Upcoming Concert

I am opening for Jimmy Needham on Wednesday night, December 28th at 7pm, @ Westgate Chapel. You can buy tickets here or at the door. Go here for more information!

Acceptance vs. Conforment

"There is a fine line between

A C C E P T A N C E

and

C O N F O R M E N T"

Facebook opens eyes to the real thoughts, emotions, and beliefs of a person. A status is posted regarding their daily devotional, but then in a later post that same day reflects an absolutely contrary opinon to what God's word says. We live in a gray society, and this gray cloud has invaded our churchs and our moral standards. I will be first to say that I am far from perfect...but if we don't get our acts together, I believe we will fall to the detriment of this corruption.

I have always believed that if we stand for nothing, we will fall for anything (1 Cor. 10:12-13). The enemy says "God accepts you as you are"...which is true, however, the lie is "so you don't have to change". Well, sorry, that's not biblical. Romans 12:2- "Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants form you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of maturity, God bring the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you". (The Message)

The enemy is really good at distractions. I can honestly say that 2011 was a complete blur. I will painfully say that I neglected the Lord for most of the year, while still leading people in worship, and said that I was a Christ follower. But, as I am coming back to Him, I can hear Him again and PLAINLY see where I am falling short. I feel like we have become blind and deaf to the convicitons that come from the Lord, because we have been scammed into a life where he is only apart of it, instead of all of it.

Needless to say, 2011 was a difficult year. Though good things happened, my heart was heavy. It took losing my baby during the pregnancy to see that I needed a Savior, and that without Him, I was drowning. It feels good to come back. It gives me my voice back. I'm beginning to hear, see, and taste that the Lord is good and that He loves me. I anxiously wait, and hope for change. I have for almost 4 years now. BUT, that gives me no excuse to live by any less of a standard than the one the Lord set for me before the beginning of this world.

I encourage you to really begin to think about what you believe. Do you believe that God's word is absolute truth? Or do you believe what our culture says; that the word is what you want it to be? I believe we as a culture have created our own god, one that allows us to be and do whatever we want without consequence, or conviction. Where's the power in that? My dad used to quote his old pastor saying "don't become so heavenly minded that you're no earthly good". Well, I think that society has changed so much since that time that I would warn: "Don't become so earthy minded that you're no heavenly good".

Be sure to stand strong on Biblical standards. Living a gray life, also known as being "lukewarm" doesn't fly in the Kingdom of Heaven.

New Season

I can't express the thousands of emotions that I am feeling all at once these days. A constant wave of hysteria, laughter, and excitement happening non stop as I am in my early days of pregnancy. Pregnancy is different than I ever thought or imagined it would be. I guess you just don't really know what you're getting into, until you are full flesh into it, and there's a doctor all up in your business, and you have pee'd in more cups than you have in your kitchen cupboard.

At this point they're thinking I am around 9 to 10 weeks. I went to the doctor to find the babies heart beat, but they couldn't find it. The doctor wasn't surprised nor concerned, but I was so disappointed. I was hoping to have a moment of realization that there truly is a baby inside of me. I am days away from my ultra sound, gosh I hope they find my baby. I guess these are all real feelings of a new mom, in their first pregnancy. It's all so serial.

I try to imagine what life is going to be like once the baby comes. I am trying to imagine my self going back to work, pumping at my desk, and somehow taking care of work, family, and home. The thought scares me, but I have to remember that God has prepared the way ahead of me, and he's got this under control.

As of now, I won't have the privilege of being a stay at home mom. Society doesn't make the stay at home mom thing that accessible any more. But I am choosing to be thankful that the Lord has provided Robert and I with steady jobs in a not so steady economy. I have to remember that the Lord has so much greater a purpose for our lives than we can see. That there is a bigger picture and a bigger plan, and that somehow even this fits into it.

So today I wait...Wait for this pregnancy to feel real. Wait for this belly to not just feel like fat. Wait for the day where I am a mom, holding my baby, and realizing that every day of this pregnancy was more than worth it.

*CHEERS!* to this new season...here goes, well...everything!

More today than yesterday.

I'm sorry, but lookin' at the man in the above picture, I am like "hubba-hubba". WOW! I am one lucky girl! I am blessed to have the most unbelievable man as my husband. He's ridiculously amazing. See, I don't even sound educated when I talk about him because all that comes out are sound affects and cat calls like "Yowza", and some sort of growling prrrr.

Loving my husband has become such an enjoyment to me. I am his biggest cheerleader, his biggest fan. He's terribly handsome, getting hotter and hotter every year, the few gray hairs that he's starting to get drive me crazy (in a good way), I just can't stop looking at him. But the most amazing thing about MY husband, isn't his looks. He's actually even better looking on the inside.

I think my husband is hysterical. There's not a day that goes by that I am not hysterically laughing. He's got my sense of humor pinned. He's not afraid to play the fool, and let me tell ya, he looks good doing it to. (oh yah, I am talking about his insides now!)

His heart for the lost is H U G E. He's led more people to Christ than anyone I know. His relationships are intentional, his heart is sincere, and his greatest attribute is loyalty. He takes care of others before himself. He would give his very last dollar to you if you needed it. He loves Jesus. He pursues Him, He listens to Him, He finds Him.

Robert is wise in the Lord. Someone once said "It's hard to hear what Robert has to say...but he's always right". And it's true. Robert has such a solid foundation for what is biblical, what is sound, and what is just. It's like he has a grasp on the Lords heart, and wants to share it.

Robert has made me a better woman. I was lacking in so many ways without him. He's taught me to be bold, to go after my dreams, to pursue the Lord first, to love others more than myself, to be intentional and present.

I seriously love this man more today than yesterday. More today than the day we got married, and more today than the day we first fell in love. Our love for each other is sincere, passionate, giving, and faithful. We believe that our strong love for each other can with stand the fiercest of trials. We aren't stupid enough to believe we are out of the woods, but we believe that having a solid relationship with each other and the Lord are going to be the two things that with stand the storms.

I love you Boo, you make me laugh, you make me swoon, you cause my heart to flutter, and I can't wait for the rest of our forever. I have loved you with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3)

You complete me. You had me at hello. (ha ha ha ha...ok, I just killed it)

Once again, moving forward.

Gosh, I hate that I have to be reminded to move forward.

As I have said, Satan is a schemer. He plans, he strategizes, he destroys. He takes whats been, and convinces you of what will be. My good friend Bruce Norris said:

"I regret that I often look to the future with the same vision I use to look at the past. Looking at the past too long robs us of the sense of mystery and wonder the future holds, and instead sets us up with disappointments and inevitability".

So funny how easily we use our past to dictate our futures.

Friday night I was apart of something bigger than myself. I did a concert Friday night where I believe I was used of God to shake people. Not just shake them, but rattle them to their cores. See, I know it wasn't me, I have no praise to gain. BUT, I was a vessel, willing to be bent, molded, and used. I knew gearing up to this event that God had a message, and he needed someone to portray it. Doing the best that I could, I attempted to express this message:

That God has a specific plan and purpose for your life. That dreams and desires are placed within us for a reason. But that ultimately, it is up to us to act on those dreams. That there were hurting and broken people out there dependent on our obedience to the Lords calling on our lives.

As Friday night turned into Saturday morning, I found myself brushing off this new me, and putting back on the old. So quickly did I let myself return to the old self. It was almost as if a few weeks ago I had taken off the heaviest of jackets, only to put it right back on the second I was cold. My heavy jacket was fear that God wasn't good. That He only cared about himself.

Tonight, I was heart to heart with a friend that spoke the same fears that I have faced the last few years of my life; "what if God has nothing more for me than what's in front of me". For those of you unsatisfied with life, this is a scary thought. It's scary because you want to honor God, be thankful, but at the same time you want to be used in more than what you can see. If there's not more to the picture, than what's the point? Am I just a puppet?!

God clearly spoke to my heart as this friend shared with me. His words punctured my heart, like he was reading every thought that I had ever battled. I knew that I put my jacket back on.

The coolest thing about the Lord, is that sometimes he allows us to stray for a while in order to learn just what we need to, to be closer with Him. Other times, He quickly yanks us back. As soon as I was able to acknowledge and remember that YES, God is good, I was able to remove that heavy "jacket" and return to the path that God has set in front of me.

Don't look back. Move forward. My friend Bruce has this amazing uncle who responded to the above quote. He said

"Look at a car. The windshield is quite large in order to see where we are headed. The rear view mirror is quite small not allowing us to see too much of where we've come from!"

It's time to stop cycling around what we know and experience what we have yet to live! God doesn't just make things new to make them old, NO He continually makes things new. We must follow Him forward. Not look back, but move ahead. The promise is forward. The only thing behind you is the past. That's it. So stop looking back. What's been isn't necessarily what will be, BUT what's been has placed you where you need to be today. The past was merely a stepping stone.

Today, will you join me in moving forward? Will you take off that which hinders you?

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider HIM who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." ~ Hebrews 12:1-3

Lets. Move. Forward!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Its coming!

My next concert is this weekend. I really hope that those of you out there in the Seattle area will be available to come. I promise it is going to be a great night, and that you wont regret for a second that you came!! Bring your friends this Friday, January 28th. Doors open at 7:30pm, $8 to get in at the Qcafe in Seattle. Let me know if you're coming!

This is going to be a night of worship, praise, restoration, encouragement and joy! Come be apart of this amazing night! Worth every penny.

God is for you!

Romans 8:31 "If God is FOR US, who can be against us?"

Today, I am P R O U D to be a follower of Christ. Today, the waves came crashing. Today, I was reminded that the Lord is FOR me.

Satan hates it when we gain momentum in our walk with the Lord. Absolutely hates it. He feels threatened, and he puts up a worthless fight.

My husband and I have had a few trying years. But where we could have retreated, we leaned in. Together, we decided to take a stand that no matter what, our God was faithful. The enemy doesn't like that, so we kept our guards up, ready to withstand whatever Satan threw our way. But the enemy is a schemer. He didn't attack us as individuals. He attacked our families. He attacked the people that we loved the most. It was almost as though he took our families, put a knife to their necks and said "If you would just deny Christ, I will let them go".

We couldn't deny our God.

Because God is bigger than I ever think He is, some of my family has come out of these trials as more than conquerors. God has restored marriages. He has protected family from death. He's kept peace where there should be none. He has pulled them in closer, kept them tighter in His fatherly grasp. God. IS. Good.

However, some of my family is still broken. More broken than we ever would have thought possible. But I know that God is faithful. I know that He is prone to work best in the weakest of circumstances. I know that He is for me, and not against us.

The enemy saw that we wouldn't back down. That's when he came after us personally.

Today, my husband had to take a stand. He boldly resigned from a position that was tearing away at the man that he was. Last night while deciding what to do with his job situation, we prayed. We asked for guidance. We listened. We asked that by morning, God would make the answer plain. Fortunately, God. IS. Good. And He answered.

This morning, my husband whispered in my ear to wake me up "I got my answer". Now something you should know about Robert, is that there isn't one decision in his life that He hasn't sought the Lord for an answer. Another thing you should know about Robert is that he never dreams. And if he does dream, he doesn't remember it in the slightest. Last night God gave Robert a dream of him quitting his job. Robert got his answer.

Though I was shaken to my core, I was not stirred. Did I have a tough time with this? Of course. But somehow in the midst of this I had peace. I even said to Robert this morning with tears streaming down my face "the peace I have is giving me anxiety, because I shouldn't have peace". My sister pointed out to me that peace isn't a natural response. That peace can only come in times of strife through a loving Savior who is the Prince of all peace.

Those of you going through it, don't lose heart! God is FOR you! He's not against you! Though these times are hard, do not give up! You can't quit fighting in the middle of the battle. When you do, you're are just left open to more attack and eventually defeat.

Satan tried to have us today. But God won. He will try again tomorrow. And probably the next day. But may I say it at the top of my lungs so that it rings as clear as a bell in the enemies ears:

"I KNOW THAT GOD IS FOR ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Never forget that God is for YOU. Don't pray that God would remove you from this season, no matter how difficult it is, for that is already apart of His plan. INSTEAD pray that you would do this season well. Do it to the best of your ability. Do it for Him. And when you're faced with adversity and you're caught thinking against the Father, remember that He's the one standing right there next to you saying in the gentlest of voices "come on, lets keep going. I will carry you if you get tired. I just want you to walk a little bit further." Just like a good daddy teaching his child to stand even when their legs get weak. You can't crawl forever.

If you think walking with the Lord is difficult, just wait till you are running! Its painful, but worth every scar it takes to get there. Those scars become trophies of God's grace. You will be proud of those scars someday.

To the woman reading this with tears of defeat in your eyes, I see you in my heart right now...God is for you. God is for you. God is for you. God is for you! GOD IS FOR YOU!

Friends, if God is for us, who on earth could be against us? It doesn't matter. The God that created the universe, the God that knew you before you were conceived, the God that sent His one and only Son to die on your behalf is FOR YOU!

"Therefore, do not worry about your life (...) but seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness" Matt. 6:25-34

Don't believe the lie. God. IS. for. YOU.