Stepping Up

What?  What is Stepping Up you ask?  Well, I'm SO excited to tell you all about it!  Stepping Up is our next Beth Moore Bible study.  This is the third study we have done and if you have done any of these before you know how good they are.  If you haven't....  will you believe me if I tell you that they are life changing!  (If I add a ton of !!!!!! will you believe me more?)

When I moved to North Webster, I was missing my old church and friends, and the Discipleship class I had been a part of.  A girlfriend kept recommending that I try a Beth Moore study.  She said it would be exactly what I wanted... in depth Bible study and if I did it in a group a chance to connect with some ladies in my area.   Isn't is great how God knows just what we need and then gives it to us at the right time?  I have grown closer to my heavenly Father and am so much stronger at actually believing what I read in His word as truth in my life.  And I can let you know that I have met some fabulous, loving, fun, (funny too!), Godly women who have become so important in my life.   Praise God- He knows the plans He has for us!!

If you are looking for a chance to connect with God, to learn more from His word, to find out more about who He is and how much He LOVES you, then please join us for Stepping Up.  We will be meeting on Tuesdays from 6:30-8:30 at the North Webster United Methodist Church September 8th-October 27th.  The cost is $16 for a member book.  We would LOVE for you to join us.  

If you are interested in being a part of Stepping Up, please send us an email, or pick up a registration form in our church lobby.  We'd like to have all registrations by August 23rd.

If I haven't said enough... here is an excerpt from the Lifeway website describing the study...  Enjoy!

Stepping Up: A Journey Through the Psalms of Ascent by Beth Moore is an in-depth look at 15 Psalms. Just as a song or poem can express feelings of fear, doubt, hope, and joy, these 15 psalms model how study participants can voice their own petitions and praises to our God, who is always available and ready to hear us. Explore the major feasts of Israel and journey with Beth through Psalms 120-134 in this 7-session study. Themes such as unity, joy and gratitude, redemption, repentance, the power of blessings, facing ridicule, and more are explored in detail. Modern-day believers can learn much from these treasured Psalms in their journey toward greater intimacy with God.

GIVE-AWAY RESULTS

The winner of the first (but definitely not last) GLOWministry blog Give-Away is Angie!!!!

Thanks to each of you who left a comment! I know I love reading all of your favorite worship songs, each time I said to myself "Yep, that's a good one too!" We will be doing another drawing...sometime! I think they will just pop up here and there so keep your eyes on the blog!

Angie, CONGRATS! Could you please send your address to our email address? We will get your prize to you as quickly as possible!

God Bless!

Oh, How He Loves Us

I just dropped my kids off at my in-laws house. They are taking them both on a three day excursion to a local amusement park/waterpark. When they first asked me about doing this trip, I said, "Sure! Wonderful! They will have a great time!" (Thinking to myself, three days with no children!! Wooo HOO! Just think of all of the stuff I will get done!)

Well, after dropping them off, I am a bit anxious. In my head I know they will be fine. My in-laws are responsible people, have taken care of my kids so many times, and love them to pieces. But in my heart, I am worried. I am a worrier, I admit. Even though I have come a long way in laying down my "worrying" and handing it over to God, my nature is to mull things over in my mind, creating scenarios that could happen. Does this sound familiar to any of you? I think of all the things that could possibly go wrong and how I might prevent them from happening. I think I overwhelmed my mother-in-law with all of my instructions and explanation of what I packed for them. (Did I mention that I have a bit of a control issue as well?)

So when I got home, I prayed. I prayed for their safety. I prayed for good hygiene and healthy food. I prayed that no one gets lost or sick or hurt in a freak accident. But ultimately, I prayed for God to calm my anxious heart & handed my children over to His care, knowing that He has it all under control. I heard a devotional piece on the radio today that spoke about handing over our worries to God and trusting Him for our lives and the lives of our loved ones. The speaker said our worrying does no good! It does not add one single hour to our lives. It will not change what God's plan is for us. When I worry, I try to remind myself that it really is an act of sin against God. I am showing lack of faith and trust in my creator and my redeemer.

On the way home from dropping off the kids, I heard David Crowder's newest song, "How He Loves Us" and it reminded me that nothing in this world can overpower God's love for me and His love for my children. Not even my own weaknesses of worry and control. He knows I struggle with these faults and He loves me like crazy anyway.

What can you hand over to God?

"Humble yourselves under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." 1 Peter 5:6-7

And the winner is...

Who doesn't love to win something? I know I do, if you have ever read my personal blog you would know that I am a bit of a radio contest junkie! So here's the scoop, leave a comment on this blog by Monday at Noon (EST)...We will then put those names into a drawing and choose a winner for an awesome prize. We want this blog to bless you in so many ways. God wants us to support each other and be a body of Christ that is linked together in intimate and real ways. I am not sure you realize how much we love you and appreciate who you are! Ok Ok Ok enough rambing right --- What's the prize you ask? Take a look below! How exciting! I wish I could win!

Your own copy of Me, Myself and Lies by Jennifer Rothschild. I haven't read this book but it's recommended by Beth Moore. And if you haven't caught on....WE LOVE HER! I would pretty much read anything she told me to! You will love it and be blessed by it I am sure!


And because we want you to know that you are beautiful! A Vera Bradley make - up bag....I don't know if this is the right bag because my mom got it and I can't call and ask her (cause she's at VBS...) and I don't know if it's the right print, it's just my favorite one. So even though it may not look like this, it will be pretty and you will love it!

So comment away ladies...let's see, a topic...beyond your name and where you are from, let us know what your favorite worship song is and why! I can't wait to see who wins! Good luck!

VBS!! We're at Camp E.D.G.E.!!!

This week we've been having Vacation Bible School at our church. It has been a great week! I have been a part of VBS since my kidds were little. I can remember some of my favorite themes and how we transformed the church into a different place to help the kidds learn about Jesus. I love how the writers tie crafts, games, songs, etc together with 5 bible stories and it makes the week so exciting. I used to love when we would get the new packet which is usually in a neat can or box with really cool pictures. It is awesome to watch the kids and teachers get involved in whatever the theme is!! One of my first favorites was when we were in heaven. We had twinkly lights everywhere and one of the sayings was 'if you like earth, wait til you get to heaven.' One year we had a giant volcano; one year a circus; one year we were underwater with fish, etc; one year we had a giant cactus pinata; and one of my favorites was when they carted in loads of sand and we had a giant beach. I love it!!!

This year is Camp E.D.G.E. where we Experience & Discover God Everywhere. It has been about extreme sports which I think the kidds think are really cool, especially the bigger kidds. We have the church looking like a camp with tents, campfires, coolers, and folding chairs. We even have a canoe where the kneeling benches usually are and it looks really neat. They've had some fun crafts and snacks that tie into that theme. I wonder sometimes if most of them even realize how it all goes together, probably not. Oh well, we plant the seeds...God will do the rest!!

I'm reminded of the story in the New Testament where Jesus calls the children to him to bless them saying, 'Let the children come unto me, do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these'. They all believe so willingly and get so excited about everything they are learning. We need to have a faith just like them!!

Maybe we need to have VBS for adults. We get so tied up in our day to day tasks and decisions which I know are important but we forget about so many other important things for God. We need to have our own personal VBS each day so that we are spending time with God daily and then our other important things will all fall into place. Let me tell you, I need to hear and heed my own message. Maybe that's why I love VBS so much because it brings me back to where I know I need to be even if only for that week.

Hey, gotta go - finishing up the sit-upons we are making today. I love VBS!

Let us pray...Dear God, I praise and thank you for this week we have had with these little ones. I pray we have touched their hearts for you and encouraged them and ourselves to follow you each day. Thank you for VBS - help us to see how important it is to take that time each day to ground ourselves and our busy lives in You!!! In Jesus name, AMEN

In Prep for Tomorrow

ok!  Here is another participation blog!  In preparation for tomorrow- Thankful Thursday...  we want to hear from you!  Please let us know what you are thankful for.

I'm off to Women of Faith this weekend and I'm SO thankful for this opportunity to be with my best friends and also for a time of refreshment and learning.  And I'm thankful for a wonderful hubby who willingly watches our daughter when things like this come up.

What are you thankful for?

Stay tuned for our first giveaway!!!!

Camp Adventure

I LOVE CAMP!!!! It is one of my most favorite places to be....and this year was no different. I was blessed with an amazing cabin of 12 girls, an awesome co-counselor, a fantastic Home in the Woods partner, and revisiting friends from last summer. It was a week full of fun, rain, swimming, adventures, laughs, tears, lack of sleep, walking, walking, and more walking.

I love camp for SO many reasons. This year though, I experienced something new at camp....LOVE.

For any of you who have followed my story either on here or my personal blog, you know how much I struggle to truly experience love. God reminded me just how much he does love me at CA this year. The crazy part of it is that I went to camp ready to serve and make it a great week for the campers....not expecting that God was going to stir me up so much.

I don't think I will ever be fully prepared for the way God works or the moments HE chooses to teach me more about him. He tends to use the moments when I'm not "expecting" him to dig at me that He does his best work. I truly think he uses those unexpecting moments because I am not focused on me - I'm focused on him and his guidance. Oh, how I long to be like that more and more. I long to get out of my way so that God can do his work....He's super GREAT at what he does.

Thanks Jesus for showing up unexpectedly.