Acts 7...What kind of house are you?

"Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me? Says the Lord. Or where will my resting place be?" Acts 7:49

That got me to thinking....what kind of dwelling place is my heart for God? Would he be pleased at what He saw? Would he be pleased with what He heard?
Am I good enough? Do I do enough? Do I tell people enough about His love?

Of course the answer to all of these questions is no.  And not for lack of trying, but I can always do more. And as I get closer and closer to being completely healed, I know that He has big plans for me, and I am so ready.

He has just the right spot, just the right ministry picked out for me....and just the right people for me to minister too.

A time is coming....a time that He already has planned out for me, a time that He knows I am almost ready for.  And all I can do is hold on tight!!!!

Acts 6....it's sharing time

In the first half of Acts 6, it explains how there got to be too many duties for the disciples to handle.  Things were being missed, simply because there were not enough hands to complete things. People were being over looked, items missed, time got away. Let's look at verse 2 - 4, "So the 12 gathered all the disciples together and said "it would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, chose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word."

For many, many years I had unfortunately gotten very used to the idea of doing it all by myself. I got 3 girls ready for school everyday and picked them up every afternoon. I was the only breadwinner for the household, so I worried about and paid the bills all by myself.  I made dinner every night and did all the dishes.  I took complete care of our home...from vacuuming and cleaning the toilets, to cleaning off the roof and mowing the yard. I did laundry every day, more than you can even imagine. I got us all up every Sunday for church, we hardly ever missed a week.  I wiped noses, put bandaids on boo-boos, and  handled it all on my own. 

When Dean and I got married, I really didn't know how to let him in. I had my ways, and my routine, and my to do lists.....and honestly I didn't know how to stop.  But things were falling through the cracks, missed homework assignments, the car inspection was past due,  a missed dentist appointment....it was  all starting to build up on me.

I had to come to a point where I trusted someone enough to help me. I couldn't be so stuck in my ways that I was missing out on the most important things.  I had to let go.....to trust Dean enough to help me get things done. To trust God enough, because He was the one that gave me Dean as a helpmate. I had to let him into my life, every detail before it began to fall apart.

I was used to being the giver in all my past relationships. So to relax enough to be a taker occasionally was rough. Especially through this back pain/surgery, to be able to let go completely and let him handle everything while I just sit here was beyond hard for me. It tore me up inside, I cried about it more times than I can count. But in the end, I had to trust God and Dean, to know that I couldn't do it all. That I had to focus on what was most important at the time...and right now that is healing.  I have to let him be a part of my lists, and my routines, and my life now and always.

Acts 5...Worthy of Suffering

I am pulling verses from the story in Acts 5 where Peter and the other apostles are being persecuted for teaching in the name of Jesus....

The apostles had been thrown in jail because they would not stop teaching in the temple courts then in verse 19 and 20 we read....
"During the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. "Go, stand in the temple courts," he said, "and tell the people all about this new life."
The next morning the jail is found locked and guarded, but no one is inside. In fact, they are out in the temple courts speaking again. And here we pick up in verse 28 and 29....
"We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name," he said, "yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man's blood." Peter and the other apostles replied: "We must obey God rather than human beings."
Through much discussion, the council is persuaded to spare the apostles lives. Instead they were flogged and once again ordered never to speak in the name of Jesus again. But then comes me favorite line of this story in verse 41....
"The apostles left the Sandhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name."

I have to admit I don't normally enjoy suffering, it does not make me rejoice, and it definitely does not make me feel worthy of anything. In fact, it usually makes me angry. I ask question like "why me?" or "why this?" or "why now?" I don't always understand why I have to be the one in pain. I don't understand why God would let me go through this.

But here is what I am reminded of again today....The devil is afraid of me. He knows he can never stop me....but he can slow me down. And that is what pain is....a distraction. A way to keep me from being able to focus on what I am supposed to be doing. MY pain is even keeping Dean from being able to focus on what he is supposed to be doing, what we are supposed to be doing as a family....simply because he is worried about me.

Well today I claim it...the devil is a lair, and a cheat, and a thief...and I will no longer allow him to get me down. I consider myself worthy of the suffering....because if he is so worried about keeping me down then that means that there is something BIG in store for this family in our God's name.  Dean continues to say he hears "you ain't seen nothing yet" from God about our family. And today I agree.  If we have the devil worried....then good!  He better start running, because once I am better and on my feet, he will be the first thing I put under my feet. Because he has no hold over me, and has no rights to me, and no weapon he forms against me shall prosper. I am a daughter of the RISEN KING...and nothing is going to stand in the way of my doing exactly what He has planned for me.

AMEN and AMEN!!!!

Acts 4....a 2fer

Today is a 2fer kind of day....meaning 2 little things jumped out at me today from Acts 4. Woohoo!!!

The first is in verse 31, "After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly."  Can you imagine??? The room SHOOK!!! What would happen if we expected that to happen when we prayed? That we actually trusted in our prayers and things come truly happen from them. What amazing signs and wonders could we see in our lives if we only put more faith in our prayers???
And then on top of that, AFTER they prayed, and AFTER the room was shaken, they went out into the world and spoke BOLDLY of what God did for them. Again, what if???  What if we all spoke boldly of our God and all He has done for us.  I am not saying we have to walk around thumping our bible, or screaming out the gospels at the top of our lungs....but we CAN tell people our story.  It doesn't have to be all holier than thou, or a huge spiritual story....but just tell people what He has done in your life, how He has been there for you.... and then they will want to know more about our amazing Father.

The bonus bit I picked up in Acts 4 today was in verse 32, "All the believers were one heart and mind."  WOW...how great would that be??? I know not everyone in the world will not get along, there will never really be world peace....but in the least shouldn't all of us in church be able to get along? Stop poking at each other? Start sharing with each other? Stick up for each other? Stand in the gaps for each other? Help each other out, sometimes even when it's not necessarily needed or asked for? Always love on each other?

And that's how I see it today.
Love from Libby

Acts 3....Walk in it

"Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk."  Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him."   Acts 3:6-10

I know that I know that I know God has healed and is healing me still everyday.  I know I complain sometimes, but I still know that my God had His hands all over this. Some people only think that it is a healing if it is a miraculous healing. That one day it just stops hurting. But I don't agree with that at all.  I believe God gives doctor's knowledge and skill for a reason. I believe I ended up with the right doctor in the end, because God knew. We changed doctor's right at the end of an 8 month journey with my back because God knew. Plus I have said along to Dean that I knew it would end up in surgery. God started preparing my heart very early in the process for the thought of surgery. If one day the doctor had said I needed surgery and I wasn't prepared for it, I would have went into total panic mood.  But God had been working for months to prepare my heart for it.  He knows me better than anyone else,  and He knew what I needed to make it through this time.

The biggest way that I know that God's hand was in this the whole time....he gave me Dean just in time.  I could have never done this on my own, no way.  Dean says I am a strong woman and could have. But I know in my heart that I couldn't have. I would have been a mess, crying all the time, falling to pieces.  God knew I needed a strong, loving, Godly man to help me through this, by my side every minute.  And I did need him, and I still do every day forever.  He was and is exactly what I had always prayed for in a husband. He is my him!! The one!! God gave me the man He made specifically for me.  No one in my life has ever treated me the way he does. He has been so patient, kind, and encouraging through this whole process.  I am a terrible patient, but Dean has held my hand through it all. And I just want to say how grateful I am for him.

But here's the key, after I have realized and know that this was all God....I have to walk in it.  Show everyone out there in the world that my God healed me.  They can say, I know her, isn't that the lady who's husband hit her a few years ago and she was all alone with 3 kids, and every time I saw her she was on her knees at the front of the church crying about something. And now, they can be filled with wonder and amazement as they can see the difference in my life as I walk it out, and tell everyone I can about how unbelievably good my God has been to me.

Acts 2...what I see

"With many others words he warned them; he pleaded with them, "Save yourself from this corrupt generation."  Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostle's teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and prayer.... Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."    Act 2:40-42, 46-47

This passage hit me right on the top of the head like a brick straight from God. Fellowship....that's what its all about.  You don't have to preach the gospel to everyone you meet to get them to go to church. You have to be their friend, show them the love of Jesus through you, be their friend.  And mean it, no patty cake bullcrap because you have to. Do it because you want to.

I can see in the passage above, they broke bread together, in their homes, and with sincere and happy hearts. They enjoyed being together and talking about what God had done for them. And the numbers were multiplied!!!! It's not a hard equation to figure out.

Last night was a perfect example, a few good friends of ours came over to see us. Not to say oh, poor pitiful Libby....but to really just spend time with us and love on us. And honestly, it was exactly what we needed. All of us needed it! Not just me. Dean needed a moment to relax and not have to be running around doing something. I needed to talk about something other than when it was time to take the next medicine or how much it was hurting.  The kids needed someone to hug and love on them and tell they are being good helpers.

The breaking of bread and being together with sincere and loving hearts.
THAT is a HUGE part of what church means to me.

doing it again

I decided since I would be home for a while, I would start blogging again as I read through a certain book of the bible.  I used to really enjoy this before, and since I will have some time on my hands and a new perspective....this was a great way to spend some of my time. I wanted to pick a book of the bible that I hadn't read in a while, and in the end choose Acts.

Today there was a verse that just jumped off the page at me....Act 1:14 "They all joined together constantly in prayer".

This spoke to me because of all the things I have been going through over the last few weeks with my back surgery. So many amazing times of prayer have happened since then. Amazing feeling and hearing the love of God through other people.

The first was when Dean and the kids laid hands on me, and prayed.  For YEARS I prayed for my husband to just try church with me....now I have a fabulous christian husband he is completely the spiritual head of this household. I cried and cried.

The next was at work, the day before my last day there. I ended up with a church pastor in my office to talk about a mortgage.  8 bankers in my branch, and he ended up in my office. I don't believe that God does coincidences. Anyways, after we talked for a while he noticed I was in pain. And he just started praying.  It was amazing. It made me laugh because he didn't even ask. He said he had given up asking if he was confident it was needed, and he was being told by God to do it. It was exactly what I needed.

The next that sticks out was with my husband right before the surgery. One thing he said that truly touched my heart was that he wanted me to know that when they rolled me away for surgery, and he could no longer hold my hand, Jesus would be there still to hold it. I reminded myself of that many times before they started.

And the most recent was when a dear friend just stopped in to see how I was. I was so down that day. I was crying, and worried it would never get better.
Then there she was...again no coincidences in God's world. Exactly what I needed. She laid her hands on me and sweetly prayed for me for healing, and a lift in spirits, and guidance and clarity from direction.  It was perfect!!

To me, there is nothing better than someone taking the time to just sit and pray to Our Father for me, with me.

More tomorrow hopefully.......
Love, Libby