Faith Filled Fiction Find-- HIS SAVING GRACE by HEATHER GRAY!

Guess what we are having on the blog now? Books!! and Book recommendations! <3 *squee*

I absolutely love this book! It was the first regency I ever read and I fell in love with the genre. It's so funny how one misunderstanding can lead to a bigger issue than originally occurred.

BUY FROM AMAZON
$2.99
 

Will she be able to save him from himself?

Grace finds herself wed to a man who loathes her.  She is shunned and exiled to the farthest corner of the land. It wouldn't hurt so much if he hadn't once been her best friend.

Thomas became a duke long before he was ready. Now he can't go anywhere without women trying to entrap him into marriage.  He expected better from his childhood friend.

How can friendship, let alone marriage, thrive in the face of bitterness, suspicion and misunderstanding? 
What's to be done when the hurtful choices made in anger have lasting consequences?

It takes a special kind of person to see past the pain to the beauty that lies beyond…

 

Love Faith Fiction? Come join my Faith Filled Fiction group on Facebook. Click HERE.

 

~Kelly

 

**Disclosure. Encourage 365 is affiliated with Amazon's Associate program which means I get a small... small amount of money if books are bought from my site.

 

 

 



Happy Mother's Day to all the Imperfect Mothers in the World

To all the Mamas in the world who love their kids so much. They do the best they can...

To all the Mamas with pinterest fails...

www.boredpanda.com


To all the Mamas who burn toast and mangle bacon...

www.beforeandafterdiy.com


To all the Mamas who dread reading facebook on Mother's Day because of these fun little things...


(from facebook)
And you are sure you don't measure up.

To all the Mamas who try, but fail...

To all the Mamas who cry because they feel like their kids will one day bring them on Dr. Phil (true story... one of my fears...)




To all the Mamas who love their kids, but who have human, frustrated screaming moments ("Get in the car, NOW! We are late!")


To all the Mamas who don't feel special enough to have a special day...

You are loved.

You are special.

You are human.

You will make mistakes.

You will yell sometimes.

You will have a bad day.

Your kids will cry.

You will cry.

You will feel like a failure because you don't measure up to Proverbs 31 (or... in my case... Titus 2 too...).

Hug your kids tightly.

Kiss them on the forehead.

Smile.

Laugh.

Let them see you happy.

Let them know that Mama loves them-- no matter what.

Even on your bad days...

Even on their bad days...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY-- IMPERFECT MAMAS! I bet there are more of us than we realize.

~Kelly (who wants to do good-- but has to accept that she's not perfect.)
 

But.... I can't! {For the Jeremiah's in the World}

One of my favorite books is in the book of Jeremiah. I feel like him a lot.

At first he's all, "I can't do that God... I'm just me. I'm nobody special."

And God was all...

"I made you. All you have to do is open your mouth. The words will come."

pinterest.com

I'm paraphrasing of course. Jeremiah wrote it much better than I could, but the idea is the same.

Jeremiah never saw himself as much, but God chose him to tell everybody about Him.

And did Jeremiah have it easy because he did it? Nope. He was laughed at. Mocked.

Can you imagine the people in his little hamlet rolling their eyes when "Bible Thumping Jeremiah the Christian" came walking by? I bet that was really fun....

Or the glares... or the constant worry that he'd be arrested, beaten or killed?

But he did it. He wasn't happy about it all the time, but he did it.

God could have called a more 'qualified' person-- someone with a huge following who could get thousands to crowd around- to get people excited about being in the 'in' crowd and not care anything about the message being delivered.

He could have picked a politician who had influence over laws.

He could have picked someone better looking (not that I know what Jeremiah looked like.. he could have been very handsome for all I know), taller, skinnier, more muscular-- better...

But God chose Jeremiah for a reason-- He knew that Jeremiah would do what He told him to do.

Read the entire chapter here...

That is a huge quality to God. Think about it... do you love any of your kids more than the others? There are some that get on your nerves at different times (I have 3 girls.. I know :) ) but you never would think of them as any better or any worse than another child.

I think we forget that a lot about God. He doesn't' care if you have a million dollars or $1-- He doesn't' care if you run a million person church or if a small group meets for church in your living room every Sunday. He loves each of us equally....

And here's the rub... As parents, we see qualities in our kids that they don't see in themselves. WE see ourselves as we 'THINK' we are... God sees us as what we 'TRULY' are, what we are 'CAPABLE' of, and what HE MADE us for.

Maybe we should start seeing ourselves as God sees us. He wouldn't be telling you to do that think you KNOW He's telling you to do... if He didn't think you could do it.

~Kelly

"Let It Go": My 'One Word' for 2014 and how I'm doing with it in May--

Every January, I pick a word to be my 'motto' for the year. Last year it was commit. The year before that, it was Love. This year, I chose 'Let Go'.

The irony of this is I had never watched Disney's FROZEN when I picked those words. I had never heard the song on the radio (I listen to KLove mostly... KLOVE.com ). I hadn't heard LET IT GO until the 2014 Academy Awards...

 

 

... Doesn't she do a great job!?

 

I love that song now!

 

I love it so much... I have the FROZEN CD in my car... yes, Yes I do. And if you pass me, my mouth will be wide open, signing at the top of my lungs-- The kids may or may not be in the car when this is occurring ;)

 

I love the message in the song... let go of worry. Let go of who you are 'supposed' to be. Just let go--

 

To be honest, I'd forgotten all about my words for 2014. I hadn't been on this blog in months and I'd forgotten what my motto for the year was-- how sad, because they fit so well.

 

I have a hard time holding on to things. When I get mad, I stay mad. I might not bring it up again, but I'll stew on it every once in awhile and not fully get over it...

 

Let it go...

 

 

I get depressed sometimes. I get down-- mainly on facebook. Do you let facebook get you down? Do you look at everyone's presents from their husbands or their book sales (me ;) ), or their blog followers or whatever they have that you think you want and get jealous of them-- and then depressed with what YOU have...

 

 

 

 

 

Let It Go...

 

There's about 300 things I don't understand in the Bible. I just-- don't understand. I'll talk about them later-- There are things that I don't understand (or can't do for whatever reason) that makes me get upset reading the entire thing. I'm a black and white person... either it is or it isn't... I like rules and knowing exactly what I'm supposed to do-- I like things spelled out. I like order. I like knowing what's going to happen. I've let maybe 5 verses in the entire Bible keep me from reading it... (how sad is that)...

 

LET It Go...

 

Do you know I'm not a perfect parent? Or a wife? Did you know you aren't either? But, are you like me, you just assume everyone else is awesome and you (I) missed the 'parenting/wife' guidebook? Do you screw up and feel bad about it for days?

 

A lot of times I like to be by myself just so I don't screw anything up....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(say it with me)

LET IT GO!

 

 

 

We aren't perfect. The world isn't perfect. Our spouse isn't perfect. Our life isn't perfect.

 

And other people's aren't either.

 

(I think the quicker I realize that, the better... how about you?)

 

 

SO, how have I done with  my ONE WORD: Let Go?

 

Well, to be honest, pretty pitifully ;) I've given up so much-- and a lot of it isn't a good thing to drop. I've sort of slid. I've been down. I've let things pile on instead of letting go.

 

So now I think it really is time...

 



 

 

Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.

For life is more than food,

and the body more than clothes.

Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life?
Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

 

Luke 12:22-26

 

 

~Kelly

 

 



 



Linked with:

 

A Large, Man-eating Spider (Or how Perception can turn you bald)

The other night, I was taking a bath, minding my own business. My kids were asleep. The husband was asleep. It was about 12:30 at night (because that's the only time I can take a bath without someone barging in ;) ).

I had gotten some new washcloths for Christmas. So, I was laying down with one of them laying on my stomach (you don't have to picture that if you don't want... this does have a point.. ;) )

Okay, so it's late, I'm alone..... I look down, and there is the MASSIVE spider on my stomach!

I didn't see the entire spider... I just saw it's leg, and it's leg was huge!

Not wanting to freak the spider out and have it bite my head off, I just laid there, looking at the spider's leg, trying not to breathe too deeply and startle the massive giant.

The more I got to looking, the more I noticed, "Hey, this feller's not moving."

I was happy about it at first because... well, it wasn't moving. My internal organs were safe! Huzzah!

Then, I got worried that the spider might be calculating its move and would, in fact, jump on my face and suck out my brains.


Don't think I laid there until the water got cold thinking all of this... It took maybe ten seconds, but you know how time slows when you are terrified.

Then I looked.... REALLY looked at my gigantic spider foes massively long leg.

Then I looked up at the bathroom light over the sink.

Then I looked down on a string from the washcloth on my tummy.

Then I turned a funny shade of red and let out a big ole breath.


My gigantic spider.... was a thread and a shadow. The lights made a shadow on the thread, making it look like a big spider leg and my imagination did the rest.

Once I was glad no one saw my antics, I thought Hey! That's how life is! I need to blog about it! (my honest thoughts at 12:30 am...)

(perception... or photoshop?)

There are things that seem so big to us, so scary, so horrible that we don't want to either see them or go through them. And some things are. There are some things in life that are horrific.







And then there are threads on washcloths.

Our perception of problems can sometimes make our problems bigger. Our minds tend to jump to the
worst possible scenarios (our minds and 'Dr. Google'). Our perception is often skewed by our fears and the 'what ifs' in life.

Psalm 147:5         
Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.


Have you ever done those mind tricks? You know, the one where a dancer is spinning one way... and if you REALLY concentrate you can make her spin the other way. It all has to do with perception and how we see something.

How we see an issue...

What if we saw everything smaller than they really are? OR for what they actually are? What if we stopped letting fear control our perception of the world, of our marriages, of our friendships, of our jobs, of church, of the internet, of life?

What if we saw our giants as just a small ant?

What if we saw things that aggravate us as 'not' the end of the world?

Well, I suppose if we did that (if *I* did that), we'd have a lot less gray hair ;)

~Kelly

 



 

A Time For Anxiety

I never really thought that I had anxiety. I mean, I know a worry... a lot. I stress... a  lot. I hate talking in person... a lot (because what if I say the wrong thing... which I tend to do? Isn't it better to just be quiet than say the wrong thing? Hmmm....)

But a few days ago, I read a post about Anxiety. It sort of fit me to a tee.

About a week ago, my husband's cousin died of complications from H1N1. He was just 36. He was a preacher and had a wife and 2 small girls. That sort of gets you thinking. If you can die of the flu, how safe are you in the world?

Now, I'm not stupid. I know you can die at any time. A car crash. A house fire. A flippin' meteor can fall on your head.

I get that.

But the flu?

Really?

Thus started the 'Do I need a flu shot?' debate in my head. This post isn't about that. It's your personal opinion if you get one or not. Some people do. Some can't. I've never had one.

The fear of the unknown. I think that's what leads to my personal anxiety. I like knowing where I'm going. I like knowing specifics. I'm kind of like my six year old that way. She freaks out if she doesn't know what's coming next. I guess she got it from me (yay... she didn't get my eye color, but got my anxiety. Poor kid...)

A lot of times, I feel like a failure because I don't know what to do. Like being a mother. If there was a handbook, I'd be all over it ;) Some people seem like a natural. I feel like I just make kids cry. Ever have days like that? They aren't pleasant.

I knew I wanted my first post of 2014 to be about anxiety because, like always, there is so much we don't know. A war could break out tomorrow for all we know (now you are worrying about it, aren't you? Admit it ;) )

Psalm 139:23-- Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.

I'm guessing God doesn't have to search me too thoroughly to know my anxious thoughts ;) They are pretty apparent (well, to me anyway. My husband says I'm hard to read...)

Philippians 4:6-- Don't worry about anything: instead; pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

I don't know about you, but that seems pretty good to me.

What I get out of this? Two things:
ONE: There is no use in worrying. Things will happen like they are going to happen anyway.

TWO: There is no use in worrying. Things will happen like they are going to happen anyway.


I watched an episode of ER the other night (Yes... yes I did). There was this lady who was afraid to get out of her house. The therapist finally convinced her to do it, and all these terrible things happened. Was it a coincidence or would it have happened anyway? I'm thinking it would have happened anyway.

There is no since worrying about the future because the future will be what it'll be. That's both comforting and scary. We can change certain things: we can NOT drink and drive. we can NOT over eat. We can wash our hands after meals so we don't get sick.

But we can't control others. We can't make them NOT drink and drive. We can't NOT make our spouse live healthy. We can't force our preacher to use germx and spread germs.

There are things in life we can't control, and that's scary.

But it also makes every day a miracle.

Yesterday is gone. Have a fight with your spouse. Okay, let it go. It's over. You can't take it back, but you can learn from it today.

Tomorrow may never come. It's a scary thought, but it's true. There is no use in worrying. Things will happen like they are going to happen anyway.

Focus on today. How can you live today to make life better for those around you? Will worrying about tomorrow hamper your happiness today?

Has any of this helped me? I don't know. I still worry. I think all parents worry whether we want to or not. When you have people who depend on you, it happens.

But that doesn't mean we should let it control us.

There are such things as accidents. You can't control everything. We have to understand that.

My verse for this week...

Philippians 4:6-- Don't worry about anything: instead; pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

 

~Kelly

Picture from:
© Photographer: Phil Date | Agency: Dreamstime.com
http://www.dreamstime.com/natural-beauty-7-free-stock-photos-imagefree195218

A New Year. A New Blog. A New Outlook

Hi. Remember me? I haven't blogged since... oh August. I've been *busy*. That's what happens when you have four bestselling novels, more to write, editing, working basically two jobs, with three kids... and a husband...

And it was also an excuse. 

I started this blog in 2010 (I think lol). The goal was to write 1 devotional every day for a year (hence the 'Encourage 365') And I did it. I wrote every day for a year... and I was so proud.

I'm not sure if it was right or wrong to be proud. I mean, it was good that I fulfilled my commitment, but was I really writing what God wanted or was I just trying to fill spaces until the year was up so I could say 'I did it!'

I gained followers. Over 100 in fact. I was over the moon. And I was grateful for it.

I also started the Devotional blog directory. It grew and I was so grateful for it.

And I started to get regular contributors... and I was grateful for it.

We were growing. And I was grateful. And proud.

And then I got 'busy'. And I got, honestly, burned out.

Last December, I announced that I was going to blog every day again. We were going to read the bible in a year, I said. It was going to be Epic, I said. We were going to do it together, I said.

I stopped after January.

Then, this December I was shopping right before Christmas (like RIGHT before.. on the 23rd) and a woman stopped me. She'd almost completed the 1 year bible plan I started in January. She was so excited! I felt like a huge loser.

BUT, this isn't about the past. It's not about the 365 days of blogging I did. It's not about the directory. It's not about my books. It's about me. That might be selfish lol, but I got to thinking and I was missing something. I do a lot... but I'd given up something I really liked in the process.

I don't know all the answer... Heck, I don't know any of them to be honest. I have lots of questions though. On facebook, there is a lady called 'The World's Worst Missionary' (or something like that). From her, I realized, I don't have to have all the answers. I don't have to know 'everything' to blog. I don't have to know all the biblical answers to write about it.

I just have to do it. Because I guarantee most of you don't have all the answers either.

SO, where does that leave us. My goal for 2014 is to blog once a week (Encourage 52 would be more apt I guess lol). I want to blog over things that are happening in my life. Maybe things I don't understand. Maybe things we can work out together. I'm excited about this. I'm not worrying about replies (though comment if you want :) ). I'm not worrying about 'reach' or people who have seen my post... or anything like that. I'm just blogging-- and hoping-- and praying it helps someone (maybe even me).

My first devotional for 2014 will be up tomorrow. It' about anxiety. I'm so excited to write one again. Like I said, it's been a while.

That said, I'm deleting the Devotional blog directory. I'm so thankful for everyone who has signed up over the years. Truly, from the bottom of my heart. But I can't maintain it any more, and it's not what this blog is about any more. I hope you all understand <3 If you 'Unfollow', I understand. I love you all very much and appreciate what you've done. I also love your blogs :) I still read them (mainly if I see the link on facebook).

So, there is it. A big confession. A big bombshell. And a big goal for 2014. Here's to 52 weeks of devotionals <3

~Kelly
 

New Blog in Directory-- CATCHING THE OVERFLOW

Catching the Overflow is about seeing all the grace that God has heaped on us. Being able to find the moments when we are filled with his overflowing love. Life can be hard, but with Jesus in our hearts we will always have someone who cares about us. 


**I know it's been a long time since I've posted anything (Nearly 2 months!), but I wanted to welcome Andrea to the blog directory! If you have a moment, please go check out her blog. :)

~Kelly

THis Woman Writes-- New Blog in the Directory :)

I'm excited to announce a new blog in the directory....

 

 

This Woman Writes addresses modern life’s oddities and ends through the eyes and perspective of an ordinary Christian – me. Contempo Christianity -- http://thiswomanwrites.areavoices.com/ -- is my weekly Wednesday Christian-based article, delving into what it means to live one’s faith in the 21^st century environment – both religious and secular.

  

 

WELCOME :)

 

~Kelly

Life Stinks... without God Guest Post by Mike R.

Life Stinks...

...Without God.

"live in such a way that those who don't know God

 will come to know God because they know you"

- Unknown 

Our life in God is essential to the eternal life that awaits our coming. Christ came and made known God. He made known the God, that prophets tried to teach, but no one listened. Christ took off his heavenly, king robes, and appeared as one of us, so that we may have life in him. 

It is necessary that we, whom believe in God, keep that life going; making sure it doesn't get flat. Like a car tire. It will eventually go flat, because of all the driving, so for the protection of the car and the tire it is an absolute thing to keep filling it up with air. 

Same as our life in Christ. It can and will get flat.We often must go to mass, confession, and when we can renewing retreats. But we must watch, that going to mass doesn't turn from a ritual to a habit. We have to watch to make sure we are need and want to, not that we have to. We have to be careful for it easy for this it to turn into a regular habit.

But that isn't enough. 

No, not even close. Our life in Christ isn't simply one that requires us to go to a building we see once a week. As St.James puts it, "...Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead" [James 2:17] It it the daily action we do, that also keeps the tire spinning. It is how we walk about, and living our lives. It's if we choose to be the Priest filled with pride, or the kind Samaritan that decides to help out those in need. 

Moreover, our Christian life isn't one that's easy, and lazy. It's a life that takes courage and it takes us going out of our own way to do the Lords will. It is a call, to go and be brave, to go against the 'wave.' It is a life that requires us to practice what we pray. It is a life dedicated to the work of God.

When we are done this earthly life, and have moved in front of the gates of heaven, God will be happy to accept us, when he sees his will, not ours. It is hard, to have that listed, but of course through the power of prayer, it is possible. 

May we, the people living the Christian Faith (and the Future ones) live the life of Christ. By praying for the strength from God to be able to preach and to do his will! 

Come see my Blog at:

Praytogodtoday.blogspot.ca

You Never Know...

James 4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will^[g] go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; ¹⁴ whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. ¹⁵ Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.”

I’m a planner. I like to plan things. If I don’t know what’s going on a few days or weeks down the road, I get antsy.

My middle daughter is the same way. She has to know when everything is going to happen. Honestly, it does get tiring planning so far ahead so she won’t meltdown.

Yesterday, I took my girls on a little shopping trip. The whole way there, they kept asking where we were going first, then what… then what… then what!

Finally I told them, “Girls, let’s just not plan. We’ll end up where we end up. Let’s have an adventure.”

We did.

And it was fun.

It was nice to have a few hours without a strict plan.

I need that more often.

I have an internet friend named Nicole. She was pregnant and planning for her fifth baby: a boy. They could tell from the first ultrasound that something was wrong.

Like all of us would, she planned.

She went to the best hospital and stayed in the Ronald McDonald house (not in TN. They live in Canada.). She looked toward the future, and though it looked rough for her little boy, she stayed strong. Nicole took pictures of her baby belly, excited about how much her little man was growing. They were going to love him no matter what.

A few days ago, Nicole’s family learned all too well about the ‘vapor’ in the scripture above. Nicole was found dead in her room. The baby didn’t make it either. The medical examiner did an autopsy, but so far no cause of death. Nicole was 37.

We were due date buddies. My youngest child and her forth were both due in July 2010. Please pray for her family. She has 4 other children (one turned 3 on the day his mama died). It’s sad all around. The daddy is trying the best he can, but I know they could use prayers.

We can plan all we want, but when its time, it’s time. Enjoy life. Enjoy the moment. Take time to do something without planning ahead. And don’t hold grudges because you never know when it’ll be the last time you see someone.

~Kelly 

Water from the Well-- New Devotional Blog Added :)

I'm excited to announce a new blog added to the directory :) Water From The Well :)

Water From the Well, dedicated to spreading the great commission one word at a time. The water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

A Study in Patience

A Study in Patience

When my daughter was four years old, my mother (her Nana) asked her what she wanted for her birthday. My daughter said an Easy Bake Oven. Nana (thankfully) didn’t want to get her one and, as an excuse said, “Oh look, the box says you have to be 8 to have it. Are you 8?”

“No.” My sweet girl shook her head.

“Okay.” Nana smiled, happy to have that crisis averted. “You can have it when you are 8.” They went on their way, and Nana assumed she forgot it.

As parents, we’ve all done that (or I assume you have. I have). If we don’t want our kids to have something, we tell them something and hope they forget it.

My daughter, though, surprised us all.

On her fifth birthday she announced, out of the blue, “Only three more years until I can have my Easy Bake Oven!”

On her sixth birthday, “Only two more years until I can have my Easy Bake Oven!”

On her seventh birthday, “Only one more year!! I can’t wait to be eight to get my Easy Bake Oven.”

In the four years since Nana told her those fateful words, “You have to wait until you are eight”, my daughter has never once begged for an Easy Bake Oven. She hasn’t cried. She hasn’t whined. She’s just been very upbeat that she WOULD get an Easy Bake Oven. All she had to do was wait.

I wish I was more like my eight year old.

Proverbs 25:15

Patience can persuade a prince, and soft speech can break bones.

I can think of this two ways. 1) She KNEW her Mama would give her exactly what she promised. 2) She had patience to wait (four years… an eternity to a kid) for it.

I don’t know about you, but I want things NOW! I write fast because I can’t stand having an unfinished story. I can write a book (60,000 words) in about 3-4 weeks. Because of that, I have this tendency to want EVERYTHING fast. I’m a horrible, “I want it now!” person.

I guess you could say my daughter got my patience… because I sure don’t have any left ;)

Now, don’t get wrong. I’m patient with people (in my line of work you have to be). I’m patient with kids. But when it comes to things from God, I’m not! I have everything planned out and if He doesn’t hit *my* marks, well He’s slow and I’m sad.

I need to take a lesson from my daughter. She never complained once about having to wait four years for her Easy Bake Oven. But she never forgot it either.

Pray.

Be hopeful.

Look to the future.

Know your blessings will come (Who doesn’t want an Easy Bake Oven?)

But be happy with what you have now.

Did my daughter just not play with any toys while she waited for her Easy Bake Oven? Did she sit, mope, hate life, and stare at a wall until her blessing came?

No, she enjoyed her other toys (her blessings as it were), waiting for the big desire of her heart.

Don’t miss out on playing with your other *toys* because you are waiting for your *Easy Bake Oven*. It’ll come… and hey, it might even be the new and improved ‘Ultimate Oven’… a much better blessing than you would have gotten four years ago.

Patience.

(My oldest and youngest kids have the same birthday. My 8 year old with her new Easy Bake Oven. My 3 year old... all she wanted was a big ball. Yeah. ;) )

~Kelly

Planted and Growing in the Word... New Devotional Blog Added

Vickie Lutz writes “Planted & Growing in the Word” and has written two books about worshiping God during Bible study with active listening and note-making,using a learning technique called graphic organization. She says, “My blog is grounded in what I learn about God through Bible study and worship and inspired by what I see God teaching me in life.”

Patience and Pancakes

Today, I was about to cook breakfast for my family. The husband didn't want pancakes. 2/3 of my girls wanted cereal. Just me and my oldest wanted what I had started cooking.

"Okay," I thought. "I normally don't do this, but I'll cook everybody what they want." Normally, I'm a stickler for things. If I cook it, you eat or do without. I have been told (recently) that I might be a tad bit uptight about things so I decided, okay, I'll be 'good' today.

That was my first mistake....

While I was cooking the pancakes, the husband fixed himself some chili fries. Okay, no big deal. He's a grown man.

My kids were different.

My youngest two started in it. Apparently, life as we knew it was about to cease to exist. They were starving... like STARVING! So, being good as I was, I fixed their cereal while I worked on the pancakes. They ate. I cooked.

My oldest daughter saw her sisters eating and wanted her pancake early. She didn't want to wait for the eggs or strawberries. She just wanted her pancake.

Okay, whatever.

I gave her pancake to her and started on mine.

They were still hungry, so I fixed some strawberries. They ate. I cooked. Finally, when I got finished cooking the pancakes and eggs, I sat down to eat. My family got up because they were finished. All except for my 2 year old, who decided she needed a pancake (even though she'd already eaten a bowl of chocolate cereal.) NOTE: she didn't get a pancake, but I did give her 2-3 bites of mine.

I was sitting (alone), eating (alone), thinking (alone) when I started laughing. (NOTE: laughing alone just makes you look weird... But I did it anyway. Make your own conclusions.)

 Years ago, I asked God for a husband. I got one.

After that, I asked God for a job. I got one.

After that, I asked God for a child. I got one.

After that, I asked God for another child. I got one.

After that, I asked God for a third child. I got one.

After that, I asked God to allow me to write a book. I did.

After that, I asked God to allow the book to be published. It was.

After that, I asked God for big sales. It was on the bestseller list.

After that, I asked God for a second books to sell. It did.

After that.... you get the idea.

Like my 2 year old (yeah I admit it), I always want more. God is the cook in the kitchen trying to get our lives... our blessings prepared for us to enjoy, and sometimes we are the impatient children wanting it NOW! Had my 2 year old waited, she would have gotten a treat-- a pancake-- and not cereal that she eats every day.

We forget that God is working behind the scenes, cooking if you will, to get everything ready.

But we want it NOW!

I've been praying for something (again... Not a baby lol) and I seem to want it NOW and get upset when it doesn't happen. I'm like my two year old. Sigh.

When you get upset over something or don't see it happening, remember God is always working behind the scenes. He's cooking you up something much better than your ordinary cereal. Be patient. Enjoy what you have now-- but look forward to those pancakes in the future.

Proverbs 16:32: Better to be patient than powerful;

better to have self-control than to conquer a city.

Are you wanting something very much?

Have you asked God for it?

Are you being patient and waiting?

Or are you being like me (lol)?

My goal is to enjoy where I am now and look forward to what is in store in the future :) I hope the same for you :) :)

~Kelly