Online Bible Studies ~ Day 7

                                                          *click here to see the other 31 days*

One way I draw closer to God is through online bible studies. I've found that they work so perfectly for a busy mom's schedule. Right now I'm doing a study on Colossians with the Good Morning Girls. Through them I found an amazing group of women to pray for me, keep me accountable, and encourage me.  *Shout out to my Good Morning Girls! Glad to be part of our group!* Online bible studies give direction for studying, yet leave the flexibility necessary for everything that comes with being a parent. I encourage you to give it a try!

Do you know of any other websites that host online bible studies?

Spend Some Time Outdoors ~ Day 6

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It's a busy weekend so I apologize for how short this may be. I don't know about you but there is really no better way for me to feel close to God then to spend some time outdoors admiring his creation. Barefoot in the grass, wind in my hair, sun on my skin. Those are the moments I feel most alive. 

Myrtle Beach Honeymoon 2009

Grand Canyon 2010

Virginia Beach 2012

My 15 Favorite Worship Songs ~ Day 5

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Here's a list of my 15 favorite worship songs*. Hope they can encourage and inspire you today!

*Subject to change at any time.

(Note:Clicking on the title should take you to a youtube video of the song.)

1. Mighty to save by Hillsong United
Favorite part: Saviour, He can move the mountains,
My God is mighty to save,
He is mighty to save
Forever, author of salvation,
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave

2. The Stand by Hillsong United
Favorite part: You stood before my failure
And carried the cross for my shame
My sin weighed upon Your shoulders
My soul now to stand

So what can I say
And what can I do
But offer this heart O God
Completely to You

3. Give Me Words To Speak by Aaron Shust
Favorite part (that I often sing before I write here, to my lovely readers):

Give me Words to speak
Don't let my Spirit sleep
Cause I can't think of anything worth saying
But I know that I owe You my life
So give me Words to speak
Don't let my Spirit sleep

4. He Has Made Me Glad by ?
Favorite part:I will enter his gates with Thanksgiving in my heart
I will enter his courts with praise
I will say this is the day that the Lord had made
I will rejoice for he has made me glad

5. Freedom by Darrell Evans
Favorite Part: Where the spirit of the Lord is there is freedom

6. Ancient of Days by Ron Kenoly
Favorite part:Your kingdom shall reign over all the earth
Sing to the ancient of days
For none can compare to your matchless worth
Sing to the ancient of days

7. Ain't Gonna Let No Rock by Ron Kenoly

 Favorite part: if we hold our peace, let our praises cease,
the rocks will cry out instead

8. Days of Elijah by Donnie Mcclurkin
Favorite part: Say, behold He comes, riding on the clouds Shining like the sun at the trumpet's call Lift your voice, year of Jubilee Out of Zion’s hill, salvation comes

9. God of Wonders by Third Day

 Favorite part:God of wonders Beyond our galaxy  

You are holy, holy  

The universe declares Your majesty 

You are holy, holy

10. Hands And Feet by Audio Adrenaline (This song helps me through Navy moves)
Favorite part:I'm willing yet I'm so afraid 

You give me strength, when I say
I wanna be your hands

I wanna be your feet

I'll go where you send me 

I'll go where you send me

11. The Heart Of Worship by SonicFlood
Favorite part: Though I'm weak and poor  
All I have is Yours, 
every single breath

12. Blessed Be Your Name by Newsboys
Favorite part: Every blessing You pour out I'll turn back to praise 
When the darkness closes in, Lord Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord 
Blessed be Your name  
Blessed be the name of the Lord  
Blessed be Your glorious name

13. Jesus, Take The Wheel by Carrie Underwood
Favorite part:Jesus, take the wheel 
Take it from my hands 
‘Cause I can't do this on my own
I'm letting go

14. Bless The Lord by Jeff Deyo
Favorite part: For Your victory 

For Your triumph 

And Your soon come and reign over all  

I will worship You 

I will bless Your name forever 

I will worship You  

Bless the Lord, oh my soul bless the Lord

15. Hosanna by Hillsong United

Favorite part:Heal my heart and make it clean 

Open up my eyes to the things unseen  

Show me how to love like You have loved me
Break my heart for what breaks Yours   

Everything I am for Your kingdom's cause  

As I walk from earth into eternity

Charging your Worship Batteries ~ Day 4

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Good morning everyone! Is your October off to a good start? I hope using worship as a weapon made your day a little better yesterday. Are you taking time to praise the Lord?

To be able to use worship as a weapon you have to be taking the time to charge your worship batteries. That is, take the time to listen to a few worship songs daily. That way when you encounter a tough situation, it's simple and natural for your mind to produce a song to worship the Lord. I grew up in church, so I know a lot of worship songs. However if I'm not taking the time to listen to a few daily, my batteries start dying. Worship songs are harder to come up with and instead I just say "Oh, forget it! I'm too mad to sing anyways"! It has to come to mind quickly or it's just not as effective.

Church is obviously a great place to recharge. However it's not always an option and even if it is, once a week isn't enough. So here are my 3 favorite places to worship.

 1. In the car.

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2. In the shower.

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3. In the kitchen.

Basically anywhere that I'm stuck for a length of time. With my iPhone I can listen to worship anywhere now, but these are my top 3 spots. Where do you listen to praise and worship?

Worship as a Weapon ~ Day 3

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Yesterday we talked about praising God with song and dance. Today I thought we could talk about how we could use that praise and worship as a weapon.

Ephesians 6:11-12 says

¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Like it or not, we are soldiers in a war. Not a flesh and blood war, but an invisible war of the heart, mind, and soul. If you don't arm yourself, if you are to busy today to put on the armor of God, then you have left yourself unarmed in a battle that is being fought TODAY whether or not you're busy.

In 2 Chronicles 20 there is an amazing story about how God won a battle for an entire army of men while they sang praise to him. Really, go read it. Pay special attention to verse 22.

2 Corinthians 10:4 says
⁴ The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

The weapons we fight with - praise and worship, the scriptures, prayer - they have the power to demolish strongholds. We take this for granted, don't we? If you were part of a flesh and blood war, wouldn't you do everything you could to win? Wouldn't you choose the best sword, sharpen it, practice with it daily? Would you ever say "Sorry, I am too busy cleaning my house today to worry about this silly war." NO! Yes, there is a time for daily tasks but Christ must always be the priority.

I think there must be some people reading this that think maybe God is selfish. He wants us to prioritize him over everything? Spend time with him every day? Sing about/to him? Doesn't he realize I have stuff to do? I feel that God wants you to know that he's worried about you. Like a father watching his daughter go to war, he wants you to be armed properly. He loves you so much.

Today I was having one of those mornings. I woke up too early, came down to a too messy house, had to hold the baby while I started the laundry because she kept trying to eat the dog food, then came in the living room to my two year old drawing on my couch and planner with a green pen. Oh dear God, give me patience.

Then while I was emptying the dishwasher I was being bombarded with "Mom, mom, mooooom, mama, moooommm, more chochochate miwk pwease?! mom! mom?" I had definitely reached my boiling point. So I took a deep breath and instead of exploding, I sang.
I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart,
I will enter His courts with praise,
I will say this is the day that the Lord has made,
I will rejoice for He has made me glad.

I wish I could say it was a magic fix-all for my day. My children are feeling extra needy today, my house is still a mess, and I have a killer headache. However, it really did change my attitude. Every time I feel myself becoming cranky again I just sing it again and again. Its hard for negative thoughts to remain where there is praise to God.

Today I will draw closer to God by continuing to sing praise through the rough spots. Standing firm when Satan attacks me and tries to cause disharmony in my home.

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Praising God with Song and Dance ~ Day 2

It's day 2 of our 31 day challenge [Click here to see the other days]. I am so excited about the focus God has been giving me for where he wants this series to go. I feel blessed to be facilitating it.

 Now that we've talked about what drawing close to God means, let's talk about one way we can do that.

Psalm 100:1-5
A psalm. For giving grateful praise.

¹ Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
²     Worship the Lord with gladness;
    come before him with joyful songs.
³ Know that the Lord is God.
    It is he who made us, and we are his^[a];
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

  Psalm 150 says ¹ Praise the Lord.^[a]

Praise God in his sanctuary;
    praise him in his mighty heavens.
² Praise him for his acts of power;
    praise him for his surpassing greatness.
³ Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
    praise him with the harp and lyre,
⁴ praise him with timbrel and dancing,
    praise him with the strings and pipe,
⁵ praise him with the clash of cymbals,
    praise him with resounding cymbals.

⁶ Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

There is something so freeing about making a joyful noise unto the Lord. And he is SO worthy of that. Are you one of those people that worries about "looking appropriate" or not "drawing attention" to yourself with your praise and worship? Go read 2 Samuel chapter 6 and find out what the Lord really thinks about that. 

Oh, to dance like David danced. Oh, to sing like he sang.

Today I will draw closer to God by singing his praise, dancing for him right here in my living room. (my kids will think this is awesome.) Join me, wont you?

 

What Does it Mean to Draw Close to God? ~ Day 1

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I am so excited to start this 31 Day series. I thought I'd start by talking about what it means to draw close to God. I am by no means an expert (is anyone?) but my heart longs to walk with the King. This world is so big and scary and.. well.. evil. But there is so much beauty too. I don't want to go anywhere without the Lord walking before me, behind me, and beside me. To enjoy every part of this beautiful life he gave me with the knowledge that he will never leave me or forsake me. (Deuteronomy 31:8)

James 4:8 says Come near to God and he will come near to you.
Revelation 3:20 says Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

Both of these verses reveal the same thing to me. There is action to be taken. God is not going to force his way in. He isn't going to do all the work. It's our choice. If we take a step toward him he will meet us there. If we open the door he will come in and eat with us. I am in awe that he would be so patient and he would love me SO much that he would just stand and wait for me to make the first move. I know if it was me, maybe I would wait for you to open the door but once you did you'd probably get an ear full. "Well, it took you long enough. What on earth could be so important you would leave me standing on your porch for so long?"  Not God.. he just comes in and eats with us. No guilt, just forgiveness. What a beautiful thing. Again, I am in awe.

So this next month is my journey. Finding practical applications everyday to draw close to God, to answer the knock, to take that step towards him. I hope that my journey somehow helps you too.

*Linking up with the other 31 dayers at the nesting place*

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