Wait, Hope, Expect!

In my personal Bible study when a verse really speaks to me, I like to read it in many translations to deepen my understanding and my grasp on the message. Today, I want to share with you many translations of a verse I love so much - Psalm 27:14. The translations are all similar, but I want you to take note of the different word choices in each one. 

PSALM 27:14

Wait for the Lord.

Be strong and take heart

and wait for the Lord. 

NIV

Wait on the Lord;

Be of good courage,

And He shall strengthen your heart;

Wait, I say, on the Lord!

NKJV

Wait patiently for the Lord.

    Be brave and courageous.

    Yes, wait patiently for the Lord. 

NLT

Wait on the Lord: 

be of good courage, 

and he shall strengthen thine heart: 

wait, I say, on the Lord. 

KJV

Wait for the Lord;

    be strong, and let your heart take courage;

    wait for the Lord! 

ESV

Don’t be impatient. 

Wait for the Lord, and he will come and save you! 

Be brave, stouthearted, and courageous. 

Yes, wait and he will help you. 

TLB

Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; 

be brave and of good courage 

and let your heart be stout and enduring. 

Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord. 

AMP

My life is in a stage of waiting, and I'm often reminded of the song "While I'm Waiting" from the movie Fireproof: http://youtu.be/i6X71sXagUY. Like the song says, I'm not going to let life pass me by while I wait for the next phase. I will BOLDLY and CONFIDENTLY take every step in obedience and faith, serving and worshiping with peace that His plan for my future is far greater than anything I can imagine on my own. Waiting is not easy, but the rewards are great. 

Confidence in Christ

I've recently joined with friends to start an online Bible study and accountability group, and I am very excited about the journey we are about to take! The topic of our study is "Confidence in Christ" where we learn to trust God and boldly live in His promises by examining issues that hinder our confidence, such as self-doubt, fear of failure, and worry. 

The intention of this study is to help each other develop effective Bible study habits and grow more confident in our walk with Christ. Each week, we will examine a specific issue that stands in the way of our confidence and discuss ways to overcome this in our everyday lives.

I will be blogging as we go, so stay tuned and grow with us! If you are interested in joining our Facebook discussion group, please email me waitingforpeace@outlook.com. As we begin our study, I'd like you to follow the link below and take some time to look at the list of verses presented there about the confidence we find in Christ. 

100 Verses about Confidence in the Lord

Our group will be discussing many of these verses over the next several weeks, and I will be sharing our discussion topics as we go along. Hope you check back and learn with us!

You ask me how I know He's real...

Some people claim to know God is real by the BIG things, 

the in-your-face miracles that have no other explanation, 

but I'm the opposite. 

I see God's handiwork in the tiniest parts of this world, 

and I see no other explanation for them other than 

an almighty Hand carefully crafting every detail. 

The grains of sand. 

The many seashells of all shapes and sizes. 

The tiniest little crab I've ever seen!!

 I don't need a BIG BANG to prove my God is real. 

I see it every day, in the little moments of undeniable truth. 

He is everywhere if we simply take time to look.

Sand Dollars and Seashells - The Works of His Hands

Psalm 139

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1You have searched me, Lord,

and you know me.

2You know when I sit and when I rise;

you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3You discern my going out and my lying down;

you are familiar with all my ways.

4Before a word is on my tongue

you, Lord, know it completely.

5You hem me in behind and before,

and you lay your hand upon me.

6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,

too lofty for me to attain.

7Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence?

8If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

9If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10even there your hand will guide me,

your right hand will hold me fast.

11If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me

and the light become night around me,”

12even the darkness will not be dark to you;

the night will shine like the day,

for darkness is as light to you.

13For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

14I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

15My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place,

when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

16Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

17How precious to me are your thoughts,^a God!

How vast is the sum of them!

18Were I to count them,

they would outnumber the grains of sand—

when I awake, I am still with you.

19If only you, God, would slay the wicked!

Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!

20They speak of you with evil intent;

your adversaries misuse your name.

21Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,

and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?

22I have nothing but hatred for them;

I count them my enemies.

23Search me, God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

Sun, Sand, and a book in my hand

Lately, I've allowed myself to get wrapped up in how far my life is from the life I'd imagined having. It's gotten me pretty down, to be honest. My mind and body had been feeling quite weary, so I took a vacation -- ten amazing days at beautiful Panama City Beach where much of my time was spent on a lounge chair listening to the waves.  

Relaxation, reflection, and rediscovery of myself was exactly what I needed! The waves washed away the negative feelings that had been plaguing my heart, especially the insecurity and hurt of rejection we single gals often face in the dating world. I don't have to feel lonely just because I don't have a husband and family of my own.

I needed a reality check!!! Life could be a lot different, but different is just different... not better. My married friends with kids love their lives, but I'm sure they could look longingly at my week on the beach without a worry in the world in the same way that I look at them playing with their kids. 

Different... NOT better.

My life is amazing just the way it is, and I choose to embrace all of it! 

Especially Pina Coladas for lunch and bikinis on the beach.

It's great to be me :-)

Be the author of your own life story

As a writer, my nature is to thoroughly assess every angle of a situation. What's happening here? is simply the first question asked in a long series of whys, hows, whos, and whats. My characters demand this attention to detail. They require my insight so they can grow and develop in positive, purposeful ways throughout their stories.

Yet, I find myself failing to allow the same thoughtful deliberation in my personal circumstances. I don't want to appear a drama queen because that is so far from who I am, and I don't want to over-think things I should be relaxing and enjoying. Where is the line drawn between having responsible thought processes and being a control freak?

This week, as I begin the draft on the first novel in a series about embracing life in its fullest, I've been looking at my own life as though I were a character in a book:

What would I, the author, change about my character? 

What type of future will she have? 

How can I develop her into the heroine of her own story?

It's rather odd to step back and objectively look at your own life, but I highly suggest you do that today. If you were a character in a book, would the reader want to know more? Would the reader sympathize with your situation or hope you fall flat on your face? Please don't misunderstand me here - I'm not saying you should change yourself based on what other people think. Just take a deep look at your character and ask yourself, Is she/he someone I'd want to get to know? Is my story a comedy, a tragedy, a page-turner, or the boring kind you'd put down after only one chapter?

Then, I want you to realize that you are the author of your own story.
If you want a different ending, then write one!
My coffee collar this morning at Starbucks quotes Oprah Winfrey and says, "The only courage you ever need is the courage to live the life you want."

What life do you want?

That's the story you should be writing.

Strike one, strike two, close your mouth when you chew.

The date started off kind of creepy. I'd been talking to this military guy for several weeks, and he seemed to be infatuated with me (so, of course, I was eating that up!!). He lived several hours away, so when a free weekend rolled around for his work, we finally decided to meet. As usual with online dating, I always pick a public place. He suggested Wal-mart.

Yep. Wal-mart.

Strike one.

So I agreed to meet him at the store I hate more than any other store (unless I'm going there to people watch, which is a whole different story!). After weeks of phone conversations, I felt really comfortable meeting him, but I wanted a little reinforcement because I had agreed to get in his car (an online dating "no no") and ride to the restaurant for dinner. He had no idea that my friends were parked nearby watching his every move and following us to dinner.

So I'm standing outside of Wal-mart hoping he looks as cute in person as he did in his pictures, and a big van slowly rolls by. I'm thinking, "Yep, so this is how it's going to end. Online dating and I get kidnapped by some 50-year-old creeper in the Mystery Machine posing as an Army hottie on Match.com."

At the exact moment I decide to pull out my phone to call my friends, arms reach around me from behind and cover my eyes, and I do what any normal woman would do.

"What the ****?" I scream and slap the hands away, my heart nose-diving to the pavement.

He laughs.

Strike two.

Actually, that should have been strikes two and three, but I was just so happy to not be kidnapped and tossed in a van that I let it slide. Plus he had roses, which almost made up for scaring the pee out of me in the Wal-mart parking lot.

Almost.

So we went to dinner. He had no idea that the giggling girls at the booth across from ours were my best friends when he called them spoiled ditzes as they laughed ridiculously loud at who knows what (probably my facial expressions trying to pretend I didn't see their shenanigans out of the corner of my eye).

Other than the constant battle to ignore my friends, the dinner was going well. Great, in fact. He carried on intelligent conversation, asking questions about me and seeming to be genuinely interested in my answers.

Until the food came. Okay, let me explain one thing. I'm bad about interrupting people. I know it's a problem. I honestly try to refrain and wait until they get done with their story, but some people just take too dang long to spit it out when I just need to interject one tiny bit of info that will only take a second. If I don't say it in the moment, then it makes no sense later after the long-winded person finally gets to a stopping point. I'm an interrupter. I admit it. Oh well.

And he was a long-winded talker. This was fine, and we managed to communicate relatively well until he babbled on and on while I stuffed my face nodding along to his story (that made no sense, by the way). Finally, he said something that I just couldn't stop myself from responding to, so I opened my mouth to say TWO WORDS, and I'll be danged if the dumb butt didn't put his hand over my mouth in the middle of the whole restaurant.

"You can't talk when you're chewing," he scolded.

Strike three.

I almost got up from the table right then and there. My friends saw his little hand-over-mouth action, and they nearly fell out of their chairs in laughter while I, on the other hand, didn't know if I should crawl under the table in embarrassment or give him a real piece of mind.

I chose to sit there lady-like and not say another word. He finished his story. I finished my meal.

And my friends faces were sore the next day from laughing.

You dare me to be myself? Challenge accepted!

Okay, so I'm online dating. It's no secret to any of my friends and family; in fact, it is more of a running joke at family dinners. I guess after a year of Match, ChristianMingle, Zoosk, Tinder... the list goes on and on... I have to laugh at myself, too!

Anyway, I went on a few dates with this one guy recently. He is very handsome, always smiling, made me laugh, has a stable job, is great with kids... check, check, check... he was stacking up pretty well against my wish list. Although things didn't work out with him, I owe this guy a big THANK YOU.

After getting to know each other a few weeks, he understood me quite well - better than anyone I've dated since my divorce - and he pointed out something that my little brother has been telling me for a while. I guess I finally needed to hear it from someone else, and I was actually very impressed that he cared enough to point this out to me (although he could have approached it a little more delicately).

Apparently, I have this idea in my mind of the woman I should be. It's my "ideal" me, I guess you could say. He pointed out that I am so hard on myself that I often feel the need to hide parts of who I am when I'm around certain people (he was 100% correct about that, by the way).

Surely, he was trying to tell me that I'm awesome just the way I am!! That's what I'm telling myself he meant (I choose to ignore the fact that if he thought I was awesome, then he'd probably still be calling, lol).

What I took away from our conversation was that I should free myself of unrealistic expectations and just embrace who I truly am 24/7 no matter who is around. His good-intentioned insults really made me re-evaluate the pressure I put on myself. Why do I hold myself to certain standards? Why do I think I should be/act a certain way? Is it because of what I think is right or because of what someone else thinks?

He shined a harsh light on my life, and I'm very thankful. By making me realize that there is nothing wrong with the real me, he has no idea how much he has impacted my life. I hope he reads this one day and knows how grateful I am.

So here I am -- thanks in great part to this man from whom I may never hear again -- embracing everything about myself, making no more apologies, and hiding nothing from anyone any longer. His loss that he didn't stick around long enough to see the change himself :-)

Reaching the Lost Is Like Fishing

Jesus called out to them, "Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!" (Matt 4:19 NLT)

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of spending the afternoon fishing with my daddy. What a great day! The excitement of reeling in fish after fish... wow! I cheered, laughed, squealed, prayed, and almost cried a few times with joy as I landed one after another.

Christ wants us to get that excited about bringing people to Him!! We should be casting our lines and trying our best to reel them into this boat with us! We should be tired afterwards because of the effort we're putting into it, but still can't wait for the next opportunity to do it again!

The fish don't just jump into the boat on their own. We have to cast the bait, we have to struggle to bring them closer, we can't give up, we have to pray the line holds tight and that they don't get tangled on a limb, we have to reach into the water and risk getting finned to help them into the boat.

Fishing isn't always easy... but it's worth every minute!

Psalm 73:26

I just want to share this quick verse with you today. Sometimes, I feel weak or that I'm not good enough to accomplish the task at hand, but He is stronger than my weakness.

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." - Psalm 73:26

I'm tired... I mean, like Vacation Bible School kind of tired!

Whew! Vacation Bible School has come to a close, and not only do I feel exhausted, but I feel absolutely depleted. I poured everything I had into this week for those children and my team of VBS leaders, so today I am focusing on refilling my cup.

Giving of oneself is a great thing, and I encourage you to do it as often as possible. We are called to serve others for His glory, and I want to do that every day of my life. However, sometimes, you need to focus on you, which is what I'm doing today. Focusing on myself. Refilling my spirit. Reviving my tired body and mind.

In the war against Satan, there is little time to rest. In preparing my heart for speaking engagements now that my novel has been released, I've focused extensively on peace. One thing I've learned since I found that peace that surpasses all understanding is that you must work to keep it. Every day, you must choose peace. Every day, you must choose to have a heart of service. Every day, you must choose to work for Him.

This week, my joy has been in serving others. I'm exhausted physically, mentally, and often spiritually, but my heart just wants to serve more and more!! I find myself saying, "Now, Rhonda (yes, I talk to myself in third person), you know you can't do it all. Better to do a couple of things really well than to stretch yourself thin and not be able to give your projects the attention they need."

But when you sell out to Jesus, you realize that no amount of service will ever be enough, and you want to do more! Personally, I just want to make everyone feel this joy I have in my heart!!

Search for Peace... and FIGHT to maintain it.

Our VBS memory scripture this week was 1 Peter 3:15, so that's where my Bible study began today. "Always be ready to tell what you know about Jesus" is what the kids and I repeated at every assembly along with our "secret agent hand signals"! But today, I began to really look at 1 Peter 3 as a whole, and the Lord has given me exactly what my tired heart needed to hear.

1 Peter 3:11 says, "Search for peace, and work to maintain it." (NLT)

"Work to maintain it" is what my version of the Bible says, but I say we must fight to maintain peace. Maintaining joy and peace through the struggles of everyday life is a constant battle, but one worth fighting daily!! No feeling I have ever experienced comes even remotely close to the joy I have in my salvation and the peace of knowing that God is in control 24/7.

Peter basically gives a warning in chapter 3, telling Christians to be prepared to suffer for what is right. Lately, my life has been going great, and I'm doing my best to soak it all in and enjoy every second because I know the devil awaits right around the corner. Peter's message affirmed that for me today. I know my work for Christ is making the devil angry and he is simply waiting for the right moment to sucker-punch me in the gut.

But this peace and joy I have is not a result of my happy circumstances. It is the result of Christ living in me and through me. If the devil attacks and I should suffer for serving Christ, then I resolve to suffer with joy and peace in my heart.

God is God always, in the good times and the bad. I believe that when you pour out yourself for Him, He fills you back up with more than you had before. That's what He is doing for me today.

So I encourage you to take time to replenish your heart and mind for Christ because the devil awaits just around the next bend. He is going to attack whether you are ready or not, so you need to be prepared. Put on the full armor of God, then rest in the calm assurance that the victory is already yours.

Twas the day before Bible School...

Twas the day before Bible School and all through the church yard
The volunteers were stirring and working so very hard.
The banners were hung in the foyer with care
because tomorrow the children all will be there.

After studying the evidence and making last minute notes
I packed some Skittles in the kids Agency D3 totes.
When we finished the vault, I tugged on my cap
and thought, "My goodness! I need a power nap!"

When from the kitchen arose such a clatter,
I left my classroom to see what was the matter.
Everyone was celebrating in the fellowship hall
because the posters were finally up on every wall!

The craft leaders packed up the tape and glue guns
while we put away the leftover breakfast and honey buns.
Everyone went home to rest for tomorrow.
The fun begins soon, and there's no time to borrow!

Discover. Decide. Defend. That's our motto this year!
We will study how Jesus is always near.
Examining the evidence and proving God's real,
then finishing each night with a fellowship meal!!

I pray He uses VBS to show kids His light.
May we show them the difference between wrong and right,
Teaching the little ones to come unto Him
and lighting a spark that will never grow dim.

Book Release!

The day is finally here!! My novel Waiting for Peace has officially been released! I feel overwhelmed by the positive response I am getting so far, and I look forward to the days ahead of book signings and public appearances. This is a dream come true, and the message in my story is one that brings me such joy to share!

To get your own copy of Waiting for Peace, you can order directly from Tate Publishing or Amazon. I will be posting a calendar of upcoming events when you can get your copy signed!

Thank you for your support, and God bless!!

A Light in the Darkness

When I was a little girl, I'd be so scared when I woke up in the middle of the night. I'd pull the bedsheet over my head to hide from the shadows on my wall. I felt really stupid at the time, but those creepy shadows still make me uneasy, even as a grown woman. One night last week, I even slept with my pistol under the pillow beside me after hearing a noise outside. I wanted to turn on a lamp, but decided that the darkness might actually work in my favor if someone were to actually break in my house.

The darkness can be good for you. The darkness can work in your favor.

After my divorce, I began reading a book by Stormie Omartian titled Just Enough Light for the Step I'm On. After only a couple chapters into the book, I was fortunate to actually meet Stormie at a women's conference and hear her words in person, and much of her speech came from the book I was reading. Coincidence?? I think not. The Lord knew what I needed to hear in my moment of darkness, and I want to share those same words with you during yours.

In chapter ten, Stormie writes about the wilderness of life, and I want to share with you a few things she said that really stuck with me.

"God has a purpose for the wilderness, but it's hard to see it when we're in it... The most frightening thing about it is the thought that this may be our final destination." (page 91) I know what that feels like!! Right after my divorce, I felt really alone and didn't like what my life was turning into. Granted, no part of me wanted to go backwards, but I didn't like where I was and feared I would be stuck in that lonely life. Add to that loneliness a physical illness, sense of homelessness, and family hardships, and I was completely broken. A person can only handle so much.

I was in my wilderness, but the wilderness is only part of the journey. That was NOT my destination. That was NOT the life God had planned for me, but it WAS part of His plan to prepare me for where He wanted me to be.

Stormie writes, "Although the wilderness may seem like nowhere at the time, it is somewhere if that's where God wants you. For it's there He will prepare you for the good thing He is about to do in your life. It's there you will be thoroughly convinced that you won't get anywhere or accomplish anything lasting without Him." (page 92)

God used my wilderness to show me what is really important. He used my heartbreak to show me what real love should feel like. He used my darkness to show me His light, and I am so thankful. There is something He wants to show you, too.

"The wilderness is where God takes us when He wants to get Egypt out of our hearts. He wants to separate us from all that we crave, so that all we crave is Him." I needed that wilderness to let go of all the pain, the bruised ego, the low self-esteem, the feelings of unworthiness that my unhappy marriage had caused. What do you need to let go of right now? As much as I wanted to pick up and run full steam ahead with my life, God knew I needed time to process the changes in my life, and He needed time to deal with the issues in my heart.

It's important you realize that while He is working in your wilderness, He is also preparing your paradise. He will help you let go of your past, embrace your present, and brighten your future. But you have to let Him help you. Sure, you can get by on your own, but do you really want to simply get by or do you want the best out of life?

This wilderness is NOT your destination. Walking through it won't be easy, and you won't move on from it overnight. Early in my wilderness, I was so focused on my hurtful past and my uncertain future that I was overlooking my present. Stormie writes, "Don't lament over what you're missing or think you're lacking. Give yourself five minutes of grief over them, then let them go so you can enjoy the journey. Be happy where God has you. No one ever gets out of the wilderness as quickly as they would like to anyway, so refuse to feel deprived." (page 96)

It's okay to feel overwhelmed for a moment. Even Jesus wept. He understands struggle. He understands pain. More than you will ever know, He understands carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders.

You will overcome this... but you don't have to overcome it alone.

Let Him be the light in your darkness.

Christmas Confessions

The streets seem dull since the lights have been taken down, my mom's house appears twice the size it was a month ago but with half the life, everyone around me seems to be suffering from holiday whiplash... and I feel like my celebration never started.

That makes me sound so ungrateful, I know, and I'm sorry to come across that way. I truly am thankful for all Christmas means: the gift of Christ and hope for salvation, spending time with my family, working with the children to perform at church.

However, those things are all special to me year round - not only in December - so I can still be thankful without feeling celebratory.

I didn't have a tree this year. Living between two houses - one a construction zone and the other a tiny mess - it simply wasn't possible. I decorated trees for my grandmother and my mama, but I came home every night to no twinkling lights, no sparkling tinsel, no glittering balls, no dancing Santa, no hanging stockings. I came home to boxes and construction, my life in chaos, which is a pretty good representation of how I spent my whole year.

I've learned that expressing joy in the midst of upheaval is challenging. Even knowing there's an awesome light waiting at the end of the tunnel (one that's far more twinkly and bright than any cheap strand on a tree), sometimes the tunnel is so dark that I fear smiling might cause me to lose concentration and stumble. Stumbling might keep me from reaching the end of the tunnel. Then I may be stuck in the tunnel forever!

Okay, so maybe I'm a little dramatic. I have earned the right to be dramatic considering all I've dealt with lately.

I feel like I missed Christmas, which really upsets me. I'm usually one of those people who starts listening to Christmas music November 1st!!! But this year, I didn't listen at all. I didn't bake cookies. In fact, my Santa apron is still tucked away in a storage unit, and I didn't cook ANYTHING for any of my family gatherings.

The type of excitement Christmas ignites doesn't come around often, and I want to feel that excitement again. I want to stop being too tired to enjoy living! I want to get through this tunnel of moving boxes that is my life and explore the light.

Psalm 51: 10-12

"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."