The same, yesterday and today, yes and forever.

"You can feel secure, even in the midst of cataclysmic changes, through awareness of My continual Presence."
~Jesus Calling by Sarah Young

"Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday and today, yes and forever."
(Hebrews 13:8)

May you all remember that God never changes even when your circumstances do.

Pure and Discerning

"Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright."
~Proverbs 20:11

This morning I read a great devotional on being pure and discerning. It was so good! I want to include a few excerpts here.

"Only God knows what's really in our hearts, but we get clues about what's in there, and those clues are revealed in our behavior. Proverbs 20:11 offers us a purity barometer, a test we can apply to help us grow in godliness and protect ourselves in it....A pure heart grows from a willingness to take a good, hard look at our actions and then humbly allow what we see to teach us about ourselves...As soon as we recognize it, the first thing is to take it straight to the cross."

~Lydia Brownboack from Purity: A Godly Woman's Adornment

What a great reminder this is to me to constantly be examining my heart and taking any impure things I see to the Lord. My actions speak louder than words, so Lord help me to be on the lookout for any negative actions that would reveal where my heart is at. Help me to be pure in Your sight.

Happy St Patrick's Day

Here are a few pics from our St Patrick's Party today!

Oregon Christian Writer's Winter Conference

I had such an awesome day yesterday at the Oregon Christian Writer's Conference in Salem, OR yesterday! Davis Bunn was the keynote speaker and he was awesome! What wisdom he has and I learned some amazing writing tips. I am so grateful that I decided to go! What a blessing! Got some new books too! So excited!

St Patrick's Party Planning

My sister and I had fun this week at Starbuck's party planning for our upcoming Saint Patrick's Day party on Sunday. It's gonna be such an awesome weekend!

Average or Extraordinary

Do you ever stop to think about your life and wonder if you are doing something beyond the ordinary—something beyond just barely getting by. So often life is so full of working to earn a living, doing chores, schoolwork, taking care of your children, working out, and eating healthy; but you don’t even have time to ask yourself whether you are living just the average life. Lately, I’ve been thinking that I want to live beyond the average or ordinary, even shall I say, extraordinary. To think that I could live an extraordinary life almost sounds prideful, but let me explain what I mean. I so often feel that all I am doing in this life is for me. I go to school because I want a better job, I clean my house because I want to live in a clean and orderly manner, and I take care of my family because I love them. All of that is all well and good, but my desire, especially recently, is to do something beyond that--to help others that don’t give back to me, people that aren’t just my family and friends. I want to make a difference in people’s lives. I want to live like Jesus did. It’s not that I don’t feel like I am doing something with my life right now. I feel that I am a good friend, daughter, and sister, and I am even doing some volunteer work. It’s just that I feel God has something more for me. I feel I need to stretch myself and really pray about God’s will for my life.

I am at a crossroads in my life at the moment and I feel that the road I take could really make a difference in whether I live an average, or extraordinary life. Have you ever felt this way? This is not entirely a new thing for me. I’ve felt this way before and done something about it, and now I am in this place again where I have to go beyond myself once again. At times like this it is easy for me to stress out and want quick answers, but answers don’t always come instantly. I have found this out many times. I have to be patient and trust that God will show me why I am feeling this way, and what exactly I should do about it. I know the answers will come. They always have before. God is an awesome director of your life if you will let Him take control. Relying on His timing and direction for your life is always the best thing anyone could do. So if you too are at a crossroads in your life, ask God about it. He WILL show you.