The Beauty of Redemption

Photo Credit: Creative Commons

There is Hope

"In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life." James 1:21 The Message


What a beautiful vision of God’s love for us: that he would take the barren, dark, desert landscape of our lives and turn them into lush gardens of beauty, and wholeness. Lives filled with light and life. This is what God does: He creates.

I know that there are places in my life that still need a remodel, a do-over so to speak. That is why what God does is so amazing. He makes all things new.

My hard, lonely, and dying heart can be made whole. That is the beauty of Jesus.

He has loved us from the beginning and He pursues us even now.

Watch this video and hear the message: God is calling you….

I Surrender-- Again

Confession Time

I haven't written in days. The mini vacation was nice. Yet, I find myself reluctant to get back into the swing of things. I have used the down time to finish reading a book or two and start a new one.

I spent time with the kids, worked at the church, and found out I have time-management issues. I have heard this before but now I see it in a new way.

Dishes, doctor's appointments, tire buying, clothes washing and many other little chores did not get done in a timely manner. Perhaps it is the time of year. I want to slow down and surrender to the quiet family time this time of year brings.

Perhaps it is more to do with the fact that I am just being lazy.

I used to joke about there being a hidden tattoo on my body that said "Inherently lazy", but I was too apathetic to look for it. Yet, out of the mouth, the heart speaks.

So what am I going to do? I do not know. I do know that I have a song on my heart. Hillsong's new album "Cornerstone" is on my heart, but in particular is this song: "I Surrender".

The old hymn "I Surrender All" played as God dropped the idea of this blog into my heart almost a year ago. It seems appropriate that as the anniversary of this blog's beginning approaches that a similar song is stirring in my heart.

Lord have your way in me.

I just wanted to share this with you today and I hope that it will stir you to surrender to what God has for you and what He wants to do in you.

Join the Conversation: 

How can I pray for you today?

No More Lies: Part Two: The Leap of Faith

Photo Credit Creative Commons: Edited by Dayna Bickham

The Leap of Faith

I am standing on the edge of a cliff: it looks too far, and it looks too wide. There is no reason to take the leap here. Perhaps there is another way....an easier way...a way that guarantees success.  Maybe there is a way that does not produce so much fear.... 

So I walk away. I give up. I don't even try. 

Meet lie number two: Sometimes not trying is better than trying and failing. 

For the longest time this was a mantra for me. Then I realized this is victim mentality and I am not a victim in this life. 

I am an overcomer, and as a child of God I am more than a conqueror in Christ. 

So why do I seem to chicken out at the "big" stuff? Why do the "next" things in my life give me pause? 

Because I am human. So are you. So was Joshua. 

Building Courage

Joshua was the protegee of Moses for a very long time. He had heard the promises of God for a new land. He had also been a spy and seen what lay in the land God had for them.   

When Moses died the task of leading a nation was up to him. In Joshua 1 God told Joshua twice "Be strong and of good courage".  Then the people of Israel told him they too believed in him as a leader and encouraged him to "be strong and of good courage". 

Sometimes we need to hear things more than once in order to "get it". God knows how stiff necked and hard headed I can be. But when we do "get it" big things can happen! 

For Joshua, he became so courageous and full of trust in God's ability to see him through anything that he went to battle against five kings at once. At his words (prayer) to God, God made the sun and moon to stand still until the battle was ended and the victory belonged to the children of Israel. 

It is Okay to be Weak

It is a good thing to need help. If we aren't small enough, how will people see the bigness of God? If we are weak, then He is strong. We have to remember that we are vessels for God's glory. How else will He shine through unless we are "cracked pots"? 

Our job is not to get the impossible done, but to rely on the One who made the universe to make the impossible happen and to give Him the glory for it. 

So when it comes time to stand on the edge of the cliff and take a leap of faith, we know this: there is glory in the leaping. Not in the success or the failure. God is the one that gets the glory one way or the other, because if we succeed it was because of Him, and if we fail, He catches us and teaches us what we need for future success. He has us and our futures in his hands. Under His wings will I trust.  

When we fail, we cannot let ourselves become bogged down with condemnation. We must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and try again. Not in our own power, but fully trusting in God, because He has made a way when there seems to be no way. 

He is the perfect One in this relationship. If something does not go right, that is not "on" God - that is on us or the enemy. Yet, no matter the situation, there is something to learn and in all things we can be grateful that God is in control and still chose us to begin with. 

"I Knew What I Was Getting Into"

God knew the deal He was making when He chose me. He knew I was weak and broken and He loved me and wanted me anyway. This means I can trust Him with anything because He can see the end from the beginning. He has a plan. His choice of me means my victory in Him. That is the love God has for you and I

I have a video I want you to watch. It is really a song, with the lyrics written out. It is a spontaneous song created in a moment of worship. It is from God to us. I hope you hear the heart of our Father toward His children. Only then can we stop believing the lies and start trusting in Him. 

Join the Conversation

What is one thing you have always wanted to try, but haven't, because you were afraid to try and fail? 

Follow the Leader

Original Photo:CC. Edits by Dayna Bickham

"You're Doing it Wrong!" 

Remember the playground game "Follow the Leader"? 

I do. I always wanted to be the leader. I did not like following. I was strong willed and always thought I knew best. My favorite phrase was "You're doing it wrong!" I was not a gracious child....

How upside down and inside out Jesus turned my world. Now I follow Him, trying to be exactly like Him, and somehow, I am always falling short. 

The good news is His grace covers the gaps. 

Trust Issues

My need to control, to be the leader, points out a very real issue I have had to deal with many times and in many ways: trust. 

When we do not trust, we fear. There is no way around it. Trust and fear are opposites. I do not want to be ruled by fear. I have had enough of the dark days of "what if" and "Oh no". I want to live in the light. I want to be free to completely trust that if I obey God's voice, then He will never let me down. 

So when God prompts you to go speak to someone, will you obey? What if He tells you to give your last dollar to the woman who lives under the overpass, would you do it? What if He told you that person was not "the one" for you, would you walk away? 

God wants our whole life, not just a part of our lives. He wants our whole heart, not just a piece on Sundays. 

"For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God." Deuteronomy 4:24

This jealousy is not just about God controlling everything. This jealousy is about relationship. God wants you to trust Him with every part of you. Your heart. Your body. Your finances. Your future. Your past. Your hopes. Your dreams. Everything! 

Before Fear Comes Intimidation

Bullies on the playground are not really feared until after they have done a little intimidation. The intimidation factor is an important component to any enemy's strategy. Too little and they will not achieve the desired effect. Too much intimidation and it may cause the powers that be to notice and take action. 

Isn't this exactly how our enemy deals with us when it comes to obedience to the Lord? He brings the intimidation factor and we fold under the pressure and do not obey. 

"If you do that, people will think you are weird!"  

"If you give your last dollar, what will you do later?"

"If you do not hold on to this guy, no one will ever love you again!" 

This internal dialogue happens all the time. Even Jesus had it. What do you think His time in the desert was? 

He battled with the enemy and He won. Because He trusted what God said in His word, and because He knew, that like any bully, Satan is powerless in the face of truth and courage. 

Before Trust Comes Surrender

Surrender. Abandon. Total trust. These words and phrases are easy enough concepts to understand, but difficult to live out. Why? Because our free will gets in the way. When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, what "broke" was more than a way to fellowship with God, even more than sin. The fall broke our focus. We no longer look to God as our source for everything. Now we look to ourselves. This creates it's own set of issues. 

We can never be the solution to our problems because we are our problem. 

We have to give up our selves. Turn ourselves "in" to God and surrender our rights, our will, our emotions, our fear, our heartache, our hopes, our fears, all of it. Without total surrender there cannot be total trust. 

As I wrap up this post I want to remind you of the "trust fall". If you have not seen this done, a person turns their back to another, then falls with complete abandon backwards, trusting that the person behind them will catch them. 

Jesus has us. He will not forsake us. 

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Have you ever done a trust fall with friends or coworkers? Share your story below. Click on "Leave a Comment" or "Add a Comment".

Worship is More than A Song

Worship is more than a song....

I do not know about you, but this song floors me. I am moved beyond words when I hear it. My heart is pricked and I find  myself examining my motives.

I need to get back to the heart of worship before my Father. Circumcise my heart O Lord. Make me more like you. I am so sorry I ever put anything before You. Search me O Lord, know me, and show me Your ways.

Join the Conversation: What is your favorite song/video right now? 

How Should We React to Tragedy?

Photo Credit: Creative Commons

One Reaction

In the wake of the tragedy of the theater massacre in Colorado, it can be so easy to fall into fear.

After the news Friday, my husband and I sat and talked about precautions theaters can make to keep people safer.

Immediately we jumped to problem solving. Why? Because senseless acts make us feel inadequate, powerless and small. In some small way we grasp at anything that can give us back power and make us feel more in control.

We complain. We plan. We blame others. We litigate.

We seek justice and we seek solace and sometimes we get that. Sometimes we get peace after a tragedy. 

Sometimes we are just left with questions. 

It is okay. 

It is okay to feel inadequate. It is okay to feel small. We are. Without God we are without any power. The ruler of this earth uses the twisted and broken to maim and kill where he can, and along the way his ultimate goal is to sow seeds of doubt. To get us to turn from God.

He wants us to doubt God's love. He wants us to doubt God's mercy and justness. He wants us to rail against God and blame Him for being distant.

The truth is God does love us. He is merciful and just and He is closer than we think. Tragedy, senseless or not, does not change that.

When bad things happen what should we do? 

Stand on the Promises

We should stand on every word God has said. His promises are yes and amen. We believed God before tragedy and we should believe after. God does not change. He is the same. The world changed. Circumstances happened. That is the world we live in.

God promises that in this world we will have trouble. Jesus said “I have overcome the world”.

Press into God's presence and let Him comfort your heart. I have put a song here by one of my favorite bands. Listen to it. God has a plan for everyone of us. He reveals Himself in unique and individual ways because we are each unique individuals. 

Promises Lyrics 

By Parachute Band

I have decided I believe it
The clouds cannot defeat the sun
The truth remains
Your words won’t fail
So I rise again believing every one

Our conversations I remember
And I hang on to every word
Cause I have faith you’ll light my way again

I believe your promises are yes and amen
I believe your promises are yes and amen
I know you said it once and I believed you then
So I still believe it

You showed the lowly to the prophet
Revealed the plan among the stars
You say the things that I can see
Alone

I believe your promises are yes and amen
I believe your promises are yes and amen
I know you said it once and I believed you then
So I still believe it

I want in, I want in
Oh I, I want in, I want in
I want in, I want in
Oh I, I want in, I want in

I believe your promises are yes and amen
I believe your promises are yes and amen
I know you said it once and I believed you then

So I still believe it 

How did you react to the news of the violence in Aurora?  Leave your comment below. 

Freedom, Fireworks and Jesus

I Surprised Myself

I am always trying to learn new things. On the fourth we celebrated America's Independence Day. 


I did not plan attending this fireworks display. I was actually dragging the family to a local grocery store to coupon...think Extreme Couponing but with less savings and less crazy- hey, I am a beginner! 


Anyway, the kids wanted to hang around for the fireworks and so, bug spray and soda in hand we found a great vantage point and waited for the show. 


One thing about fireworks, love them or hate them, they are pretty much the same every time. (Unless you live in San Diego and got the 20 second version this year!) 


So I wanted to put the last few minutes to music. Which I have NEVER done before. The thought of video makes me so nervous it is kind of gross. (Sweaty hands were involved--)


Anyway, this was the result. 

The Message Behind the Video

Real freedom shouldn't be celebrated one day a year, but everyday if you are in Christ! 


The freedom the Father provided is real and tangible. In Christ there is no fear. I am no longer afraid of what the world thinks. In Jesus I live, I breathe, I have my very being!

I will live an extraordinary existence because God created me to be extraordinary! In fact, He created me to live so opposite of the world and their ordinary ways that I look alien to them! 

In Christ the freedom I have prompts me to share personal stories so people will look at Him and to Him in ways they never have before. 


In Jesus there is freedom from sin, from pain, from heartache, from depression, from doubt, from oppression and from death! 


In Jesus there is power. There is power to become more than what you can be on your own! In Jesus there is more. 


So I made this video to remind you that there is more. More than what you know right now. More than you feel right now. More than you think.

Jesus is the "more" you need. 

Cry out to God and ask Him to make Himself real to you right now. God hears the cries of his creation. He longs to adopt you into the family. Call on Him in the name of Jesus and you will be saved. 


Now... yes, now, you have a reason to celebrate. Fireworks cannot compare to the celebration in heaven over you right now! You are FREE! 


What do you like most about your life in Jesus? 

Life was Life and Death Had a Price

I don't know about you, but this Praise and Worship is amazing. Listen to the words of this song. It is less than 10 minutes. Let the words and the message in them wash over you.

There is freedom and in Jesus there is life! Celebrate that with some one on one time with God right now. Put aside all the stuff going on and just worship. 

Our God is good, He is faithful. He loves you where you are and wants only the best for you! 

So, turn the volume up, sit up and take notice of what the Spirit is doing and worship! 

What did this song mean to you? 

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