Hi All!

Hello Everyone!

I just wanted to post a quick post to say that my new blog is called Coming Up for Breath and here is the link: http://comingupforbreath.blogspot.com/

See you all over there!

~Keri-Lynn

Summer Reading...

Summer is here and almost over! This summer I have been doing a lot of reading, a long with many other things. My Mom, sister and I took a trip to Ohio to visit some friends and go the Parelli Celebration (which was incredible!!!) I bought some books too...

- Start Here by Brett and Alex Harris
- Set Apart Femininity by Leslie Ludy
- When God Writes Your Life Story by Eric and Leslie Ludy
- Authentic Beauty bu Leslie Ludy
- When God Writes Your Love Story
- Natural Horse-Man-Ship by Pat Parelli

So far I have read Authentic Beauty and am part way through Start Here and Natural Horse-Man-Ship. I enjoy reading but don't always have a lot of time to read so it is slow going but I try and read a little every day.

My sister, myself and two of our friends studies through Before You Meet Prince Charming by Sarah Mally. We did one chapter a week and then the last chapter we did in person when we all met in Ohio. It was pretty neat. It was my second time reading through Before You Meet Prince Charming and it was most enjoyable!

In my Bible reading I am still reading through Psalm. It will soon be a year since I started reading it and I am only on Psalm 46! I have been enjoying it and learning a lot. It is amazing to think how much has happened in the past year, how many things have changed, what has come and gone, and so much more! Life goes by quickly and to me it is a good reminder that I will never get to relive these days and am I using my time to the best of my ability? I am living for Christ or for myself?

To end this post I just thought I would share this song....

Tobymac's "City on Our Knees"

When you pray, give God your guilt

by Rick Warren

    "Forgive us the wrongs we have done, as we forgive the wrongs that others have done to us" Matthew 6:12 (TEV)

We all make mistakes. We all have regrets.  I don't measure up to my own standard for myself, much less God's standard of perfection.  It's not very hard to admit you're not perfect.  So what do we do when we fall short?

I was listening to a psychologist on the radio recently.  A guy called in and was pouring his heart out about how guilty he felt for things he had done wrong.  He asked, "How can I get rid of my guilt?"  This psychologist said: "You can't.  You've got to learn to live with it."  I almost shouted at the radio: "Wait a minute! Give me that guy's phone number!  He doesn't have to go through life filled with guilt!"

There is no reason in the world you have to live with guilt. God has given us a way to get rid of guilt. It's called confession.  God promises that when we confess, He forgives us instantly, totally, completely, freely, and continuously.  If you're a Christian carrying guilt around, it's because you're not taking advantage of what Jesus Christ did on the cross.  The next step in making contact with God is pardon: I give God my guilt.

God wants to forgive you.

    * You don't have to beg for forgiveness -- "God, please, pretty please with sugar on it!"

    * You don't have to bargain - "God, if you forgive me, I will never do it again."

    * You don't have to bribe -- "God, if You'll forgive me, I promise to always read my Bible."

You simply believe God because he says you are forgiven.

If you ever run out of things to pray about, just get specific about your sins and weaknesses. When I talk with God about my weaknesses and sins, I never lack for subject matter.  In fact, I'm always coming up with new material!  There's plenty of things to talk about in my life that need to be changed.

You worship God through prayer when you give him your love, your life, and your worries. And also when you ask him for forgiveness of your sins.

Easter means Jesus paid for our sins by Rick Warren

 Through the blood of his Son, we are set free from our sins. God forgives our failures because of his overflowing kindness. Ephesians 1:7 (GWT)

"Everything you've ever done wrong, everything you're ever going to do wrong, things you haven't even thought of yet, all those sins have already been paid for by Jesus Christ as he died on the cross. "

Jesus' death and resurrection paid for our sins.

There have been a lot of great religious teachers throughout history. They've all had good things to say, but what makes Jesus different from every other religious teacher throughout history is the fact that he died and rose again.

That's of critical importance because it's not the life of Jesus that saves you; it's not the teachings of Jesus that save you; it's his death and resurrection that open the door for your salvation.

Jesus died for your sins. The Bible says we've all blown it. We've all made mistakes. None of us is perfect. That's pretty obvious; I don't measure up to my own standards much less God's. We have all sinned.

The Bible says that justice demands punishment. If you do the crime, you pay the time. If you break the law, you pay the fine. If you get caught speeding, you get a ticket. If you break God's laws, you pay God's penalty and, according to the Bible, "the wages [for our] sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23 NLT).

In other words, somebody has to pay for all the things you've done wrong in life: either you pay or somebody else pays for you. And this is where God says, "I'll do it!" He steps up to the plate. Jesus Christ is sent to earth—God in human form—and he says, in effect, "I will pay for your sins."

Here's the good news: Everything you've ever done wrong, everything you're ever going to do wrong, things you haven't even thought of yet, all those sins have already been paid for by Jesus Christ as he died on the cross: "Through the blood of his Son, we are set free from our sins. God forgives our failures because of his overflowing kindness" (Ephesians 1:7 GWT).

When Jesus died on the cross for you, it showed two things:

   1. It showed how much your forgiveness cost. The highest price you can pay for anything is to give your life for it. And that's what Jesus did. He gave his blood. He gave his life. It was extremely expensive. Grace is free but it is not cheap. It cost Jesus his life, but he paid for your sins.
   2. It shows how much God values you. It shows how much you matter to God. Jesus died for you on the cross. It shows the highest price possibly to be paid was giving a life. 

How much are you worth? Jesus says, with his arms stretched out on the cross, "This much I'm willing to die for you." You may think that you're worthless because of things you've done wrong. But Jesus says, "No. You're priceless. And I'm willing to give my life in order to pay for your sins."

Family

Recently I was looking through some Facebook flair and some of the ones for family were really bothering... to me at least. Some say things like "If you met my family, you'd understand" or "FRIENDS: God's way of apologizing for family" and others. As I was reading those it made me very sad but at the same time it made me feel very blessed that my family is wonderful and even though life isn't perfect we still love each other. It is really sad that people just don't appreciate their family as much as they should. Yes, I know that some families have a lot of issues but no matter what the problem is we should still respect our parents and siblings, even if we don't agree on everything. My family is a  larger family and so we all have different ideas, views and such but we all agree on the major subjects such as our faith. So when I see teens and even young kids being disrespectful to their parents it really makes me sad. Especially in churches and when the teens are supposed to be "christian".

One of the Ten Commandments is "Honor your father and mother". So many teens miss that. One definition of honor is: To hold in honor or high respect; revere: to honor one's parents. 

A study note in my Bible says "But what does it mean to honor your parents? Partly, it means speaking well of them and politely to them. It also means acting in a way that shows them courtesy and respect (but not to obey them if this means disobedience to God). It means following their teaching and example of putting God first. Parents have a special place in God's sight. Even those who find it difficult to get along with their parents are still commanded to honor them"


So my challenge today is to make sure that in everything we do to respect and honor our parents but we won't be able to do it on our own. We will need God's help to stay respectful. 


~Keri

 Love is a choice

by Rick Warren

    "That you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob." (Deuteronomy 30:20, NIV)

Love is a choice and a commitment. You choose to love or you choose not to love.

Today we've bought into this myth that love is uncontrollable, that it's something that just happens to us; it's not something we control. In fact, even the language we use implies the uncontrollability of love. We say, "I fell in love," as if love is some kind of a ditch. It's like I'm walking along one day and bamm! - I fell in love. I couldn't help myself.

But I have to tell you the truth - that's not love. Love doesn't just happen to you. Love is a choice and it represents a commitment.

There's no doubt about it, that attraction is uncontrollable and arousal is uncontrollable. But attraction and arousal are not love. They can lead to love, but they are not love. Love is a choice.

You must choose to love God; he won't force you to love him (Deuteronomy 30:20). You can thumb your nose at God and go a totally different way. You can destroy your life if you choose to do that. God still won't force you to love him. Because he knows love can't be forced.

And this same principle is true about your relationships: you can choose to love others, but God won't force you to love anyone.


Merry Christmas everyone!!!!

To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey...

"Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey"

Trust and obey. That is it!! Just trust and obey. It sounds so simple but sometimes it is so hard. When you can't see the next step, when everything seems to be going wrong and you can't find a way out, trusting and obeying seems impossible right? But God is always there right beside you. You might not feel that He is there but He is. Just trust! 

*******

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Refrain

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.

Refrain

Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey.

Refrain

But we never can prove the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.

Refrain

Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet.
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way.
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.

*******