It’s Only a Name

Names are very powerful. In Bible times, people’s names truly meant something to them. Maybe without realizing it, they lived up to the meaning of their names. So it was life-changing (literally) when Jesus chose to change someone’s name to a name – and a role – that HE saw in them.

I don’t think things have changed that much. Today, names still matter. If your name means “mighty one” you know that internally and tend to live up to that thought and image. Yet, if you were named a name that came with a meaning such as, “forgotten one” that can be a meaning that can ingrain itself into your heart without you even realizing it.

There are other names that hold negative connotation to them; mother-in-law for example. I don’t know who the woman was who first gave this name a bad rap, but it’s forever the butt of jokes. And how about “step mom?” It’s very hard to overcome the publicity on that name.

It doesn’t seem like men’s names get a bad rap. No one ever cringes at a father-in-law or frowns at the mention of a stepfather.  So why us moms?

I think it’s because we just have a tendency to stick our noses where they don’t belong. Let’s face it – a mother-in-law gets a bad rap because she means well, but she just has to intrude a little.  She just can’t hold her tongue. It’s the way of the woman.

It doesn’t have to be that way, though.

I know many wonderful mother-in-laws who are an asset not a detriment to their families. (I personally have one!) I also know of people who claim to have had the most caring stepmothers ever, enter into their lives. So holding a certain title or name doesn’t have to label you for life. You can put a new meaning and connotation onto that title – and you should. Don’t let a history that comes with a name change who you are or who you can be. The true way to win the battle of a bad name is to change what the name means by living out the testimony.  It’s only a name after all, and we certainly don’t have to live up to bad press just because it simply exists! Defy the odds and prove you are different just by simply living it out. After all, a name doesn’t make you who you are – you do.

~ Dionna Sanchez is the Founder of the Emphasis On Moms Ministry. Visit the website today at http://www.EmphasisOnMoms.com

Happy First Day of School

Today is the first day of school … summer vacation is officially over. When we woke Carson this morning, Chase’s first words to him were, “Happy first day of school!” He was so excited to be going back to school, seeing his friends, getting back on a schedule.

This can be a happy day or a sad day, depending how you look at it. Chase chooses it to be a happy day!

Yesterday, our pastor was sharing a message on attitude. Our attitude affects our outlook. Our outlook affects our outcome.

There is a lot of negative in the world today. If we allow it, it can consume our thinking. And we become what we think: For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. ( Proverbs 23:7)

But Paul tells us what to focus our thoughts on:
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4:7-9)

Your choice …

Father, thank you for showing me what to focus my thoughts on. You are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy. Help me to keep my eyes and my mind on YOU!
This might not be the first day of school for me, but help me to look at today as a new day to serve you!

I love you Jesus!
In Your Name I Pray,
Amen

God’s Blessings Upon You!

Love,
Joyce

The Choices You Make Today …
Will Affect Your Tomorrow!
http://www.alifedecision.org

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass…
it’s about learning to dance in the rain!

What Truly Matters

A friend of mine’s house burned in November. Their son (who has Downs Syndrome) accidentally started the fire.  My heart has been breaking not only for the things they lost – but also for them as they deal with the knowledge of what their son accidentally did.

As I was reading a news article on the story, I saw that they had interviewed my friend’s husband about the fire. Do you know what he said? He said, “The house can be replaced, but my wife and kids can’t. I love my son more today than I did yesterday, it’s just an accident.”

I started to cry. What a great example of love and what truly matters in life.  We have things that are important to us. We hold our photographs and videos close to our heart, we have gifts that our spouses or children have given us, and we have items that may have been handed down from past generations, or that remind us of a certain place or time. All of these things hold special meaning to us; yet when it comes down to it – it is our families’ and the people in our hearts and lives that truly matter.

I know that I used to get so intense when something special of mine was broken or ruined. In the last couple of years, I have lightened up a little bit – especially when I know that it was purely accidental. I am learning that “things” as important and special as they are to me, just don’t mean as much as the people I love and care about.  How I handle a situation and whom I invest in as a person, means more to me.  If I break my child’s heart over something they ruined, all I really have are two broken things.  I’m not saying that we shouldn’t teach our children to be responsible, or even try to make restitution for something that they have broken or wrecked. I am saying that who we are and how we love each other is everything.

I want to love like my friend’s husband. I want to love that fully, that completely that nothing else can touch it. I want to be able to carry in me the ability to forgive greatly.

We often say that our families matter the most to us, but our temperaments and actions don’t often follow suit and carry out that attitude. When put to the test, would you be able to forgive so easily and love so freely at great cost to yourself?  Our Lord did.

I want to learn that kind of love.

~ Dionna Sanchez is Founder of the Emphasis On Moms Ministry at http://www.EmphasisOnMoms.com

She dedicates this article to the Campbell family.

Teach Your Children Well

We just finished up a week of Vacation Bible School. It was great! We had about 60 kids and 50 helpers, a full house each night. The theme this year was Crocodile Dock, Where Fearless Kids Shine God’s Light. Each night the kids learned a different attribute of God; God is With Us, God is Powerful, God Does What He Says He’ll Do, God Gives Us Life, and God Cares For Us.

On Saturday, the boys and I were hanging out at our neighbor’s pool. Chase was singing the theme song from VBS, I Will Not Be Afraid. He knew it word for word. It was so cute … watching him propel around the pool singing at the top of his lungs about how Jesus was always there to protect him.

Later on, we were back at home and Zeke ate something he shouldn’t have. Chase went over to reprimand him and I heard him telling Zeke that he needed to ask The Lord to forgive him and to accept Jesus into his heart so he’d live in heaven with us forever.

It was the cutest thing … Chase sharing the gospel with Zeke.

We have been studying the Book of James in our Sunday night ladies Group. James instructs us, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22)

In Matthew, Jesus tells us, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” ( Matthew 28:19,20)

I want to be like Chase … I want songs of praise to be on my lips and the message of Jesus to be on my heart.

Father thank you for giving us the opportunity to teach the kids through VBS. I am so thankful that you are with us, you are powerful, you do what you say you will do, you give us life and you care for us so very much. Thank you for instilling your Word in Chase’s heart, and all the other kids who were there. Encourage them to draw near to you Father … let them feel your presence in their day to day lives.

I love you Jesus!
In Your Name I Pray,
Amen

God Bless You!

Love,
Joyce

The Choices You Make Today …
Will Affect Your Tomorrow!
http://www.alifedecision.org

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass…
it’s about learning to dance in the rain!

Parenting Prayer Partners

Moms tend to try and travel the roads of parenting by themselves.  I think a lot of us do this because we’re afraid others will perceive us as “inept” or “failures” if we ask for help, advice, or support.

How wrong we are!

In the days of our ancestors, moms depended on one another to learn and survive!  They would congregate together to help a fellow woman in need.  But today we think we need to have it all together.  Yet everyone needs someone.  Women especially, were created for fellowship.

One thing you can do for yourself is to seek out and find another mom who can be a prayer partner with you.  Find someone whom you can relate to both spiritually and in personality.  Ask her to commit to pray for you and your family.  You will commit to pray for her and her family as well.  When you have a commitment and support system like this, it is a real bonding and growing experience.  You will be there for each other helping each other raise and guide your children in the Lord.

Keep a prayer journal for one another and record praises and milestones in each other’s lives.  You will feel encouragement and hope like never before just knowing that someone’s “got your back.”

Don’t try to fly solo anymore as a mom, wife, or woman.  It’s time to get the love and support you need and deserve.

~ Dionna Sanchez encourages moms through her website and blog – subscriber to her free monthly newsletter for moms at http://www.EmphasisOnMoms.com/newsletter.htm

Beginnings

Beginnings: the point of time or space at which anything begins, starts. The initial stage. The origin, the source.

Last night our ladies group started reading the Book of John. The first two verses begin: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. (John 1:1,2)

The first book of the Bible, Genesis starts this way: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.(Genesis 1:1)

When I started school, I began in Kindergarten. I didn’t know much at that time, I had to go through the grade levels to achieve knowledge. When I graduated from college, I had a little more learning under my belt, but the years since have continued to be a wonderful teacher … and I’m still learning each and every day.

When I came to know Jesus on a personal level, I began my journey with him. I didn’t understand all there was to know about Him, but I have spent the last nine years gleaming knowledge from studying His Word. There are still many things I don’t understand, but I’m not finished learning yet.

Sometimes in life, we want to skip the beginning, the beginning is always new, sometimes unsure; it can cause us to be uncomfortable, sometimes it might even scare us a little.

We look at others who are farther into their journey and we envy what they have, but we forget that they began at the same place we did, ‘in the beginning.’

I want to encourage you … whatever beginning today brings, embrace it – allow God to use it to fulfill His purpose for you!

Father, thank you for beginnings … thank you that each day we can wake up to a new start with you. Lord, help us to use the past to make our present better, each and every day. Begin in us a new work Jesus, for your glory.

I love you Jesus.
In Your Name I Pray,
Amen

God’s Blessings Upon You!

Love,
Joyce

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass…
it’s about learning to dance in the rain!

The Choices You Make Today …
Will Affect Your Tomorrow!
http://www.alifedecision.org

Staying Awake with Others

My eight-year-old son has been having many bad dreams lately. They often come just as he is drifting off to sleep. He will come out of his room and ask me to say the “bad dream protection prayer” again that we say each night and then sit outside his door for a little while. That simple act of my sitting there brings him comfort and eventually he does drift off into a peaceful sleep.

So many people are having a hard time right now. It seems that even in my own small circle of friends, everyone is hurting in one way or another. As one of my friends aptly phrased it, “everyone is under attack.” Unlike a child’s nightmares, these problems are not so easily solved. They might not be solvable at all. The hurts go deep. There is the pain of disease and failed relationships. There is economic pain and lost jobs. There is psychological and spiritual pain. I can fix absolutely none of these problems. Neither can any of my friends. We offer whatever assistance we can which is helpful, but this assistance is like putting a small bandage on a gaping wound. We pray and turn the problems over to God which is of utmost importance, but sometimes we still want to do more.

So, then, what can we do for others in their time of heartache and need? I’m reminded of Jesus suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane. “Then Jesus came with them to a plot of land called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, ‘Stay here while I go over there to pray.’ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee with him. And he began to feel sadness and anguish. Then he said to them, ‘My soul is sorrowful to the point of death. Wait here and stay awake with me.’ . . . He came back to the disciples and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, ‘So you had not the strength to stay awake with me for one hour?’”

Our Lord and Savior was in the midst of the greatest suffering of His life. He knew what was coming and was terrified. His humanity was at a breaking point. He knew his friends could do little to help him. He would have to face his future no matter what. The pain was not going away. Yet, the thing he desired most at that moment was to have his friends with him. It isn’t always easy to sit with someone in the midst of their pain. It isn’t easy to let the tears fall or listen to the anger and suffering, especially when we know we are powerless to help the cause. It is easy to get caught up in our own pain and feel that we don’t have the time to spend with another’s burden. Like the disciples, we may simply be tired and want to sleep. Yet, sometimes that simple act of sitting with someone and sharing in their pain can be a huge help. We may not be able to alleviate another’s suffering but we can help bear it. Like a small child who takes comfort in the simple presence of his mother, staying awake with another can be a huge help. May we all be there for each other during these difficult days.

by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur
http://spiritualwomanthoughts.blogspot.com

Help With The Hills

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

The boys were chatter boxes on the way home from the airport. They had so much to tell about their adventure in Ohio. Carson was telling me a story about riding the bike down a big hill. We don’t have hills in Naples, so this was a new experience for him. And the roads are gravel in Ohio, so that made the adventure even more of a challenge.

This particular hill he went down is huge. I was quite impressed that he had ventured down it. He shared that the trip down was pretty exciting, especially when he met a truck coming up the other way. The roads in Ohio aren’t very wide either. But once down, he had to turn around and get back up it. And that is where the real challenge began. I remember pushing my bike up that hill many times. There is no way you can ride up it, it is just too steep and too gravely.

So I said, “How did you get your bike back up that hill?” Carson isn’t very big. He weighs about 50 pounds, soaking wet. He was using my mom’s bike, I knew it had to be as big as he. “I helped him push the bike up the hill,” was Chase’s reply. There was only one bike, Carson rode, Chase walked.

When Chase saw his brother struggling to get that bike back up the hill, he helped him.

Sometimes in life we’re flying down the hills and it’s all fun, a big adventure, but then the hills appear and they can be steep and difficult and we need help getting up them.

A friend of mine found out this week she has cancer … she’s heading up a steep hill. A fellow shared with me his struggle with an addiction … he is heading up a steep hill. One of my friends called me this morning … her husband hasn’t worked in months … they are heading up a steep hill.

When we see someone struggling up the hill, let’s reach out and help.

Father, thank you for the times that we are going down the hills. Lord, help us to see the struggles of others … give us your heart to love them … to lend a helping hand.

I love you Jesus!
In Your Name I Pray,
Amen

God Bless You!
Joyce

The Choices You Make Today …
Will Affect Your Tomorrow.
http://www.alifedecision.org

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass…
it’s about learning to dance in the rain!