what I am talking about here. Listen close so you can really hear what it says.

God made Eric Liddell fast, and when he ran he felt God’s pleasure. He had tapped into what unique talent God had fashioned in him and he did it to the best of his ability. And while he did it he worshipped God and brought him glory for generations to come. That sounds good….bringing God glory for generations to come. Let’s be a generation of daughters that does just that. Tap into what it is that God has called you to be and be it. Don’t be tempted to get distracted by ALL the things you COULD do….pray and ask God what He wants you to do…then be courageous enough to step out and do it!! And that could very well mean waking up, going to work and rockin’ it for Jesus doing exactly what you’re doing! Glory to God!

I will be praying for you and I am humbly asking you to be praying for me. I’m so excited to offer God what is ultimately His anyway, but that doesn’t change the fact that taking a risk is scary. But I’m too far gone to go back now. I am choosing to trust the words of James, “But if any of you, lacks wisdom, let him (her) ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given him (her). But let him (her) ask in faith without any doubting.” (James 1:5-6 my () added) As a daughter of the King I want all of God and I am pressed within my spirit to believe that there is a sweet fellowship of sisters that want the same thing.

Praise God for all that you do and all that you are for the King. He has created you so special and He is well pleased when you offer your gifts back to Him!! Worship God as He exposes all the ways He has gifted you and then feel His pleasure as you give it back to Him!

Letters of Love

I love starting these little posts like we are in the middle of an on-going conversation.  Because in a real way we are!  It's like drinking one deep cup of coffee (with Hazelnut creamer of course :)) with your best girlfriend talking about your favorite things.  I don't know about you but those conversations usually last well into the early morning hours, and I feel the same with you!  So re-heat that cup of coffee and let's do some more worshipping!

I cannot deny an unquenchable thirst for good worship music!  Actually last night on the way home from Walmart I was rocking out in the car to some of my favorite worship, Kari Jobe You Are For Me to be exact ...which the car is totally my place to live out my dream of being a rockin' worship leader..LOL!  Well, anywho while I am in "full heart pour out" to my steering wheel two girls from church pull up beside me and had to of been watching me rock out for a good minute before I noticed!!!  LOL! 

All that to say I love music.  It is our form of exhuberant worship to the King.  I love music because what I can't say in words a song can hit the nail right on the head.  Nothing beats hearing an entire church with every voice raised in adoration to the Lord.  I love when they cut the instruments and it's just the purity of the voices in the room.  Toby and I will usually both stop singing and just listen.  It's Heavenly to hear that kind of connected worship.  Happened this past week while we had revival at our church.  But while I love to worship the King with music and obviously rock out in my car :) it isn't my favorite form of worship.

Nothing gets me geared up like the Word.  Seriously.  When God starts connecting the dots on something I have been studying for a long time and praying over and then researching and then it finally all comes together I'm pumped up!!  I love it when I can be at such a loss for words or expression and open my Bible and BOOM my heart is expressed through the pen of Paul, or David, or Peter, or John.  And ultimately it is expressed through Christ. 

"The Word was first, the Word present to God, God present to the Word.  The Word was God, in readiness for God from day one." (The Message)

I love to worship God through the Word because IT IS GOD.  This side of Eternity the Word, the Bible, The Old Book, the Scriptures...whatever you want to call it is what God left us as a tangible, touchable, at times for me literally hugable expression of Himself.  I have pages in my Bible (which we affectionately refer to as "The Old Man" because of the long road we have walked together :)) that have black smears from the mascara that was running down my cheeks while I smashed my face into my Bible begging God for answers.  I have written every good and wonderful gift God has given me within the pages of that Precious Book...when I met Toby, my wedding day, prayers of scriptures over my family and friends, milestones my kids have made, revelations from God's heart to mine, I have written down places where I have met up with incredible weaknesses and then places where I have been made strong in Christ, there are appointed dreams and vibrant visions of God's call over my life written in those Letters.  The Bible is more than a book to me...it is Jesus.

The Word is alive, just as Christ is and desires to be alive in your heart!  Don't shrink away from digging into The Letters.  They were written for you!!

So today I want to encourage you to find a scripture that is meaningful to you.  Think about where the state of your heart is at and what circumstances you are currently finding yourself in.  Flip through your Bible and see what you find.  If you just have a word, but don't know where to find that scripture go to the back of your Bible and look up all the scriptures that have that word in it.  That's what I do sometimes.  Or go to Bible Gateway (http://www.biblegateway.com/) that is an excellent source to find quick scripture references.  You can go to keyword search and it will give you a whole list of possiblities.  Or flip through a devotional you might have, re-read a day you loved and look up the scripture that went with it.  That is a great place to start.  And then let God's Spirit lead you through His Word.  It's His love letter to you sweet princess.  He wants you to know all about Him and worshipping Him through His Word is a PERFECT place to start because it is Him!!!! 

I want to encourage you to view reading the Word as a form of worship. As you read the scripture that God wants to lead you to today worship Him once you get there.  And then I also want you to read it like you were reading a perfectly penned love letter written only to your heart.  Because that is how He intended us to read it.

I'll share one of my favorites that I have been clinging to all week....

"I love you, God - you make me strong.  God is a bedrock under my feet, the castle in which I live, my rescuing knight.  My God - the high crag where I run for dear life, hiding behind the boulders, safe in the granite hideout.  I sing to God, the Praise-Lofty, and find myself safe and saved." 

Psalm 18:1-3 The Message

xoxo

This week is about worship...

Okay....this week is about worship.  It's about worship for a lot of reasons, but mainly because sometimes in life you just don't know what to do next....so I've learned to just worship.  Because in complete honesty I don't know what to do next girls.  God revealed a very strong word and several steps of obedience in my life recently...so I stepped.  But now it's about being still and just waiting.  I have a tendency to get ouchie when I have to wait...I am a do-er by nature not a sitter.  But sometimes God calls us to just sit.  I used to get frustrated if I felt God was asking me to wait.  But I was wrong.  Waiting is a great time to worship and get honest with God about how you feel, where you are and then allow Him the space to share how He feels and where He is with you and for you! 

Yesterday I started some much needed deep house spring cleaning.  That is a perfect example of not knowing what to do next, Amen?!  I walked in circles for a couple of hours doing a little of this and a little of that before I sold out to the kitchen.  Once I got still in one place, focused on one goal, with no noise for at least the hour the kids where both asleep at the same time and just worked at what was right in front of me - God actually spoke to my heart.  I was still enough and focused enough on one purpose that I could hear Him.  And that is when He told me that this week is about worship.  Worshipping Him through song, through reading His word, through stillness, through prayer while I am going about my everyday.  It is about His daughters getting still in one place, focused on one goal, with no noise in the midst of the craziness of our days to worship the King. 

I'm talking about in your heart and mind because let's be honest our days get pretty full and spastic...In love, I want to say let's not be tempted to complain about the craziness our circumstances and how that is preventing us from worshipping.  God knows our lives are crazy, He sees us there.  Taking the time to worship is actually giving Jesus the opportunity to show you Mercy, Grace and Lavish Love in whatever place you find yourself.  I know for me Mercy, Grace and Lavish Love are sounding like a pretty good combination right about now.  Use the 4 minutes and 30 seconds of the YouTube video I posted as a starting place, I know I am.  This is one of my favorite worship songs because it says everything that my heart feels about Jesus.  Even if I don't know the next step to take today...I KNOW who Jesus is... 

"You are stronger, You are stronger.  Sin is broken, You have saved me.  It is written Christ is risen.  Jesus you are Lord of all!"

I love watching this video because it reminds me that there are a lot of sons and daughters out there worshipping the King.  I want to join them.  Get still in your hearts and your minds and worship.  It's not going to come easy and if I know the enemy at all this week is going to get insane busy and I will be tempted to forget all about worship.  Let's not do that because I'm guessing that the King has new jewels to show us and He doesn't want us to miss a single sparkle!

"Let your eyes look directly ahead, and let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you." Proverbs 4:25

xoxo~love you pretty ladies so much and so excited to worship with you this week!!

Throw your head back sister!

I have one of my favorite worship songs rolling through my head and heart this morning. Do you remember this song?

If I could just sit with you a while….

If You could just hold me…..

Nothing could touch me though I’m wounded though I die….

If I could just sit with you a while I need you to hold me….

Moment by moment till forever passes by…

I heart that song so much sweet sisters. There are too many moments in a day let alone a lifetime where we feel whooped. And the precious part about Jesus is that He just wants to love on us. Yes, we have work that we are called to do. There are souls to save, sons and daughters that have yet to be reached, deeper understandings of Him and of the Word that we need to grab a hold of and work into our lives….but today I’m just feeling happy that I can just sit with the King, my Father for a bit. I need that today. There might be some people that have it all figured out and I’d like to meet them, but for me it is a moment by moment sustaining. Found this quote in my quiet time this morning and thought it fit this post pretty good.

“In order to maintain this friendship and loyalty to the Bridegroom, we have to be more careful of our moral and vital relationship to Him than of any other thing, even of obedience.” –Oswald Chambers


Ainsley loves her daddy and nothing thrills Toby’s heart more than when all she wants to do is curl up in his lap and chill. Just sit there and let her daddy love on her. When they just spend time hangin’ it’s awesome. It’s hard because she is two and very active…but do we ever really out grow that? Most of the time we are too busy doing "good things" and moving way too fast to just curl up in the arms of our Father and receive some love and then offer some affection back to Jesus.

Yes, we are called to care for others, but don’t forget where the love comes from that gives you the ability to be devoted to others. Don't forget that Jesus came to rescue YOU, please don't ever loose the zeal of that grand expression of lavish love poured out for YOU.  Spend some time building up your relationship with the Lord by ADORING the person of Jesus. I mean if you have to tuck away in your closet, or turn the radio volume up on that worship song a little louder to mask all the noise in the back seat of the car, or close and lock the bathroom door, or turn that cell phone off for just a second to get a few quiet minutes alone, or push that pile of paper work aside for just a second, or simply close your eyes and take a deep breath in and a deep breath out....DO IT. Then throw your head back sister and just adore Him and let Him love on you.  Don't think about having the right things to say to Him, or the right posture to be in, or the mess you might think He's lookin' at. 

Just think about Jesus....simple...precious.....loving....Father...Jesus. 

I know sometimes in a day that’s all I get, and believe me I take it! Jesus is everything you want him to be and more. He is your closest friend, your tender Father and your Reigning King. Curl up in His lap sweet beauty and let Him love on you today!

I love you ALL so much!

Xoxo~