Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You are my Savior and Redeemer. I pray I would know and trust You the way Mary did. Would You give me a heart of obedience and help me to say "yes" in the small, every day decisions? In the busyness of this season, please remind me to humble myself before You and hear Your voice. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and make Your Presence known in real and powerful ways. Help me to be faithful in the ordinary, and in that, prepare me for the extraordinary. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

"Don't worry....."

I believe that Jehovah Jireh will take care of us during this "recession", but that doesn't mean that we can just sit back and let Him do all the work. I pray that we, my husband and I, will be wise and good stewards of what we have now. I pray that we calmly and wisely pursue taking care of our responsibilities. Which will include working wherever we can to bring in some more income. I pray that we will have a healthy balance of trust and reality. I am guilty of sticking my head in the sand, partly because, well, when it comes to finances we haven't had the money to be able to pay that bill and/or this one...so I don't even address it. I know that doesn't make it go away, but I don't even communicate with the business/company that we owe the money to. I also recognize that when I bring our finances "down off the shelf" to take a look at so as to "deal" with it, I can easily and quickly get overwhelmed, and I don't want to do that either. So, I pray. I pray for wisdom to know how to take care of the situation - somewhere between ignoring it and getting overwhelmed by it. Because in either case, I end up not doing anything about it and that definitely isn't taking care of it.

Well, I'll stop rambling now, but your prayers for wisdom and clarity would be greatly appreciated!

Matthew 6:27-29 (New International Version)

27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^[a]?

28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.

Washing Judas' Feet

I had to share this...it spoke volumes to my heart.

She Stooped to Conquer
LaTan Roland Murphy

We hope you are enjoying the Girlfriends in God daily devotions. We (Mary, Sharon, and Gwen) would like to introduce you to some of our special friends. From time-to-time, the Friday devotions will be written by one of our friends in ministry. We call them our "Friday Friends." So grab your Bible and a fresh cup of coffee and drink in the words from our "Friday Friend", LaTan Roland Murphy, author of Becoming a Woman of Interior Elegance and proofreader for Girlfriends in God devotionals.

Today's Truth
Ephesians 5:21 "Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ."

Friend to Friend
"Mom, they were whispering to one another about the birthday party. They didn't want me to hear because I am not invited," my daughter said with trembling voice as tears filled her big beautiful eyes.

My heart was breaking in half as I listened to how hurt she was. "They are my best friends at school, Mom. Why would they not invite me?"

I reached out to hug her, our arms wrapping around each other tightly as she turned her soft tear stained face toward my neck. It was a familiar crying spot as she had buried her face there time and time again in the same position since she was a baby. We helped each other without speaking a word for a while. Sometimes there are just no words to make things better, so I cried with her. One week later, while driving our daughter to school, she asked her dad in a quiet voice if he would please stop at the grocery store.

"Why DaNae'? Do you need something for school?"

"Well, sort of."

"What do you need, honey, because we are already going to be late."

"I need to buy a balloon for someone who is having a birthday party tonight."

"Who is it?" I asked.

"Do you remember the girl who was whispering about her birthday party in front of me? Well, I want to take a balloon to school for her." I looked over at my husband and he looked at me, each of our hearts melting both with a sense of pride and of sadness. We knew we had to stop even if it meant we would be late. It was worth it!

Da-Nae' walked happily into the grocery store and in a few moments came running out with a huge grin spread across her seventh grade face. Her balloon was flying high in the air with a pack of chewing gum hanging from the bottom, acting as a weight. She was the happiest girl in the world!

My husband and I were so blessed by our daughter's actions that morning. She stooped to conquer feelings that could have been filled with anger and hurt. Some people might ask why she would make a fool of herself after being treated the way she was or how she could lower herself after what her friend had done to her. When Christ is the center of our lives, He empowers us to do things we could never do in our own human nature. Our daughter chose not to be a martyr. She chose to stoop a little so she could rise up on a much higher level. She chose to reject her sadness about not being invited to the party. She reaped the blessings of stooping to conquer her emotions and blessed her friend in spite of how she had been treated. When was the last time you stooped to conquer?

Let's Pray
"Lord Jesus, please give me courage to stoop to conquer emotions that are not in perfect alignment with Your plan for me. Help me to be a woman of character--- submitting to Your leading in my life each day. Show me how to respond in a Godly way when I am hurt. Lord Jesus, thank You for stooping to conquer both death and the grave for my salvation. I pray my life will reflect the gratitude You deserve." In Jesus' name, Amen.

Now It's Your Turn
Hurt will come to each of us. We can't change that fact. What we can change is the way we respond to hurtful situations in our lives. Will we become bitter or better?

Think of a hurt you have carried for a long time. Think about how it has affected your life. How did you first respond to the hurt? What is your response today?

Ask the Lord to bind up your wounded heart and heal you completely. Ask Him to give you such Godly character that every response is in alignment to His perfect will.

Allow Christ to fill all the empty places in your heart

Understand that by stooping to conquer these emotions, you will defeat the enemy's ploy to destroy and ultimately win over sin!

Accept the truth that we are all made in the image of God and by submitting to one another as the scripture reference reminds us today, we will be reverencing God in the most beautiful way.

Chasing the Wind

December 4tih Our Daily Bread

The epic film based on Margaret Mitchell’s novel Gone With the Wind opens with these lines:

“There was a land of Cavaliers and Cotton Fields called the Old South. Here in this pretty world, Gallantry took its last bow. . . . Look for it only in books, for it is no more than a dream remembered, a Civilization gone with the wind.”

Not only does a way of life disappear but also the dreams that drive the main characters. Throughout the Civil War, Scarlett O’Hara is preoccupied with her love for Ashley Wilkes. But by story’s end, she is disillusioned.

Solomon saw the futility of seeking satisfaction in people and things. Despite amassing wealth and knowledge, completing great projects, and marrying many wives, he said, “All is vanity and grasping for the wind” (Eccl. 1:14).

Why does chasing transitory things leave us unfulfilled? The biblical answer is that we were created to find our ultimate fulfillment in God. Jesus promised, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

People and things come and go. But the spiritual satisfaction Christ offers sustains us in this world and will endure into eternity. — Dennis Fisher

What comes from man will never last,
It’s here today, tomorrow past;
What comes from God will always be
The same for all eternity! —Spencer

Invest your life in what pays eternal dividends.

Ecclesiastes 1:2-9, 14

Everything Is Meaningless

2 “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!”

3 What do people get for all their hard work under the sun? 4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth never changes. 5 The sun rises and the sun sets, then hurries around to rise again. 6 The wind blows south, and then turns north. Around and around it goes, blowing in circles. 7 Rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full. Then the water returns again to the rivers and flows out again to the sea. 8 Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content.

9 History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new.

14 I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless—like chasing the wind.

Turkey Stuffing Burgers

Well, I felt creative last night. I grounded up some leftover turkey (about 2 cups was what it came out tobe after I grounded it up) in our magic bullet, and mixed it in with the leftover stuffing (about a cup and a 1/2) and then added 3 eggs to it and some salt and pepper. I molded the mixture into patties and then baked them at 350 for 25 minutes. They were actually pretty good! I put swiss cheese on top of mine. The kids aren't too fond of stuffing, but they ate most of the burger. Just another 'leftover' idea.

Thanksgiving Fun!

It was just us on Thanksgiving Day, and you know, for someone who enjoys being around people (especially for Holidays) I was excited that it was just the six of us. We had a most wonderful meal consisting of ham - major kudos to my Honey!!, loaded mashed potatoes - kudos to CountryCrock!, corn, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. For desert we made turkeys out of cookies and candies - the idea was from one of Cora's teachers Ms. Madison - thanks! The kids had a blast, though not many turkeys got fully assembled ;o). Even though Kennedy didn't get make a cookie, she was scouring the floor for any crumbs that may have fallen. She is too stinkin smart for our good! (I think that's what I meant to say....well, you know what I mean, I hope)

Okay, so how do I get the pictures to post after what I've typed, and then to be able to add a caption to each picture!?

To Play or NOT to play, that is the question

This was today's "You Make Me Laugh" email from crosswalk. I found it thoroughly amusing.

A Primer For Accordion Beginners*

Get an accordion. The cheaper the better because they all sound the same.

Do not tell anyone what you have done. It will only cause them to worry.

They will find out soon enough.

Take the accordion out of the case and strap it on. It is better if the accordion rests on your chest instead of your back but, for the first few weeks, it doesn't really make that much difference.

For sounds to be produced, three things must happen. The third is the most important:

1. The bellows must be moving in or out.
2. One or more of the keys or buttons must be pressed.
3. All potential weapons within a one mile radius must be collected and secured.

The buttons on the left side are chord buttons. The "C" button has a dimple or nipple so you can find it without looking. This is a safety feature. Before it was invented, thousands of accordion players suffered painful and sometimes disabling injuries, much to the delight of the general public.

Never use more than three buttons. "Professional" accordionists appear to be using lots of buttons but they are actually just desperately trying to find the stupid "C".

By the way, "Professional" means they have learned to smile while they do it.

Play the black and white keys. The high notes are at the bottom and the low notes are at the top. That arrangement isn't supposed to make any sense. Accept it.

Note: If you find the high notes at the top and the low notes at the bottom, you have either put the accordion on upside down or you have tried to repair it yourself. If the former, turn the accordion over. If the latter, pack your accordion up with hundreds of dollars and mail it far away for a long, long time.

Continue playing until someone begs you to stop or threatens your life, whichever comes first.

Put the accordion back in its case, order an accordion t-shirt and wear it to your state's Accordion Fest.