Changed

My first morning back from a six day mission trip to Ecuador was refreshing however; I am still left with a longing to go back. Don’t get me wrong, I am happy to be home with my family but I long for the cold showers, no phone or tv, long hours doing ministry and especially longing for the people there.

God reminded me who He is and who He has called me to be and what He has called me to do on the trip to Ecuador. I had allowed people, things and this world to suffocate my walk with Him and I had grown cold to Him and others.

As I am sitting here on my back porch, I realize how my flowers and plants have grown and changed since I have been gone.  God revealed to me that was what He has and is doing in me during the trip to Ecuador and now as I am writing;  changing my attitude, my life and my heart. Oh, how I praise You, Father. I recognize that change doesn’t have to be on a mission trip or something dramatic to happen but can come daily by spending quality time with Him and allowing Him to heal and to minister to me. These are all things that I know but by being so consumed by the world, I couldn’t see it anymore.

As I said earlier I was longing for Ecuador even now as I write my longing is even changing to a longing to  to have a changed heart that is so saturated of  Him.

“Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.”  Matthew 11:28

He has given me rest in my soul and changed what was darkness back toward the light.

Are you changing to be more like Him? Or are you like me where I was suffocating from the things of this world or maybe you are tired of trying and ready to give up? Whatever it may be that is holding you back from allowing Him in to change you; give it to God today and allow the process to begin. Remember the process of us changing doesn’t end until we are home with our Father. We must come to God daily for Him to show us and change us to be who He has created us to be.

Don’t halt the process; go to Him and find rest for your soul.

Lord, create in me a thirst for You. Train my soul to know clean, pure refreshment. Train my soul for You.

Changing,

Tammy

Already Won

While waiting to hear from my daughter yesterday about her cheer try-outs. I went in her bathroom to find that she had put five pink construction papers across the top of her vanity mirror. This is what each one said:
Day 1, Try a little harder be a little better.
Day 2, Stop being afraid of what could go wrong and start being positive about what would go right.
Day 3, You can't fall if you don't climb.
Day 4, "Do not be afraid" is written in the Bible 365 times. That's a daily reminder from God to live everyday FEARLESS
Day 5, Don't worry, if it supposed to happen it will!
She had one more posted that has been hanging up for almost year that says: "I am fearfully and wonderfully made" Psalms 139:14. Rebecca had posted these to remind herself throughout this week to be secure, confident in who she is in Christ. As I stood there looking at each one God showed me that Rebecca had already won no matter how the day may turn out! Just like a year ago, when she didn't make the cheer team, she won that day too within her heart. It was painful and hard.
I've tried to teach my children, as hard as it is, to embrace the situation or the circumstances that they are in  and allow God to change and mold them to be more like Christ. As a mother it is hard to say that because in my heart I desire for Lee and Rebecca to be able to do and be a part of the things they want to do. More importantly, I want them to embrace God's plan and desires for their lives. As a mother it is hard to watch your child go through painful times. I have come to realize that those are the times God is shaping, growing, maturing & building character in them to be more like Jesus. My prayer for Lee and Rebecca is that they will choose to let God make those changes in them. The same thing applies to me, as well. If we know Christ we have already won, no matter what we are going through! That's hard to wrap my mind around sometimes, but I know it is true. My Father is Faithful to me, even when I am not faithful to HIM.
I don't know where you are today or what you are going through but I do pray that you will embrace where you are at and give it to God. He will walk you through the process. I pray that you will allow Him to fill the hurts, disappointments, pain, loneliness and voids with His Love, Peace, Joy and with confidence of who you are in Christ. YOU Have Already Won!

P.S.  Rebecca made the team!

Overwhelmed by Him,
Tammy

The Door of Full Surrender

I felt lead to post and share this devotion today. It spoke loudly to my heart. I so desire to be fully surrendered to Him and His calling on my life. I don't want my fleshly desires to get in the way of His purpose for me ( which it does sometimes). I am praying for whoever reads this and might be at a cross road in their life and wondering what is God doing. I pray that you will trust, fall on your face and rest/embrace where He has you at and know that His plans are a divine purpose for His kingdom. I am clinging with you as we fully surrender to Him alone and saturate ourselves in His love for us to get through each crossroad, bump, heartache and joys that come our way. I love you deeply.
The Door of Full Surrender
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1, by Os Hillman
08-02-2012
"But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold." Job 23:10 I was recently sitting with the leader of a workplace organization as he described a question he poses to workplace believers. "What if there were two doors to choose from; behind one door was the complete will of God for your life and behind the other door was how life could be according to your own preference. Which door would you choose?" The struggle for most lies in the desire to follow God completely and the fear of what might be behind the door of full surrender. Most of us desire to follow God, but few of us will do it at any cost. We do not really believe that God loves us to the degree that we are willing to give Him complete permission to do as He wills in us. If we desire to fully walk with Christ, there is a cost. We may give intellectual assent and go along with His principles and do fine; however, if we are fully given over to Him and His will for our life, it will be a life that will have adversity. The Bible is clear that humans do not achieve greatness without having their sinful will broken. This process is designed to create a nature change in each of us, not just a habit change. The Bible calls it circumcision. Circumcision is painful, bloody, and personal. If God has plans to greatly use you in the lives of others, you can expect your trials to be even greater than those of others. Why? Because, like Joseph who went through greater trials than most patriarchs, your calling may have such responsibility that God cannot afford to entrust it to you without ensuring your complete faithfulness to the call. He has much invested in you on behalf of others. He may want to speak through your life to a greater degree than through another. The events of your life would become the frame for the message He wants to speak through you. Do not fear the path that God may lead you on. Embrace it. For God may bring you down a path in your life to ensure the reward of your inheritance. "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all" (2 Cor. 4:17)

Seasons

Reflecting on my day with my mother and daughter; God brought to my thoughts Ecclesiastes 3:1. “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven.”

I spent the day cleaning my mother’s house, taking her to the drugstore, to town and sitting at her feet giving her a pedicure. I never thought of as a young woman, ever coming to this place in my life of taking care of my mother. Her health is declining and the simple tasks of life she used to do are getting hard for her to do now.

My week began with plans of going to Mobile at the end of the week to be with my friends, whose daughter was having back surgery. Brooke, their daughter is severely autistic. By Monday night, I found out my mother was hurting in her hips and back. I knew then, I probably would not get to go to Mobile. But I kept holding out; thinking I would go as the week went on. The day I was supposed to be leaving on my trip, I went to check on my mother, who was not feeling well. At that moment, God told me my priority was to be here, to take care of my mother’s needs. I let my friends know that I would not be coming, but my heart was longing to be there with them during this time in their lives.

Then, thinking of my Mom, Brooke, and Brooke’s mom, Dani, my friend, I knew God had each of us where He wanted us to be, even though in our hearts there was a desire to be together. He reminded me that His plans are not ours and we need to trust Him no matter what.

I am learning through each season of my life that events are not always going to be the way I want them. I am to take these seasons God has me in and embrace them and grow from them. God has taken me through many different seasons in my life, some lasted longer than others. They have taught me about life, who I am in Him, to see the way He moves and to love others deeply. Some of those seasons have been painful and have cut deep into the core of my heart, others have been blessings and joyful. The one thing I do know, even when I don’t understand the season I am in, is that I can lean on Him, embrace, trust and allow Him to love me through it.

Seasons, there are many kinds that come in our lives; happy, painful, growing, lonely, tragic, and peaceful and many more.

So, I ask what season are you in. Maybe God is blessing you so much that it is overwhelming or it is a difficult time. Remember He is with you and will never leave or forsake you! Trust Him, as He takes you through this time in your life. He has a purpose and plan for His kingdom in the seasons. He is waiting with His arms wide open!

Listening

The clock read 11:58pm and I had awoken from a deep sleep thinking it was close to getting up time. I laid there thinking I would go back to sleep, but I never did. So, with much reluctance, I got up and went to the living room to read. I immediately got on my phone to check what was going on around me when I heard the sound of birds chirping and an owl hooting. I stopped what I was doing as the quietness of the moment brought sounds of God's creation. As I was listening I heard another sound coming from my Savior saying, "Seek me, Tammy." I stopped self-focusing and turned to my bible and opened it to Psalms. I came to Psalms 5:3,"In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my request before you and wait with expectation." My focus that week had gotten off my Savior and had been on self and what I wanted.

Throughout the rest of the day, God brought the word "listen" to my attention through His creation, devotions, songs and other ways. He showed me to be attentive to listening to Him instead of people and Satan. " Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

I realized at the end of that day that in those wee hours of the mornings when God awakens me, when there is no noise or busyness to distract me from Him; that they are precious and valuable times with Him. It is a intimate and healing time together that allows me to bring my hurts to the surface, disappointments, needs, and praises to God and to listen to my Savior's sweet love for me.

Listening is something I need to do more of, not only with Him, but with others as well.

Are you listening? The lover of your soul wants to whisper sweet nothings to you.

Stop, take the time today, to get alone and listen. He has something to say to YOU....

"Give ear, O Heavens, and I will speak; And hear, o earth, the words of my mouth. Let my teaching drop as the rain, My speech distill as the dew, As raindrops on the tender herb, and as showers on the grass. For I proclaim the name of the Lord: Ascribe greatness to our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.                Deuteronomy 32:1-4

It's Not About You

It’s Not About You

I just left Athens Hospital from doing a devotion with some of the staff there. This was my third time in going and sharing. As soon as I got outside of the doors, Satan came after me in my thoughts screaming you are an idiot, what do you think your doing you don’t even know what you are trying to say, they are laughing at you, they want come back, and on and on he went. I could feel myself sinking further and further. As I was driving home, I heard my sweet savior whispering to me; Tammy, you did what I asked you to do, to share my word. Quit worrying about how people respond or didn’t; only be obedient to what I call you to do. It is not about you; it’s about Me and My kingdom. I am the one responsible for stirring their hearts and what I want from you. As I listen to Him, a new song “Blessings’ by Laura Stone came on the radio. I pulled in my garage and sat listening and allowing God to minister to me at that moment. I released the tears that I was holding back and ask for forgiveness of my pride, insecurities and all the other feelings that I was having. My Father, comfort, reassure and loved me back to Him.

 It’s not about me, when things don’t go my way, people don’t respond the way I think they should or about my feelings. God has taught me that lesson today and reminded me what life is really all about, HIM. I am so grateful for His love, grace and mercy He shows me through talking with Him, songs, His word and other ways He communicates to me.

Be reminded that it’s not about you or what you want; it’s about being in the center of His will and what He is calling you to do. More importantly, don't let the lies of Satan stop you from what God is calling you to do!

"Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the sea of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he mediates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water which yields it fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.
Psalm 1:1-3

Life

Life is like a roller coaster ride; exciting, fun, fearful dangerous, and scary. The ride can be exhilarating one moment, and sickening the next. Life can be that way also, especially on our way up the roller coaster we are full of anticipation, excitement, maybe some fear and laughter.Then all of sudden we are going down thinking "what have I done" or " I am not going to make it". We are scared to the point that we can't laugh or cry and we are ready to get the ride over with. Some days we are going down the track smoothly, enjoying the scenery and having a great  time, but ahead we see a sharp curve coming our way or we are going so fast that our heads are aching and the ride is jarring us and slinging us from side to side. At this point, we are ready to bail out of the situation now!

God reminded me that the roller coaster will eventually come to a stop and that He is with me on the ride whether I am at the top flying high, the middle being jarred and shaken badly, at the bottom ready to give up and get off where He has me.

I don't know where you are at today; at the top, the middle, or at the bottom, but know God is riding with you  and has the safety belt pulled tightly against Him and that eventually the ride will come to a stop. So, don't be afraid  to get on the ride! In the meantime if you get on, hang on to Him, give all your emotions to Him, sit back, let Him be in control and receive all that He has to offer you along the way. He has promised us that He will never leave or forsake us, no matter what.