God Gives Us.....

On Facebook there's a picture with a statement on it, I absolutely love it. It says..

"Sometimes God doesn't give you what you think you want. Not because you don't deserve it, but because you deserve more." As sweet as this statement might be.

When we're born, we are born of the sin nature. Pure sinners, no doubt about it. As we live our lives day to day, we continue to sin. And you can't categorize sins into 'big' and 'little' sins. A sin is a sin.

So why would we deserve more? Maybe more punishment, maybe more hurt? Until, we accept Christ Jesus as our Savior. We are sinners. After we accept Him into our lives, we are forgiven of any sins. Fresh start, fresh new lives and a whole new perspective on life. How about that? I think that's awesome. 

Back to the quote. I don't feel I deserve more...at least not from God. I mean who am I to basically wait and demand for something better? I sin, I asked for forgiveness....by His grace, He forgives me. But do I deserve better or more? Absolutely not. 

God wants the best for us. He absolutely does. But what we do with His blessings is a whole other story. As a Christan you're supposed to let His light shine through you. Your actions, your everyday life should say "I follow Christ, He's my Savior, He's my friend and my Father." If your life and/or actions don't scream that to the world. Then you're not doing something right. 

God gives us His grace on a lot of things. But by His mercy, He doesn't give us what we deserve.  He wants better things for us. That could be a better girlfriend, boyfriend, friends, better jobs, better living arrangements. It could pertain to anything. 

So when He says no to something. He has something better planned for you. We should always praise Him, always thank Him. And lets face it. That trial you're going through right now...it will be a lesson learned later. Right now, you might be crying, hurting badly, sick, angry, resentful or whatever your challenge is right now. He always has better things for you. He always wants better for you. You might not see that now, but He truly does. He's a loving and wonderful God. He's our true friend! 

Live your life as if God is sitting right beside you every minute of every day. And just because you think you want something and you may even become sad or angry if you don't get it. He has better plans, He has better ideas. He is everything you'll ever want and need. But while you're here on earth. He still wants what's best for you. 

All At Once or Individually

In my lifetime, I've noticed that if you're going through something bad or having a real trying time. Usually, you're not the only one. When I was little, I had in my head. That bad or sad things only happened to one person at a time, so God could help one person at a time. Yes, I know...I was an interesting kid. I was raised to know that God helped everyone and was there for everyone at all times, any time and all at one time. I was raised in a Christian home. And I knew these things. Why did I have that in my head? Well, for one my brain never stops working. I'm always thinking, doing, thinking and doing. If something is making sense, I'll change it so I can figure it out. Or if something doesn't make sense, I'll try hard to figure it out.

Back to my point. I figured that if we all had trials, bad or sad times at different times. Then we could help each other through it. We could focus on that one friend or family member. Get them through this ordeal and then wait for the next person to take care of. Of course....doesn't that make sense?

Yeah, there's a few problems with my theory. First, God is an Almighty God. We serve Him and do things to glorify Him. And He has such amazing and awesome powers. That we can never fully understand how awesome He is. We're not meant to understand or "figure" God out. If we were that close to understanding Him or figuring Him out. We would be Him. And you know that will never happen, nor do we want that to happen. But He has such amazing powers that He can help everyone at the same time. And we need to lean on Him in good and bad times. We need to know that He is there, no matter what.

I've always taught my kids and my teens at church.That God does allow bad things to happen. Alot of people blame Satan for all bad things. But God does allow bad things to happen. Why? Think back in a time in your life when something bad happened, you got bad news, you got really sick, you lost your job or a loved one. What is something you most likely did first? You prayed! You prayed for God to heal you, you prayed for God to make things better. We've all done it. I sure have! When Sept 11th, 2001 happened, people were angry and sad. They wanted to know why this happened? Why wasn't God there for them? Guess what people? He was there! Yes, I said it...you read it correctly. After 9/11, church attendance rose and American Flags went up. A country based on Christianity and people finally needed God again. We wanted God in our lives after that, we wanted Him to love us, guide us and make us understand what happened. But most important we became closer to Him. We were thanking God for keeping our loved ones safe, thanking God that we had soldiers willing to lay their lives on the line for us. Thanking God that we still had our freedoms as an American citizen. Because we were scared, because we did loose loved ones and because someone tried to kill the American spirit. We became closer to Him.

He does and will take care of all of us at one time, individually and on His terms and time. But when we're going through hard times or sad times together and someone else is going through hard times or sad times. We become a stronger unit. We take the knowledge and strength God gives us and we help each other through it. Most important, we depend on Him even more. He wants us to depend on Him, He wants us to come closer to Him. And if He has to allow something traumatic to happen. Then He will.

We all have different names, different looks, different temperaments and different problems. But God is our link and God will bring us together and will always bring us closer to Him. He'll do it all at once or individually.

The Difference Between Boys & Girls and Moms & Dads

Here in the Shenandoah Valley, specifically Rockingham County,Virginia we raise some tough kids. On one hand, we like our girls sugary sweet, with bows in their hair and a little twinkle in their eyes. But on the other hand, we expect them to learn what being a Southern country girl is all about. We work on farms with the guys, we drive big trucks lifted so getting in and out can sometimes be a challenge. We can wrestle with the cows and calves like the rest of them. We teach our daughters how to hunt. And one of our favorite places to eat is at the Shenandoah Valley Livestock Sales. We also teach them how to make the best apple pie you've ever eaten and some mean fried chicken, mashed potatoes and home made gravy.

My Husband & I were joking one day about how he wouldn't mind seeing a picture of a pretty girl on the fridge (another story, another day). Instead of my daughters Barbie magnets. My daughter quickly told her Dad "Momma knows how to use a shot gun!" Wow, a girl after my own heart.

So where do we draw the line between throwing a bail of hay out for the cows and being called pumpkin, by your Daddy? Well let's start with the Momma and the Daddy's. As most of you know, Virginia has been clobbered with snow, snow, ice and more snow. Almost three months later the snow is still here. We live out in the country on back roads. And my Niece was leaving for school on a 2 hour delay, which after they finally got back to school after being off for a whole 2 weeks. 2 hour delays were very common. She left for school in her car. Hit ice, spun around and hit a snow bank and went into a ditch. She called her Dad, he came got her out and sent her to school. (You know, it's a guy thing). My Sister-In-Law who is sitting at home with a painful broken ankle calls my Niece to check on her. She's sitting down in Broadway crying. My Sister-In-Law tells her to come home (it's a girl thing). My Sister-In-Law and I got a kick out of my Brother-In-Law sending her to school. Why? Because this was devastating and scary to my Niece. To a guy, it's no big deal. To prove my point. Last summer my Son who is exactly 4 days younger then my Niece. Wrecked his Jeep. He was driving through the field, his tire blew, he hit a big rock (that's all we got out here) and flipped the Jeep. It messed up his Jeep real bad. He hurt his head, back, ribs, shoulder and legs. My Son other then hurting and being sore was okay with it. Hauled the Jeep closer to our house and went on with his friends. Me? I freaked out (its a girl thing). Is my Son okay, is he broken? Does he need a big hug from Momma? Oh no, he's fine. My husband (its a guy thing) laughed.

Oh yes he did. He laughed after he made sure he was okay. I still haven't laughed yet. We had to quickly take the Jeep to the junk yard to be crushed so I wouldn't have to look at it all the time.

We raise our kids in a Christ centered home, in church and surrounded by family. Not all of us turn out real good, but at least all the parents try. My Momma can weld just as good as any guy, maybe even better then some guys. And she can shoot a fox or deer whenever she wants to. But she'll turn around and get all dressed up in a pretty dress when need be. You gotta remember how, who and where we were raised. Especially who we were raised by; the Guys and the Girls. Sugary sweet and tough as nails.

Because They Know...

I was raised in a family that we hugged and we always said "I love you!" Even if at the time you didn't like that person very much, you still loved them. We were by far, the "perfect" family. Each individual has their bad things. But we always knew we loved each other. We always knew that no matter what we did wrong, who we hurt or who hurt us. The love was and is always there.

As I grew up and now that I'm older, I'm always shocked at families that never or very rarely say "I love you." I'm very close to a few families like that, but I know there's a lot more out in the world. And these are good families that are there for each other, help each other physically and mentally, the kids are good and they're for the most part well respected in their community. But they miss those three words.

I asked one of these people one time why they don't ever say "I love you." She told me "because they know." Now, I know that some people show their emotions and feelings differently. And if you weren't raised up hearing that all the time, that it is no big deal. But I know how I feel when someone tells me they love me. Don't get me wrong, I don't want everyone in the world, on Face book or off the street telling me they love me just so I can hear it. I know how I feel when my Husband, Kids, Parents or anyone dear to me tells me they love me. It gives me some type of reassurance that things in life will be okay. It gives me the sense of hey that person really cares about me. When we get off the phone with our loved ones or they're going somewhere or I am. We tell each other we love each other. A simple "love you", goes a long way. My Mom just left my house after visiting us for a short time, I made sure she knew I loved her. I simply said when she started to leave "love you Mom."

We don't know what will happen from day to day. We don't know if this will be the last time we see our loved ones, we don't know when Christ Jesus will come back, we don't know anything from moment to moment. So isn't it important to let your friends and family know how much you love them and how much they mean to you? If I die today, I don't want my Husband, Kids or loved ones to question whether I loved them or not. I want them to know 300% without a doubt that I love them.

Don't assume they know. Because they might not. Don't go another day without them knowing.

Ghosts Of The Past

I put myself in their position. I try to see what it was like being in that situation, at that time, at that moment and with the circumstances they were dealing with. You know what happen to them, you know the outcome. But it's still hard to let go and to not put yourself in their shoes. You want to be able to feel how they felt, to see what they saw and to ask them questions.

I remember sitting by their side, thinking what went wrong? What happen so bad, that the outcome resulted in this? But than others, I sat by their side thinking wow what a great life you had. How did you manage to pack so much into a lifetime? I wish I could have had more time with you or I wish I could have met you in person. I was told stories by family members of the type of person you were, the funny things you said and did as a child and as you grew up. I remember praying that some part of you was still in me. Some trait that would definitely define who I am today.

My career is to research family history. It's not only my career, but it's also deep in my heart. I close my eyes and imagine being with you at that moment in time. I grieve with you, when you lost your loved one in the Civil War. I remember tears quickly filled my eyes when I imagined you crying when they told you your son was killed in a war. I pictured you holding the American Flag so tight to your chest. I grieved with you when you lost your loved one in the fire. I felt your joy when your wife gave you a new baby boy or baby girl. I felt your pain when your wife died during labor. I felt your uneasiness while traveling from Virginia to Kentucky in the early 1800's. I felt how scary and sad it was to leave your family behind and to move on with your husband and children.

I remember tears flowing down my cheeks when you couldn't travel back home to attend your parents funeral. I feel the pain you felt during different trials in your life, I remember wishing I could have been there to comfort you.

I wonder if you were here today if you would think I look like you, I wonder if you would be proud of me? I wonder if you would say "wow, I used to do the same thing."

I research and my heart sinks in to every aspect of your life. Whether you're a grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin, I still wonder about you and the life you lived. Sometimes it breaks my heart when I try to be apart of your life and I know the torture you went through. Or the tragic death you had or the tragic death of a loved one that you had to witness, or grieve for. When I sit by your headstone at the cemetery, I want you to know that although I may have never met you or you left my life too soon, my heart is still apart of you. I carry the same pain, the same happiness, the same moments you carried. That's why I continue to research about your life. So I can share it with others. So they too, can take a walk through a history that they may or may not have been a part of. So they can share the heart of a family member that shaped and formed the path that their lives have taken. Did a choice you made in the past, affect our family history? Did it affect the choices we make?

You're in my heart and always a part of who I am today!