Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 59 -61

Three days again?!  Okey, dokey.  That means I need a HUGE boast or indepth teaching.  I'll tell you what.  How about I just let the Word do the talking today?  Trust me, this is HUGE and indepth.  It is one of my favorite parts of the Bible.  Two thumbs up to our Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!  This is beautiful! You rock!

Psalm 103

   ¹Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
   ²Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
   ³Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
   ⁴Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
   ⁵Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
   ⁶The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
   ⁷He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.
   ⁸The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
   ⁹He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.
   ¹⁰He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
   ¹¹For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.
   ¹²As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
   ¹³Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.
   ¹⁴For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.
   ¹⁵As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.
   ¹⁶For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.
   ¹⁷But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children;
   ¹⁸To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.
   ¹⁹The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.
   ²⁰Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.
   ²¹Bless ye the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.
   ²²Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the LORD, O my soul.

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 58

James 2:26
²⁶For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

I cannot get away from this.  We must be about our Father's business!  If you are running a business for someone, you don't just put your feet up and hope that all the work gets done!  Well we are here to take care of God's business!  We say we want to see souls won to the Kingdom of God, we want to see body's healed, we want to see miracles!  Then we MUST be (James 1:22) doers of the word and not hearers only lest we deceive our own selves! We do not want to be the ones that end up saying (Matthew 7:22) Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?  Only to hear Jesus say (Matthew 7:23) I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

So my boast today is this: Thank you Lord for opportunities every where I go to share the good news of your gospel.  Amen.

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 57

Mark 16:17-18
 ¹⁷And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
   ¹⁸They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

We really can do these things!  However, we say we want this, but are we willing to do what it takes to receive it?  All I can say today is this.  Watch the documentary available via Netflix called Mama Heidi.  It will challenge you and inspire you!  I thank God for this documentary!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 56

Mark 16:15
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

I can see already that this blog is turning more into my thoughts and revelations concerning the Word of God than it is an actual boasting on the Lord.  Yet, in reality the thoughts and revelations concerning the Word came from God and therefore boast of Him.  As I grow in the knowledge of Him and grow in intimacy with Jesus, that alone speaks of a boast because He is the one doing that wonderful work within me!  So I will continue to write my thoughts concerning the Word, and I will record it as a boast...praise be to God!  Here we go:

Back in 2002, Frank and I went on a mission trip to Honduras with Higher Ground Ministries.  One evening while we were there, Pastor Jim Brissey had everyone gather for a time of worship and a time of sharing what God had revealed or spoken to each of us as a result of going on this trip.  My answer was that although I loved being there and actually wished I could stay, I truly felt as if the Lord was showing me there were just as many people back in the USA who needed Jesus.  I felt like He told me that we pass them every day but their needs are often hidden.  We need to look beyond the walls and go and minister to them.  That was in 2002.

Fast forward to now, 2012 (wow! 10 years!).  The Lord started ministering to me about the mission field.  He showed me that we are all missionaries no matter where we are!  He showed me like this: When you are on a mission trip, do you just hang out for days on end not ministering to anyone? NO because everyone who has ever been on a mission trip knows that you go there with a purpose...to share the good news of the gospel (salvation, healing, provision, deliverance, etc), and you only have a limited amount of time to accomplish that purpose!  Besides that, the trip usually costs a chunk of change, so the team doesn't want to waste the time they have there doing nothing.

Then I felt like He showed me that all His people are on a mission trip.  If we call ourselves Christians, then we should have one main purpose in our lives - sharing the gospel.  Yes, we have jobs, families, etc that we must attend to, but we should never allow those things to hinder our main purpose which is to share the gospel.  Why?  Because our time on this mission trip is limited!  We only have a certain amount of time to accomplish our mission, so we can't afford to let day after day, year after year slip by with us doing very little or sometimes nothing to accomplish what the Lord has given us to do.

Now some may say they have no idea what he Lord would have them do.  It's very clear!  Minister the good news of the gospel!  If you will start by doing SOMETHING and then earnestly seek the Lord in prayer to guide you to more, HE WILL ANSWER THAT PRAYER!  Also, don't limit yourself to only ministering inside the church.  Although we need that type of serving because Christians need to grow, we cannot and should not forget to outside the church walls to reach the lost.  It could be something as simple as sharing what God has done in your life with someone at the grocery store, it could be doing an outside Sunday school for the children in your neighborhood, it could be bringing groceries to someone who you don't even know, but the Lord points them out as someone in need.  There are so many ways to share the gospel!  Just pick something and start somewhere!

The bottom line is this.  A price has been paid for our mission trip.  It was VERY expensive!  It was paid for with the blood of Jesus!  Each one of us accepted the responsibility for what would be expected of us on the day we asked Jesus to be our Lord and Savior.  Luke 12:48 says, "To whom much is given, much will be required."  We are on a mission trip, and we have work to do.  So what are we waiting for? Let's get busy!  Get out there and share the good news of the gospel!  Go share Jesus with someone...today!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 55

Proverbs 3:11
My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction.

Really?  Despise not the chastening of the Lord?  Okay, so what?  Are we to welcome correction?  YES!  Yes indeed we are to welcome correction!  Is it fun?  NO!  However, it is necessary, and it is for our own good.  Remember, God only corrects us because He loves us sooooo much.  Of course when we are in the midst of correction, it certainly doesn't feel like love, but maybe that's because we have a twisted understanding of what love is.

Most of us view love as a warm fuzzy.  Love is supposed to feel good, right?  Well yes, that is true some of the time, but other times love can hurt.  Case in point: A child gets a splinter buried pretty darn good in his skin.  The mom, who by the way loves her child very much, commences to the horrific act of removing the splinter with a pair of tweezers.

Now keep in mind the child does not see a loving mommy who has come to rescue the day.  Quite the contrary!  The child is thinking, "Is this my mother?!  Is this the same woman who tucks me in at night?!  Why is she hurting me?  Why won't she stop?  Doesn't she love me?"

The mother's thoughts, as she wrestles to pin down the flailing arms and legs with one hand while performing minor surgery with the other, are quite different than her son's.  While holding back tears so as not to scare the child even more, she is thinking, "Oh God!  Help me get this splinter out!  I can't stand hurting him like this, but if I don't get the splinter out, it will get infected.  Oh how it pains my heart to see him suffer like this, but I know the end result will be much better for him."

So although it appears as if mom is a crazy woman set on inflicting unimaginable pain on her child, in reality she is inflicting LOVE.  Painful yes, but love nonetheless.  I would even go so far as to say this is an even greater act of love than tucking her son in to bed at night because to show this kind of love hurts HER.  Thankfully, after she successfully removes the splinter, the pain ends and her son realizes the great thing she has done for him.  Their smiles beam at each other, and trust of his mom's love is restored in his heart.  In fact, he more than likely offers up a hug and tells her thank you for removing the splinter.

Wow!  He tells her thank you for causing him such agonizing pain!  Why?  Probably because all through the pain he heard her soothing voice saying, "I'm so sorry, but I have to do this.  It's for your own good.  If I leave the splinter in there sweetie, it's going to keep causing you pain and it will get infected.  Mommy doesn't want to do this to you, but I have to.  I love you baby.  It breaks my heart to do this, but you are going to feel sooo much better once I get it out.  Now hold still.  Here it comes.  Yes!  All done...no more splinter!"  Then he felt her reassuring kiss upon his brow and saw the tears that she only just now allowed to fall.  It was then he realized what she had done.  She had LOVED him enough to put herself through pain right along with him.

That's exactly how it is when God corrects us.  He does not allow us to go through the pain of correction just so he can say, "Ha!  That's what you get for disobeying me!  Take that...and that!"  NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!  Instead, he is saying to us something similar to what the mother told her son.  You see, God knows if we continue in something that is wrong in His sight, it will infect us and we will die...forever.  Therefore, he allows the pain of correction so that the end result for us will be blessings and joy.

Of course that means we need to embrace correction like the little boy with the splinter.  We need to thank God for what he is doing as he corrects us.  Trust me, it won't be fun.  However, if we will LISTEN to the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit comforting us and giving us wisdom during those times, then we will come out on the other end healthy in our spirit, soul, body, relationships, and finances.  Then, as we walk in that healthy state, hopefully we will smile at our Daddy and thank Him for what He did.

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 54

Luke 8:50
But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.

I praise God for the ability to come to Him when I am tempted to fear.  He is always right there to listen, encourage, and fill me back up with faith.  Sometimes He gives me ideas to write down so that not only will I be encouraged, but I can then use that writing to encourage others.  The following poem is an example of how He has lifted me up during those dark times.  Enjoy, and be encouraged!

Fear Not, Only Believe

He shed his blood for me unworthy

such pain and not a scream.

He gave me life with him eternal

to praise and laugh and sing.

Yes while on Earth I should praise my God

and thank him for all things,

not offering up my doubts and fears

and words that just complain.

Yet when the promise seems to tarry

and praise my thoughts repress,

a battle rages in my heart -

my faith put to the test.

Is it real?  Is it true?

Dare I to believe

in signs and wonders, miracles

promised to His seed?

Oh why my soul should you ask

this question so bizzare?

How could you doubt the One who formed

the heavens and the stars?

He is the Truth, He is the Way,

He is my breath of Life!

His love, His joy, His peace abounds

toward me, His blood-washed bride!

So I will not stagger at God's promises

through doubt or unbelief.

If I'm strong in faith, giving glory to God,

He says I WILL receive!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 53

Matthew 7:7
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you

Okay...you would think that after being a Christian for twenty-four years I would be mature enough to believe and expect and not be so absolutely amazed when the incredible promise God gave to me in the scripture shown above actually happens.  But nooooo...instead I often find myself in a state of awe as I giggle like a little child watching the manifestations of the things I have asked for!

Case in point: I told my Father that I am willing to stay in Georgia since that seems to be what He wants right now, but I also told Him that I would like to have ministry opportunities, a church family, and friends.  Suddenly I have several people wanting to talk on the phone and text me, I have opportunities arising to speak at churches, my husband and I got plunged deeper into a youth prison ministry that we absolutely love, and I got invited to attend a home group that is connected to a church our friends invited us to.  Wow!  Talk about an answer to prayer!  God is sooooo awesome!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 52

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him will not perish but will have everlasting life.

I have little to write for yesterday's blog post (hey, at least I'm only one day behind this time!), yet I have something big to write about.  The something big to say with very little writing involved centers around God's love for me.  I am so in awe of His love for me today that it almost renders me speechless (now we know that is a true blue miracle!).  What more can I say other than I cannot help but boast today about my Father's love for me.  I am so thankful that He loves me.  That's it; nothing more.  Let me tell you though...that is huge!  I pray you know the depths of His love for you as well.

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 51

I Corinthians 12:8-9
For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

What comment could I possibly give that would boast on the Lord more than hearing a first-hand account of the gifts of healing?  Therefore, my boast is my utter amazement at how much the Lord loves us as evidenced in the video you can watch at the following link:
http://www.gfa.org/pray/when-sister-mary-prays/?cm_mmc=GFA-_-Email-_-377991-_-120111%20Digest%2092%20(1)

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 48 - 50

Isaiah 43:25
I, even I, am He that blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.

That alone is reason enough to boast about the Lord Jesus for the last few days I have missed writing in this blog.  In fact, that is enough to cover my boasts for the rest of my life and beyond!  Therefore, I choose to use this one scripture to show myself and anyone else who cares to read this blog that God did a HUGE and MAGNIFICENT thing when He gave His son Jesus for us.  In fact, it is so huge that I am having difficulty composing myself and composing this blog as well.  Therefore, I think I will just leave you with one final thought:

Do we truly realize what it means to have our transgressions blotted out and to not have our sins remembered?  Also, look at the scripture closely, and you will see that all of that is not done for our sake, but for the sake of Jesus.  He's the one who deserves it, not us.  He's the one who felt the nails being driven through the layers of skin, muscles, and nerves of his hands and feet, not us.  He's the one whose blood trickled down his brow as the Roman soldiers shoved the crown of thorns into his head, not us.  He's the one who heard the laughter as the mockers hurled insults and ridicule into the depths of his heart, not us.  He's the one who was FILLED WITH OUR SINS, not us.  He's the one who WENT TO HELL, not us.  He's the one who ROSE AGAIN, not us.  So doesn't it make sense that all those sins Jesus carried would be blotted out and forgotten FOR HIS SAKE, not ours.

Jesus deserves it AND HE DESERVES OUR PRAISE, ADORATION, AND WORSHIP EVERY SINGLE DAY.  God gave us this day...but we get to choose what to do with it.  We can choose life or death.  I choose life.  We can choose to worship and praise, or gripe and complain.  I choose to worship and praise.  Why?  BECAUSE HE DESERVES IT!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 47

Acts 6:5
...they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost...

First of all, let me say right up front that I am cheating again!  This is yesterday's blog even though I am writing it today.  Yep, you got it.  That means I still have to write the blog for today as well.  Sigh...hey, I never said I was perfect, but I'm workin' on it! Enough...time for yesterday's blog:

Stephen...wow!  What a guy!  He was a man full of faith and full of the Holy Ghost.  Sounds like he'd make somebody a great husband!  I mean think about it.  A Holy Ghost and faith filled Christian man who didn't mind serving.  Who wouldn't love a man like that?!

Seriously though, Stephen was the true model of a servant.  Stop for a moment and read through Acts 6.  You will see that the disciples had their hands full with some bickering amongst the people.  It seemed the Grecians were arguing with the Hebrews about the fact that their widows were being neglected when the food was being served to all the believers.

The disciples decided, with great wisdom I might add, that it would not be good for them to neglect the learning and teaching of the Word to wait on tables (Today's translation: Whoo!  That's a hot mess!  Ain't no way we want to get in the middle of that!)  They decided to choose men who were of good moral character AND (trust me, this part was definitely important) full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom.  Uh, yeah...I think they're going to need it!

If they had chosen me, I probably would have done my best to get the food out there hot and fast and avoid all but the necessary and expected conversations.  Not Stephen.  He not only waited on their tables with a smile on his face (no I CAN'T prove that in the Word), but he also ministered to them.  Acts 6:8 says: And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.

Can you believe it?  These are a bunch of already grumpy and argumentative people!  Who in their right mind would want to spend more time than necessary at their table?!  Oh...wait a minute.  Stephen didn't spend more time than necessary.  In fact, he spent all the time that WAS necessary to meet their needs because that is what a server, or a servant, does.  You see, Stephen realized the needs of the people went far deeper than food.

He ministered to them out of the wisdom and power of the Holy Ghost.  Remember...that was one of the requirements to become a servant to these people.  The disciples knew this (in spite of my jesting), so they were extremely careful not to pick just anyone.  Stephen...full of the Holy Ghost and faith...full of wisdom...chosen to the honored position of servant.  Oh my.  Most of us hear the word servant and conjure up images of bondage and cruel slave masters.  But not Stephen.  Oh no, not Stephen.

Stephen saw the position of servant as an honor, and he chose to use it as a means to bless others with the power of God!  The Word says he did "great wonders and miracles among the people".  Imagine, one moment the people are grumbling, the next moment they are receiving a miracle!  Rest assured the atmosphere in the room must have changed dramatically.  There's just something about signs and wonders occurring that always seems to create a Holy Ghost partay!  No more arguing.  No more grumbling.  Ahhh...what a relief it must have been for the disciples!  I'm sure they were very happy they had chosen Stephen.  :-)

In all the years I've been reading the Word of God, I never really noticed this part of the scriptures.  This time, however, it smacked me in the face like a power serve volleyball.  Truly, I never saw it coming!  I'm glad it hit me though because it gave me the opportunity to reflect on the times I have been chosen to serve.  When those times of serving had to do with prison ministry, street ministry, mission trips, etc, I was willing and eager to do whatever I was asked to do because I knew I was doing it to touch lives for God.  Yet when I have been called upon to serve when it did not appear outwardly to have ANYTHING to do with ministry (uh...like Stephen waiting tables), I wasn't always quite so willing and eager.

I believe this scripture has shown me how wrong that attitude was.  You see, whether we are waiting tables, babysitting children, taking out garbage, or any other less-than-desirable activity you can think of, we need to do it with a Stephen attitude.  ***Side note: I think Stephen would have had a very rough day with that grumbling bunch of people if he had not been full of the Holy Ghost!

So what does that tell us?  WE NEED TO BE FULL OF THE HOLY GHOST!  If we are full of the Holy Ghost and faith and wisdom, then we will be able to hear Him as he directs us in how to minister in the serving situation we have been placed in.  Instead of grumbling, "I can't believe I have to do this!", we will be saying, "I can't believe I get to do this!"  Have you been chosen, even if only for a season, by God to serve?  Yes?  Wow!  Aren't you blessed!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 46

Acts 5:32
And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God has given to them that obey him.

Okay...so my boastings in the Lord may change shape from time to time.  In other words, don't expect the same format day after day.  I originally had it in my mind to do just that, but then I realized that putting God in any kind of box is never a good thing!  So...I will just let Him mold and shape this blog however He sees fit.  That means I, along with you, will have some surprises along the way!  Yay!  That is way more fun!

Today my boast has to do with the scripture shown above.  As many times as I have read the Bible, I have never seen this golden nugget before.  If you look at the latter part of that verse, it says that the Holy Spirit is given TO THEM THAT OBEY HIM (GOD)!

I am so grateful to God for showing me that!  Basically, what this says to me is that if you REALLY want to be filled with the Holy Spirit, like so many of us say we do, then you MUST OBEY GOD!  Yeah, yeah, I can hear it now, "But I do obey God, yet I don't flow in the gifts of the Spirit!"  Hmmm...let's see.  Either God is lying or you are lying.  Of course, God is not a man that He should lie, and it is impossible for God to lie.  Therefore...you guessed it!  Guilty as charged! (Me included!)  Thankfully, our Father is merciful and always willing to forgive if we repend of our wicked ways.  So what are you waiting for?  Just take some time to get alone with God, and ask Him to reveal areas in your life where you are not being obedient.  THEN REPENT AND START OBEYING HIM!  Remember, if you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good of the land.  Isn't God just sooooo incredibly awesome?

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 39 - 45

Sheesh!  I fell a week behind AGAIN!  I have no idea how in the world I allow that to happen.  I will not give up though.  I will write this and other things until writing becomes just a part of my daily life.  So...here are seven short boasts for the days I missed and today:

1. I praise God for the good watchdogs I have!
2. I praise God for the gorgeous sunrise I was able to see today!
3. I praise God for the time reading His Word with my husband this morning and the freedom to do that!
4. I praise God for the awesome work Kairos Prison Ministries is doing throughout the USA and the world!
5. I praise God that my last principal did not offer to take me back under her employ!
6. I praise God for the fast that we are taking part in with our church!
7. I praise God that the thing they burned off between Frank's toes was not cancerous!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 38

Genesis 2:24
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Many marriages today, and all throughout history for that matter, are not what one would call wonderful.  Mine is an exception.  Now don't get me wrong.  I did not say my marriage is perfect; I just said it is wonderful.  I believe it is that way because Frank and I are truly friends and try to treat each other as such.  However, first and foremost, I believe our marriage is wonderful because of the fact that God is the one who put us together AND is keeping us together with lots of love as the glue.  Today's boast is about the latter part of that statement.

I remember enduring a marriage of 14 years with a man who next to never kissed me.  He told me it was because he didn't like the way I kissed.  Frank, on the other hand, kisses me several times a day EVERY day.  He has done that for almost ten years now!

I remember having to get all my clothing at the free thrift store run by a local church while my husband bought himself new clothing.  On the contrary, Frank INSISTS that I get myself clothing, and I have to twist his arm to buy clothing for himself!

I remember feeling so alone in church and during my prayer and devotional times because my husband wanted nothing to do with being a Christian.  Frank is just the opposite.  He loves the Lord so much!  He prays and reads his bible daily and eagerly joins me in outreach ministry opportunities!

I could go on and on, but suffice it to say that I'm soooooo glad I let God pick my husband this time!  God is awesome!

Mama C's Boasting Blog - Day 26 thru Day 37

Twelve days?!  Twelve days?!  Yikes!  I truly cannot believe I have neglected twelve days of writing in this blog!  Would it be okay to just blame it on my husband being home on vacation?  Kosher or not, that combined with Christmas and New Years Day is the best excuse I can come up with.  :-)  Okay...so rather than punish myself too severely by trying to play catch-up with twelve full-length postings, I have decided to list the first twelve things that come into my mind to boast about concerning my magnificent Father in Heaven.  First things first though...a scripture to start it all off:

Psalm 22:25
My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him.

1. The love and forgiveness of God healed me of colon cancer!
2. My husband survived a very dangerous jump off an extremely high waterfall in Honduras!
3. The "Our Father" prayer saved me from being raped when I was fifteen years old!
4. Jennifer survived in spite of being born without a heartbeat and without breathing!
5. Justin survived in spite of having the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck several times!
6. Ryan survived in spite of having a life-threatening case of salmonella poisoning at 5 weeks old!
7. Jennifer survived her appendix bursting!
8. Justin survived two tours in Iraq!
9. Ryan survived his parents' divorce with a very positive attitude!
10. I survived the loss of the man I thought I could trust for 14 years, and gained the last 10 years with the man God chose for me and whom I know I can trust!
11. God delivered me from drugs, and I have been free for 20 years!
12. God blessed me with the three most wonderful children a mother could ever hope for, and they all have a heart that is hungry for God!