Don't Be A Bunny... Cause Snakes Can't Wear Shoes

I spend my days working hard.  I take care of my kiddos and I run through life with my hair blowing in the wind.  I feel like most of my time is running from here and there as fast as my feet can hop.  And grocery shopping.  Why does it seem I can never get enough groceries to feed the fam??  I even have a garden of my very own that is filled to the brim with big, gorgeous veges and it just does NOT seem to be enough to go around.  

Work and play and caring for my family is always on the agenda... but there's also something else.  Something greater.  I am just always waiting to have to run.  I'm always listening for that someone chasing me in the woods when I'm running or that thing that will startle me that will leap out of the bushes.  I'm always waiting and anticipating.  I can almost feel the hair bristle on the back of my neck because things have just been too quiet and too easy.  I gotta be ready to run...

So BBs, do you ever sit around and wait for the other shoe to drop?  It's yet another negative circular pattern that is SO hard to capture and give to God.  The struggle is real peeps!

Here are just a few of the ways that I prevent the ripple effect of nerves that run through my body and stop the crazy from surfacing when I feel like that shoe is going to hit the flo like a platform stiletto on hardwood. (Now mind you, I'm not telling you to do these things... this is my circus and my monkeys).

I change ring tones and text tones constantly.  The quieter the better.  Once upon a time every phone call and text was the possibility of a shoe dropping.

I watch for behavioral patterns in people around me.  I have quite the accurate cray barometer.

I plan.  I have a plan A, a plan B, and a plan C.  I also have a plan A, B, and C for each of those plans in case they don't go as planned.  #truestory

I can hear conversations a mile away.  Now this girl can't hear my bass playing out of a speaker two feet away, but I can tell you what people 50 feet away are saying. 

I'm always one step ahead.

"Things are going too well..."

"What if..."

"I'd try something new, but..."

"They are about to unleash the monkeys, I have to prepare..."

Sound familiar?  And we circle right on back to those little demony minions that belong to the ole no leg dumb dumb.   And do you know what those little demons want me to believe?  That I need to run.  I need to be afraid if things are going ok.  I need to be ready... be on guard... put up my defenses.  But do you know what that does NOT do for us?  Leave room for peace.

Here's what we have to understand...

First, go back and read those two paragraphs.  It's about a bunny, y'all!  NOT a person.  Repeat after me... "I... AM... NOT... A... BUNNY."

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7 

Now read it like this:  For the Spirit God gave ME does not make ME timid, but gives power, love and self-discipline.  

Okay, now on to my second point...  Let's be logical.  Snakes have no legs.  So quit allowing snakey creatures to drop shoes.  Now repeat after me... "SNAKES...AIN'T...GOT...NO...LEGS...SO THEY CAN'T DROP SHOES!!"

Again... For the Spirit God gave ME does not make ME timid, but gives power, love and self-discipline.  

Here's the thing, BBs.  We live in a yuckers world, so we are going to be faced with obstacles and shoes dropping and fear and temptation.  BUT our God has already overcome the world, so we can live boldly and without fear.  

I know that I sho don't want to trust the temptations of a sneaky snake that can't even appreciate a good pair of Ferragamos.  So circle in the truth of confidence when it's raining shoes.  And then pick them up, put them on, and sashay like a supermodel... all while laughing at the attempts of the ole no leg fool that tried to throw them, because you were made to be bold.  

For the spirit God gave YOU does not make you timid, but gives YOU power and love and self-discipline.  

So the moral of the story is... don't be a bunny, 'cause snakes can't wear shoes.  

Until tomorrow, BBs!

XOXO!

Are you spreading stinky stanky... or honey?

Yesterday, I talked about how the sneaky snake, satan, was trying to trip me up.  Old no legs had a lot of cute attempts up his sleeves, but they failed... a few tears later of course.  

Well it got me to thinkin' about spiritual warfare.  Now growing up, I had a unique Baptist household that we actually talked about this kinda stuff.  Not blatantly, but i did grow up at least having an understanding of the battles unseen, and a huge appreciation for the power of prayer.  Now I'm Bapticostal, so I'm all up in that spiritual train wreck.

The thing is... my mind was always blown by it all, so I focused more on the spiritual warfare around me and the peeps close to me and within my church... but that's where it stopped.  My pea brain couldn't wrap my head around much more than that.  

Something clicked yesterday; however, when I wrote out God's soothing words to me.  

Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. Proverbs 16:24

His words healed my heart with goodness and sweetness and gentleness, that human words couldn't have expressed...

Or could they have??

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?”

2 Corinthians 2:14-16 ESV

This verse makes me think of Mary spilling the oil on Jesus's feet.  Can you imagine the aroma that filled that room?  Think of a smell that you love... the smell of freshly baked bread, the smell of rain, the smell of jasmine, or if you are at our house... the smell of the barn.  Imagine the warmth you feel when that smell surrounds you.

This is what we are to be BBs to others... sweet to their souls and healing to their bones!

BBs, we have the Holy Spirit IN us.  

We have the power of God IN us.

SOOOOO... we have these sweet, sweet words in our heart for others. We need to be aware of the battles around us and when we see one forming, we must be willing to cover our sisters and brothers in Christ AND those perishing with gracious words like a honeycomb! 

In my case yesterday, I couldn't have given any sweet words to the person that lashed out at us, BUT I can give those sweet words right up on up to my Jesus... through prayer and petition.  And slayed that snake from afar.

BBs, we are called to be a sweet fragrance.  We are supposed to be the sweet aroma of Christ throughout our BB worlds.  Nobody wants a stinky stank BB lingering around, so look out for the spiritual warfare around you and shower that hot mess, that satan tries to stir up, with honey! 

Will The Circle Be Unbroken?

Y'all, I knew that when I decided to write and ride for 31 days that the ole sneaky snake would try to stumble me up.  I knew this.  And yet that dang spineless dumb dumb tried to steal away my focus today.  

It has been a truly beautiful walk with God the past few weeks.  I have been digging in the Word of God.  And not even to a point where I can day, "I've never dug deeper."  I have, but I've never dug this deep when I didn't have to.   

It has truly been circles... repetition that is leading me to the King.  It is making me aware of the Father that is helping me as I screw up... even when it's teeny.  It is opening my eyes to the Kingdom around me.  It is placing blessings at my feet...like where I REALLY see them.  Y'all, I feel the love.  

Sure, I have always had faith... blind faith, but I was never ok with just being "me" in front of my Father.  Isn't that sillies!?!?  He sees me.  He knows me.  And He brutally allowed His Son to be killed FOR me.  And I'm just circling away.  

But I'm circling in a great way... in a way that is allowing God to show me His mysteries like never before...  And see change in the peeps around me too.  They want to dig deeper.    

And It's the little things...  And I pray for each of you, BBs, to find a way to make this kind of connection.  It may not be 31 days of writing, but maybe 31 days of reading Psalm, or 31 days of the Gospels, or 31 days of a Bible study.  

But when your heart is determined to do good and faithful BB work, you are going to be tempted.  And it's, yet again, the little things that bring you down.  Satan knows this.  Our household is a strong and mighty power right now, but it's also a fortress very much under attack.

Today, someone said something ugly about my husband.  And a few days ago about me.  It's not the first time, but it hurt a lot today.  And I truly cried.  "She has won," I thought and cried out.  "I'm tired and done with the drama. God, how can someone that has never met me continue to say truly ugly things about me?  How can someone who doesn't know my husband anymore feel this way?  Why won't she put the yuckers aside and just get to know US?"

And it took my happy away at that moment.  And when it crept in and tried to steal my joy, something had to give.  

As I lowered my head and prayed that the tears would go away, so that I could get on with my very long day, God's sweet voice spoke to me.  In a blunt, but kind, language that was so very clear.

"You and you husband have chosen to live in a small house with your family because you do not believe in excess.  

You wear hand-me-downs and cut your own hair, so that you can provide for your children first. 

You love your husband and truly allow your fiery spirit to step back and let him lead your household. 

Your husband loves you and his whole family with a love like mine!!!!

You give of your time to my church and my children when you are tired and weary.  

You have chosen to dedicate this month to me... and the animals that you love and that I love and that I have given to you.  You are my shepherdess.

You've made hard decisions and bad decisions and great ones, and I'm still walking with you.  I have never forsaken you.

Count your blessings, and listen to me.  I AM the God who sees."

Y'all, He never gives me that much of a pep talk.  This circling thing evidently opened my ears too.  and I needed it!  And I praise Him for it!!  His words are so sweet and made that little nasty comment shrivel up like a dead flower.  So I stopped and truly counted my blessings, and Satan and his sneaky snake, spineless minions began to step down.  

You see, even when the enemy is at work, he still knows that one day EVERY knee will bow and EVERY tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior.  

And it was all clear... as I counted my blessings...  

Satan wants to destroy my circle of joy and peace.  

And yours too!!  

BBs, stand firm today and realize that the enemy is at work around you.  And start believing that you have the power of God in you!!  As I've said before... the same power that made blind men see and rose Jesus from the dead is LIVING in you!!!!!  

So that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  Philippians 2:9-11

Be a part of the RIGHT kinda circle and not the circle that the tempter weaves. 

Will the circle be unbroken, 

By and by, Lord, by and by.

There's a better home a-waiting,

In the sky Lord, in the sky.

-A.P. Carter

HOLLA-lujah, BBs!!!!  There's a better home awaiting.  

What Do You Do When You Feel Like You've Hit Rock Bottom?

I sat talking with her about life.  She was antsy and distracted and weepy... all at the same time.  The little things of life seemed to be building up around her.  Some of it was just life happening.  Some was due to some bad decisions with money and relationships.  It was just a big ole pile of stuff.  

It was easy to be empathetic for her.  We've all made bad choices.  I've had my fair share... that's fo sho!  

It was equally as easy to say, "Come on girl, you have got to get your life together... you have a child to think about!"  

But she had hit rock bottom and was not ready to take the next step.  How do you find hope in a negative circular pattern?  

I've noticed with animals that some have a will to survive and some just don't.  It's the craziest thing.  But what happens when you are BB with very little desire to press forward and not just survive... but THRIVE?  You miss out on the Kingdom.  

God desires for you to have a life in His eternal Kingdom, but here's the deal.  It's easy to just waste away when you've hit rock bottom, and say, "Well who cares.  I wasn't made for this world anyway.  I'll just sit here and do nothing... or minimally survive until then."  But that's not what we are supposed to do.  

God is very clear that we are going to go through trials and temptations and struggles.  We live in a broken world, so it's inevitable, but we are called for MORE!  And I speak this from a place of constant exhaustion... while dealing with the circular pattern of horse poo that this world creates around me on a daily basis. 

The Kingdom of God is right here on earth.  Plain and simple.  But BBs, we will never experience it while hiding or running from our problems... or even pretending that they do not exist.  We have to put on our big girl panties and put on those boots that were made for walking and carry on, sweet friends.  

As hard as it is.  

As much as you think you're God has forsaken you.  

You have to chose to keep on going.  

When you are sitting there hopeless... invite God to hang out with you.  He will!!  He will meet you in that valley and on that mountain top and even at the bottom of the rocks.  Choose to start building a new foundation from those rocks.  One at a time.  And take time to look up, because do you know what?  You have the best view of the Father and His Kingdom from down there!

If you feel as if you have hit rock bottom, would you message us on FB or Twitter and let us know how we can pray for you?  You are loved by a sweet and mighty King!

And if you are struggling with a friend that has hit rock bottom, PRAY!  And get your friends to pray.  NOTHING is impossible for our powerful Creator!

 

Circles Towards Eternity

So, as I explained Thursday, I'm halfway determined to do this thirty days or riding... well, writing thing.  It's amazing when you commit to something so simple, how truths start flooding around you.  The first day, I started with my big, sweet, cray cray mare and we did circles.  Big ole boring 20 meter circles.  

When I was a young rider in training, we did TONS of circles.  I learned so much about the horse and how she moves underneath me from these circles, so I went back to my roots.  It was fun and my horse loved this little change in training.  And I remembered that lovely feeling of truly feeling the horse underneath me.  

Now yesterday was a little different.  I so wanted to stray from the circles and turns and do something different.  But I didn't... I kept at it.  And it was ok.  My horse was amazing, and I was so tempted to just stop or work on other things or do something harder.  

About that time, when I told myself for the 10th time to just stick with it, I looked up.  Oh BBs, it was beautiful!  As my eyes raise and my thoughts went from "I don't wanna" to "I'm going to keep it up," do you know I saw?

I saw a beautiful horse underneath me.  A huge and strong living creature that was LETTING me control her.  A horse God put in my care for a reason.  

And then I saw my husband.  My sweet husband on his gigantic sweet horse.  They were working hard at walking around the arena.  I saw a man that loves me and loves my passion... not out of a "have to" attitude, but out of an attitude of appreciation for his wife and her interests.

And my little girl ran down the hall.  Instead of watching television or playing video games, she was choosing to spend her afternoon skipping down a barn aisle and petting ponies and playing with kittens.  Who wouldn't, right?

And I saw horses and riders and people that are kind and loving and hardworking.  Something I don't always see as I am going through my day.  

And I saw a farm with a different philosophy.  And it was lovely!  It thrilled my heart.  

Even though sometimes I feel like I lose my passion for these animals, it's always still there.  Through those dang boring circles, I found my passion again.  

It was the repetition that allowed me to understand more fully the simple things that are staring me in the face.  And that's the thing to take away here...

We can take repetition and use it to actually dull out the boring and make things more beautiful.  We CAN circle towards eternity.

That's the beauty of making circles in God's word.  When we feel lost or disconnected, we can read a verse.  Over and over.  And because God's word is living in active, it molds and changes and grows in our hearts.

Now don't hear me wrong... the meaning doesn't change.  We can't change God's word to suit our purpose.  That's a no no, BBs, but it is living and active.  It does grow and change and the mystery of it all diminishes as we grow in wisdom.  

And sometimes wisdom comes in just a simple repeat of the obvious and simple.  

It's about repeating the little things... over and over until we can look up and appreciate the beauty that surrounds us.  

I challenge you today, BBs, find somewhere to circle today and see what beauty unfolds!

Thirty Days of Riding... Ummm... Writing

So evidently, October seems to be a challenge for bloggers. Write for 31 days. I'm not gonna lie, I totes heard this as RIDE for 31 days. So I decided to do BOTH!  We shall see how this goes. I'm known for not caring much about challenges and goals like this one. 

Tomorrow, I have a blog post on prayer. Y'all, I was pushed to pray for someone this week that I just don't like. She is not a BB, but she needs so much love. And I'm not sure I have enough Jesus to love and pray for her... Even though I do want her to be a BB one day. 

But I found a beautiful side of the Holy Spirit during this battle. And that's what happens. We go round and round with ourselves and God. 

Often times, the repitition allows for us to feel and appreciate the little things we often overlook. 

And then I rode... My sweet horse that is a big ole hot mess of attitude. I rode twenty meter circles... Round and round. And I learned something about human nature. Round and round and round we go... It's through repetition that humans learn and can branch out in to the "infinity" world in which our God operates. 

But we humans are dumb dumbs. One distraction and we miss out on the beauty of a Kingdom of eternity that is available RIGHT NOW. 

We become caught up in circles.

Habits. 

Patterns. 

This is what I'll be writing about. 

Circles...

That lead to an understanding of Infinity. 

The boundlessness that is only possible through knowing and remaining with your Heavenly Father. 

Less Than...

I am looking around the room at a bunch of people that are clueless.  I don't say that in a harsh manner... but it's true.  We all understand that there's a mystery.  That's why we are all there.  We all understand that there's something to figure out, but we are completely clueless.

Someone has been murdered.  We all know who did it, but no one has stood up and truly accepted the blame.  Funny enough... no one is pointing fingers either.  So we all sit around tables... talking and laughing and hugging and eating roasted chicken and pink cake... with yummers pink icing.

And inside most of us are struggling somehow, but we are happy to be in the same room eating dinner with people like us... with people that know the truth... with people that love us and encourage us... but the real truth doesn't change.

Someone has still been murdered.  And we lived to tell about it.   And we didn't deserve it.  If Angela Lansbury had been there or maybe even Professor Plum,  there may have been some closure.  To some there IS closure... 

the unspoken is many times the most harsh reality.

And then it happened... our leader emerged.  He called us all around and I was, quite honestly, a little nervous.  Would they look at me?  Would they think I was the one with the candlestick in the ballroom?  And I began to look around and notice all heads were slightly lowered.   All eyes were searching.

And our leader reminded us that we all are guilty.  And I realized that this wasn't a mystery at all.  Or at least HOW the man died wasn't a mystery.  And I was there to tell the story.  I was there to remember.  I was there to embrace the death and not let things go unspoken.  But why me?

For it is by grace that I was there in that room that night.

It is by grace that no one threw the first stone at that dinner.

It is by grace that I can walk with my head held high... all while understanding the mystery of the murder.  For the murder wasn't the end of the story.  And the murder wasn't the reason we were all gathered... although it played a large part.

It was by grace that Paul was shown mercy, so that the Kingdom could be glorified.

And it was by grace that I was chosen to lead, when I wasn't deserving of a leadership role.

BBs, the scene I described wasn't from a movie or a board game.  It was real life.  It was a leadership dinner... for our church.  Haven't you felt that way before though?  As if you didn't deserve to be somewhere?   Maybe it wasn't as dramatic as that... but you felt less than?

As I looked around, I saw a band of gypsies.  I saw a group of men and women that are wandering around in this world that is not our own.  I saw a broken mess of people sitting at tables. 

Imperfect. 

Undeserving. 

A group of misfits... called for leadership.

And isn't that what God does?

He picks the lowly.  

He picks the broken.  

He picks the murderers... 

to lead.

And I wonder how can it be?  And I started to understand that when someone is broken to the point of collapse... when someone is constantly stuck in the trenches... when I can. not. go on...

The beautifully broken do one thing.

We look up.  It's the only place to look when you've fallen down so much.

We fix our eyes as we run... in the mud and muck... on the one true King.

We come boldly on our hands and knees to the throne of the Living God.

We only have one direction... Up.

And in turn, we have no other choice but to lead.  

We have no other choice but to reap a harvest.

We have no other choice but to serve... for we are already on our hands and knees.

So why... you that are beautifully broken and on your knees... do you feel less than?