When Things Don't Go Our way

Today, I had a list of things I was going to get done. I was supposed to help out with food and cleanup at our church today from a meeting going on the last couple days. I had a long day yesterday, so I was going to go to leave a little early, stop by the library, and read for a bit in the quietness. Not long after I left the library, my mom called me and said, "I need you to come home right now... Ethan(19) needs to go to the hospital." Upon further investigation, he had gone to the gym, and felt like he had gotten dehydrated. The staff told him that they were going to call 911, and that he needed to go to the hospital.
After talking with the EMT's there, we decided to just take him to Urgent Care. This happened to him not long ago when he was at a training class for police officers. So, we took him to Urgent Care immediately following. (FYI... doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong)
For a while, I was pretty upset that I wasn't able to help out at the church building; but then the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it's really not about me. I needed to watch my siblings, above helping out at our church, where their were already several others helping any way. I had to think of my family, above serving others. Sure, I could have taken my siblings with me, but that's not what they needed.
After coming to the realization that I needed to start thinking about them, and not about how to make other people happy, my day started going great.
My point with telling you this, is to let you know, that's it's okay if things don't go your way sometimes. That happens to all of us. Life happens, and we need to take whats given to us... with a good heart and a good attitude. It's not always easy, I know; but God gives us grace to go through each day. And you know what, the afflictions we face daily, are only temporary! When we die, or when Christ returns, we will be with Him for all eternity! Now that, is something to look forward to!
I was reminded of a couple Bible verses:
"A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps." ~ Proverbs 16:9~
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he shall direct your paths." ~Proverbs 3:5-6~
"We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed." ~2nd Corinthians 4:8-9~

His Grace is Sufficient!

God teaches in mysterious ways. I see this every day in my journey of being a Christian. In the moments where dreams come crashing down, or a loved one is lost, or life is just  topsy-turvy, we all stand back and ask "why?" It's such a difficult lesson to interpret. I said a prayer; thanking God for the little patch of heaven he had placed me in, for my family, and for life's simple goodness.

Our family had gone to a Church Family Camp last week. While on this trip, I had put my necklace that I got for my birthday, inside of my computer case, because I was in a hurry to get in the lake with my sister. Two days after I did this, I went to grab the necklace, and it was gone! I was very sad because this necklace was important to me, because I got it from my dad on my birthday. I had only had it for a couple weeks, and it was gone! Our church camp prayed for me to find it, but I couldn't. I left my information at the camp, in case the staff found it. In some cases, I could say that God didn't answer my prayers… and yet, in a way He did. He may not have led me to the necklace, but He showed me that His grace is sufficient for me! The things of this world shouldn't matter. Everything belongs to God! 

     I remember when our barn burned down in our backyard. Our chickens climbed right onto the heat lamp, and started a fire. We weren't home, until the evening, so everything was ruined… such as, a bunk-bed, antiques, windows, (that were replaced, because they gave us the wrong ones, but said we could keep the old ones) a chicken, some trees, and all kinds of other things were burned. Most of them were un-replaceable. So, what was the good that came out of all of that? We were blessed with money that our insurance covered for our burned thing. We took that money, and used it for someone else’s good. What Satan meant for Evil, God meant for good! 

     But isn't it ironic, that in the moment you are most peaceful and content with life, it seems God puts you to the flames again. I've come to see it as admitting we've grown stronger through his grace; we've proved we can withstand the next purging fire.

"So that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though  it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ." ~1 Peter 1:7~
I've learned one thing: This painful refinement will never stop. Our initial reaction is "why does God give his servants trials? Haven't they proven their faith and determination?"

Yes, they have. This is why the trials still come; to make us stronger, to make us tougher.  The world doesn't see this. They ask "why would a loving God persecute his people?"

     We’re reminded in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” 

     Yes, I’m still pretty upset that my necklace hasn't been found. If it has, someone might have taken it by now. However, at the same time, I need to realize that a necklace is just a “thing” of this world.  It’s a worldly possession.  It meant a lot to me, but, I've been realizing that 2^nd Corinthians 12:9 says, “And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness…”

We can’t see the big picture. But Christianity is about faith, not sight. We don't need proof of God's faithfulness. Because God upholds his promises. 

When You hit rock bottom

All of us have been there! And for those who haven't, your time will come. All of us know what its like to be at our lowest point in life. Maybe we think we've hit rock bottom, only to have another rock being thrown our way. The rock will hit, and it will hit hard! The rock will hit so hard, that you have no
 one to rely on, except God Himself!
Just recently, my family and I watched a movie called, "Seasons of Gray". It's a modern day story of Joseph, in the Bible. It really made me think of how Joseph truly felt. He probably felt like God had abandoned him. He probably had doubts, fears, pain, and I'm sure he had to deal with forgiving his brothers. Joseph could have chosen to do so many things, but instead, he chose to let God rule his life. Surrendering isn't the
easiest thing to do. It's so easy to just give up the fight. I wonder what Joseph did and thought about
while he was in prison for something he didn't do... Did he question Gods motives? Did he accept his
life, knowing that Gods will was in all of this, and that God was trying to teach him something?
As far as Joseph knew, he'd die in Prison! There are so many things we can learn from in Joseph's life, as well as many others throughout the Bible.

We see in 2nd Corinthians 12:9, "...My Grace is sufficient for you,
 for My strength is made perfect in weakness."
Wow! Gods strength is made perfect in OUR weakness!
Here are a couple verses that I thought fit perfectly with our discussion.
"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart."
~Galatians 6:9~
"I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and hear my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps..."
~Psalm 40:1-2~
What are some verses that have helped you when you've gone through a trial? What are some ways that you can encourage others who are going through a tough trial in their life right now?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHEm-b4IRYk

By Grace we have been Saved

By Grace we have been saved:

How many how read in the Bible, “By Grace we have been saved….”? I’m sure all of us have at one time or another…so why is it so hard to believe? I had gotten a book from the library a couple days ago called, “Grace” by Max Lucado. I loved it so much that I read it in 2 days!!! While reading it, I was utterly astounded about how much God gives us Grace  in abundance!!!

 So, what does Grace mean? Maybe there was a time that you can think of that you showed grace to someone...or vice versa, they showed Grace to you!

When us kids were little, and we'd get in trouble from arguing or some other things, we'd have a "Job Jar". You would stick your hand in the job jar and pick out a piece of paper. Sometimes the paper would say, "Clean the Stove top", and sometimes it would say some other things. There was 2 slips of paper in there that said, "Grace", which meant that you didn't have to do a job jar chore, because mom and dad decided to give you grace. I looked up in the Webster's 1828 Dictionary what "Grace" means...here is what I found...

•  The application of Christ's righteousness to the sinner.

          Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. Rom.5.

• Favor; mercy; pardon. Privilege.

1. Psalm 45:2
   You are fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon Your lips; Therefore God has blessed You forever.
2. Psalm 84:11
   For the LORD God is a sun and shield; The LORD gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
   
   Ephesians 2:8-9
   
   For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
   
   

The 11th Anniversary

Today marks the day that my dear little sister, "Grace Elizabeth Baughman" would have had her 11th birthday.

For those of you who don't know the story or don't remember, I'll tell you.
The Beginning...
It was a crisp fall morning from what I remember....
I had just woken up, and my cousin was still sleeping. (my cousins came with my grandparents to visit us...my cousins parents would be coming later the next day)
Since my cousin was still sleeping, and knowing how long she sleeps, I went out to the living room....there I saw my Grandma...crying...with her hands on her head. I didn't think I should interrupt her, so I went back to my room. My cousin had just
woken up, and was rubbing her eyes.
My Grandma walks in the room then, her eyes, swollen from crying. She says, "Caitlin...your mom went to the hospital this morning...Grace died." I held the tears back as it stung me. I had prayed to God for a little sister, and now, I didn't have one! "God...what are you doing???"
I asked inside myself.

Grace Elizabeth Baughman was a still born at 8 months pregnancy. She was sick, and my parents didn't know it. My mom felt something was wrong, and so my dad rushed her to the hospital. My mom got to hold Grace for a few minutes before she
was taken away with one of the nurses.

My mom came home a few days later; eyes swollen from crying so much.
She had carried little Grace for 8 months, and now...she was confused.

The Funeral was that Saturday. Our family and friends flew out to visit us in our distress, and for the funeral. I had worn a light green dress with flowers on it. I was
only 9 years old at the time, and I as well was confused.

As the weeks flew by, my mom and dad still hadn't healed. We had wonderful friends watch us kids, which at the time was Corey,(11) me,(9) Ethan,(6) and Austin. (2)
I was enjoying my time with my friends, and didn't realize what a hard time my
mom was having recovering from this loss.

That Thanksgiving, we were at our usual family reunion, which was in California at the time. We were at my Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Danny's house. We were celebrating my grandma's birthday, which wasn't for another few weeks, but we celebrated it any way. My Grandma opened her card, and tears filled her eyes. She stood up, and gave my parents a hug saying, "Congratulations!!!" I was totally confused...what was in the card? "What did it say?" I asked. My dad said, "Mommies going to have another baby!!!" Wow!!! Unbelievable!!! God had answered my prayer!!!

On June 11th...Joy Elianna Baughman was born, weighing 4 Ibs. and 5 Onces. She had a cleft lip, a hole in the roof of her mouth, and was not breathing...UNTIL...my dad said, "Joy! Joy, stay with us sweety!" And she started breathing. She was in the NICU for a week, and with a few surgeries a few months after she was born...she
was a normal little girl! God had answered my prayer!

So...my mom and dad named "Grace" Grace because God blessed us with her, which is what her name meant...we named "Joy" Joy, because God gave us yet another blessing of Joy!!! "Where Grace abounds, Joy Prevails" is what my mom named her Journal.
Our family went through a long journey, but going through this journey has caused my parents to KNOW that God is SOVEREIGN!!! And Ruler over all!
Tonight, my mom is taking an art class...she cried because, she feels like, even though the pain is still there, that she can finally start over. She can enjoy her life as it passes her by, and going through life she is learning that God is in control, and that
he has a perfect plan for everything!!!

...So, that's the story of my sister, "Grace Elizabeth Baughman"...
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to HIS purpose."
~Romans 8:28~