Iron Women Blog Hop

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My Slice of Sanity, The Gandy’s Home Base, Angela’s Pursuit of Life, ThoughtsandCreations from Here There and Everywhere, and Harvest of Pearls have joined together to bring you “Iron Women of the Word" blog hop. Once a week we will share about our time in the Word and invite you to share your time in the Word as well. If you have words of encouragement, a devotion or other Christian related post to link up that would be awesome! If you are a "Iron Woman of the Word" and would like to find other Christian Bloggers --link up! Please grab the button to spread the word about our fellowship! We am looking forward to our fellowship!

Choices

We all make choices, every single day, hundreds, if not thousands of choices. What to have for breakfast, lunch, dinner; what time to eat; what clothes to put on; what chores to do at home or if you work outside the home, what work chores to do first; I'm sure you all get the idea.  Today I am going to talk about how just  one choice King David made caused him to sin, multiple times.

Scripture taken from 2Samuel 11:1 NASB 'Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. (italics mine)

Now I have read this scripture many times and never really thought anything about it until I was catching up in our Sunday School book "How to Make Choices You Wont Regret" by Kay Arthur, David & BJ Lawson. I didn't know that it was normal for kings to go to war with their troops.  For whatever reason, King David decided to stay at home this time.  We all are familiar with the story, David sees a beautiful woman and decides he must have her, even though he is told she's married, they have sex which results in pregnancy then David tries to cover it up and fails so he resorts to murder. That's not what I want to focus on today.

I want to focus on how this one choice changed a faithful follower into a sinner.  How many times I make choices that cause me to sin. Just one more game of Mahjong, then I'll spend time with You, Lord.....doesn't this make an idol out of a simple computer game? This is just one example from my life, believe me, there are many!
I pray you will examine your life and see what choices you are making and whether they are causing you to sin, without even realizing it.  That satan sure is a sneaky one, isn't he?

In His ServiceSandy

I would love to hear your comments on today's devotion and hope you will join me next week for the Iron Women Blog Hop.
I am basically blog hop stupid so I have no idea how to get Mr Linky to work without our blog hop diva so please accept my apology for no Mr Linky.  Please become a follower and continue on to the other Iron Women's blogs, their links are in the introduction.

Iron Women Blog Hop

My Slice of Sanity, The Gandy’s Home Base, Angela’s Pursuit of Life, ThoughtsandCreations from Here There and Everywhere, and Harvest of Pearls have joined together to bring you “Iron Women of the Word" blog hop. Once a week we will share about our time in the Word and invite you to share your time in the Word as well. If you have words of encouragement, a devotion or other Christian related post to link up that would be awesome! If you are a "Iron Woman of the Word" and would like to find other Christian Bloggers --link up! Please grab the button to spread the word about our fellowship! We am looking forward to our fellowship!




Today I am promoting a blog about a little boy's journey with Perthes disease. (I never heard of it either, until Jake). His mom is my son's age, I remember her from when they were in Sunday School and Christian Life Club together. Here is a pic I from the program, Jake is the last boy on the right, front row.

I surprised my mom on Sunday and worshipped with her at Ohioville Free Methodist Church in Ohioville, PA. They were having their Easter program and I knew my nieces and nephews were participating. This little boy, Jake & his family attend this church and I was so impressed by his and his mom's positive outlook I had to feature them today.  I know you will join me in lifting this family up in prayer as they go through this journey.   You, too, can follow his journey:  http://www.jakesperthesjourney.com/

Iron Women Blog Hop

  My Slice of Sanity, The Gandy’s Home Base, Angela’s Pursuit of Life, ThoughtsandCreations from Here There and Everywhere, and Harvest of Pearls have joined together to bring you “Iron Women of the Word" blog hop. Once a week we will share about our time in the Word and invite you to share your time in the Word as well. If you have words of encouragement, a devotion or other Christian related post to link up that would be awesome! If you are a "Iron Woman of the Word" and would like to find other Christian Bloggers --link up! Please grab the button to spread the word about our fellowship! We am looking forward to our fellowship!

This weeks Blog Spot Light

Mo's Place

A little about Mo's Place: I'm a wife, a friend, and a daughter, what I am not, is a mother.  When diagnosed with infertility issues I became quite aware of what a taboo

subject this is among women.  I scoured the internet for points of view and
ideas and possible fixes.  I was desperate.  What I came to realize as time
went on is that there were a lot of voices out there from a lot of different
walks of life on this subject but not too many were asking the question, 'as
a Christ follower how does infertility affect me?'  I didn't have a lot of
answers but I felt a strong desire to create this blog in an effort to give
a truthful, raw, sometime not too Christlike view on how someone like me who
is a Christ follower handles these trials of infertility.  I wanted to do it
out loud as a way to find healing and understanding for myself and as a
possible blessing for someone else just like me, who is lost by the news of
it all and is looking for a little perspective. God has a plan, He knows
what He is doing and remembering that on this journey has proven to be the
hardest test to pass.

Please make sure to stop by Mo's Place today

Jesus' Last Command

Matthew 28:19-20 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them it he name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." NASB
So many times I have read/studied Scripture and books to learn to grow in my spiritual walk. Notice the focus was on 'me'. I never gave thought to the meaning of these particular verses let alone that this is truly Jesus' final command to all of us, not just the disciples. I confess, I've not done much in the area of 'making a dsiciple' of anyone. How about you?
I've been making a point to be more of a witness and look for opportunities to tell others of salvation and the way to heaven, but I continue to pray and ask God to give me direction.

In His Service

Sandy

Iron Women of the Word Blog Hop

Join our blog hop!

My Slice of Sanity, The Gandy’s Home Base, Angela’s Pursuit of Life, ThoughtsandCreations from Here There and Everywhere, and Harvest of Pearls have joined together to bring you “Iron Women of the Word" blog hop. Once a week we will share about our time in the Word and invite you to share your time in the Word as well. If you have words of encouragement, a devotion or other Christian related post to link up that would be awesome! If you are a "Iron Woman of the Word" and would like to find other Christian Bloggers --link up! Please grab the button to spread the word about our fellowship! We am looking forward to our fellowship!


I receive several devotions daily in my email. Today, Girlfriends in God has me thinking about what holds me back from serving God.  Like Moses, my past is not all ice cream and cake. I've made my share of mistakes, I've turned my back on God countless times, preferring to do things 'my way'.  However, God was able to use Moses in spite of his past. Why do I think He couldn't use me? Exodus 4:11-12 "The Lord said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now then go, and I even I will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say." (NASB)  This is after God had told Moses he was going to be his spokesman to the Pharoah and to the Israelites, Moses had countered with his excuse, I can't speak well, I've never been able to speak well. (I can almost hear the whine, can't you?) How often I have said nearly the same thing. 'I can't do that Lord, I don't have the ability, look at where I've been, what I've done.'   (hear the whine?)   God's answer is right there, in Exodus 4:11-12. I cannot even begin to count the number of times I've read that passage and never considered applying it to me.  What makes me even more sad is to think of the blessings I have missed because like I responded like Moses in Exodus 9: 13 'Please Lord, now send the message by whomever You will." I can almost hear Moses saying, 'I don't care who you send the message by as long as I don't have to do it.'  God was angry with Moses but still used him to free the Israelites and bring them out of Egypt. 

What an awesome God we serve! One who knows our every thought and has planned our lives according to His will, regardless of how we fight him. I am going to have to memorize Ex 4:11-12 and remember that it is God who enables me to do His work, not Sandy.  I'm still a work in progress but today, a more willing work in progress!                                                                 In His Service

Sandy



Crop Party at Cafe Mom

Faith, Love & Scrapbooking held their Fools for April crop from Mar 31-Apr 5. I was able to participate, even scrapping while working, in between phone calls.  Here are the fruits of my labor.

This first card challenge was to use 3 different patterned papers, a stamped image and ribbon.

I had to find a card sketch online, post the original sketch, the website and my interpretation.

This challenge I had to find a layout or sketch online, post the original, website and my interpretation.  These are 2 more pages for Jess' scrapbook, ever closer to completing it!

This next challenge was to scrapbook an event that there were no pictures taken. I am still trying to figure out how  I could forget to take a camera with me when Mike & I got married!

This challenge was to find an advertisement online, post the ad and website then my layout from the ad. I was on the Starbucks website and one of their gift cards had a 'tree' with birds and leaves, if you look, you will see the center line (trunk) and the 'branches/birds' are the different pictures. This was a fun page to do, but it was time consuming as well.


These are 2 more cards I made, the first for my dad whose birthday was Apr 3. The picture is one I took on approach from San Francisco to Palm Springs Airport, CA Jan 2010. I love the contrast between the sky and the mountains.

Iron Women Blog Hop

I'm a day late, not sure where the week has gone.
Today, one of my online devotions that I get via my email focused on
Psalm 109:4  'In return for my love they act as my accusers; but I am in prayer.' NASB  The author of the devotion focused on the act of prayer and I am challenged by his writing.  The psalmist was in prayer even in the midst of trial. Not only was he in prayer but he was in prayer alot!
 I have been struggling with prayer myself. Don't get me wrong, I pray.  I ask, praying for challenges in the lives of those I love; for my job; for those in Japan trying to put their lives back together; for our military; for our government; for the chaos going on in the Middle East. However, I often wonder if my prayers are heard. Do you ever feel that way? It is time for me to get back to taking the time needed to really be in God's presence. That's been lacking lately, I've given in to satan's temptation to stay in bed that extra hour for one thing. Fact is, I'm tired! I have discovered I need the time to be quiet, to listen, even if it is just listening to the quiet.
Beyond all that I think I really know what the problem is. ME. Several weeks ago, I really felt God was trying to speak to me about some things. I was afraid of what He might have to say and so I allowed satan to intervene. Now I must start the process all over in preparing to listen to what He has to say, to be willing to put aside my selfish wants and be willing to give my entire life over to Him, to do with as He sees fit, knowing that His plan is perfect.  I will be honest, I am scared of what He might ask of me.

In His Service
Sandy