Wordless Wednesday

My baby has gone wild!!!

Influential Women: Living to Glorify

There are people we come in contact with that make us want to be a better person. They plant seeds in us, they influence us and they simply model a life we want to live. From a very young age, my aunt Lynette/my momma's best friend, has been that to me. Although her life wasn't always easy, she showed me the joy that Jesus brings. Through trials and tribulations, I watched my aunt rejoice. In good times, I saw her praise Him. It is a life we should all seek to live, one serving and honoring Jesus. There was always something in my auntie that I wanted. I now know the joy, that is Jesus Christ in me. I only hope that my life models Christ half as much as she has modeled Him to me.

I am so excited to share her with you today!

The saying, “With age comes wisdom” may be partially true. I do know that staying the course through the years with Christ most definitely brings spiritual maturity which invites wisdom. I’ve learned that walking closely with Him, tucking into Him, allowing Him full and abandoned access causes Him to live lavishly in us so that He can be glorified.

When asked to write about my relationship with Jesus I thought to myself,
“Well, that’s pretty easy because of Him.” As difficult as I have made it during some seasons of life, He is always full of wisdom and brings me back to one simple truth, Himself.

Try as I might I cannot seem to dissolve this union with Him. Oh I don’t mean I’m out whoopin’ it up trying to saturate myself with sin or run from His presence. I mean that no matter where I have roamed, whatever geographical, emotional, or spiritual “place” I have put myself, Jesus is ever faithful to direct or if need be, re~direct my path. He never leaves me to myself, but always gives freely what I need.


What is really perplexing is that He ever came to live in me at all. I mean really, who wants the wretched, dreary things of the world? Who wants those that make a habit out of messing up time and time again? Jesus does! He’s taught me that through Him I don’t have to live in habitual sin. In fact, we don’t have to live in sin at all. It really is true that He saves to the uttermost and that He uses the simple things, of THAT I am living proof.

What I suppose I’ve come to understand is simply this:

We make a choice to believe while allowing Him to lead the way. Once I made the choice to believe I was really moved to open my Bible and began not to just read it but to study it. Through prayer, the Spirit, mentors He placed in my life, and actively reading my Bible I grew and never stopped. I’m still growing. As I seek Him out I continually find an ever merciful Lord who desires to magnify Himself through each of us who will believe.

He has proven to me that He is good all of the time. When seasons are rough, rocky, and questionable at best, He stays the course faithful and unwavering. He has stood the test of time and it’s easier to just trust Him in all things today. Therefore, no matter the season, whatever the storm, or however sunny the outlook I choose to serve Him with the life He has given me by leading Bible studies for women, visiting orphans and widows and simply obeying Him. Jesus is easy to serve and worthy to be trusted.
- Lynette Warren

Isn't she just awesome? Can you believe this woman does not have a blog of her own...yet. I am working on her and will pass on links when I get her started :)

Influential Women: Fellowship

When recently asked what the most important/influential piece in my walk had been, the answer came easily. Fellowship and uplifting individuals. Don't get me wrong, without prayer and all the fundamentals, I would be lost, literally. However, when it came to establishing my faith, I could not have got where I am without time with friends in fellowship. When I first came to know God, I fell away time and time again. What made it stick this time? I believe it had a lot to do with people around me lifting me, praying WITH me and keeping me accountable. From the beginning of my steadfast walk with the Lord, I have been lifted up by someone y'all might already know, if you don't, get to know her :)


Hi Yo!
Nicole from OliveBlue, here!
Kristen asked me to stop by and leave a few words on fellowship. I jumped at the chance to post on her blog, I mean common, she is just amazing. Love me some RockABow.

Kristen and I have known each other for about 7 years now. My husband was in their wedding and they got married the weekend before we did. We even bought the same wedding dress! Not meaning to, of course, and don't worry it was rectified with little to no hair pulling! Her husband was one of my husband's first friends he made when his family moved to the area. Which leads me to the topic of fellowship. I define fellowship as surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals, who enjoy each others company.

Kristen and I have become really great friends, we are both full-fledged Christians, Mommys, handmade business owners, and obsessive about fabric. Like minded, I think so! I value Kristen in my life. I run to her for advise, a shoulder, when I have good news, a funny story or just need to hang out. I want to be around her because she builds me up, she encourages me, she speaks truth to me and we have SO MUCH FUN together. This is true fellowship.

While we were at a conference back in April we happened to come across a group of ladies that we instantly connected with. We spent the whole weekend together, eating, laughing, learning, laughing, telling stories, eating, eating, staying up SUPER late and genuinely enjoying one another. We all value the same things in life, and we all have handmade businesses. We have all stayed in contact and are even planning a craft retreat together. Another example of true fellowship and networking.

I want you to think about how you present yourself to those you meet? Are you a friend who gives as much as you get from your friends? Do you treat others how you would like to be treated? We won't always run into people we agree with or enjoy being around, but in the end you can only control YOU. It's still worth it to put yourself out there and meet other, like-minded people. I want to encourage you to leave comments on blogs, talk to someone on twitter, go to a conference, make connections. If you don't have a crafty bone in your body, find a mommy group to fellowship with, or serve at church to meet other people.

Wherever you are in life, it's important to have friends that know YOU and encourage you. It's just as important for you to be that friend to someone else.

Without friends like Nicole, I don't know if I would be standing as firmly as I am now. If you don't already have them, I encourage you to find some friends who will lift you up and hold you accountable. It had been so detrimental to me.

I also encourage you to go check out Nicole's blog

Influential Women: Power of Prayer

Although I did not grow up knowing or trusting in God, His hand in my life was obvious. I was protected from so much. I was directed down a path that ended up right at His feet. There is no doubt in my mind that I ended up where I did because of the prayers of many people. One of those people being my mother in law, Kim Murphy. She is a blessing to have as a mother in law and an amazing woman of prayer. Take a minute to get to know her...

I am a woman who desires to be effective in things that really matter. As a child, I was given a principal that has carried me through my journey as a person pursuing this goal. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and He will direct your path. Acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will make your path straight!" Learning how to trust in the Lord is an hour by hour, minute by minute effort on my part.

As a child, waking up to get ready for school, I could always count on my mother awake and kneeling beside the sofa, praying. To this day, that model of prayer has been a "calling" in my daily routine. I wish I could say there was the same consistency in my prayer life throughout the years but I cannot. Instead the reality of taking the time to pray for my children and their future spouse is a commitment in my life. It is a hope and maybe even a greater purpose for others.

I remember when our son introduced us to Kristen and later heard her of her love for Jesus. Oh, what a delight she is in my life. Steven was wise to ask her to marry him. There is a joy as I see the commitment she has in raising their children with a love for God and others. Now I can see clearly the powerful, effective work of my mother's prayers being answered. Truly, her influence as a woman who depends on His good work is a powerful legacy.

Today, I desire even more to be a person of effective purpose in my daily life. To continue as one who talks to God and cares for others. I am blessed and grateful to know that Kristen is a woman of prayer and conviction. Walking through life, "Trusting in the Lord with all of our heart..."

Amazing, right? To hear more from her, visit her blog.

Toddler Talk Tuesday

Coming up: Influential Women

Everyday, I strive to be a better person. A better Christian, more like Christ. Everyday I strive to do what I think He would do. Everyday, I fall short. I fail at living like Him.

I am not trying to get you to comfort me or lift me up. This is a truth in life. We will all fall short of the glory of God. BUT we should never stop striving.

This week, I have something amazing in store for you all.

There are women in my life, that when things get tough or when I feel like I CANNOT do it, That my sin is too big or no human is capable of living for Jesus, these women are there to model for me.

Whether I need to call on a friend to stand by my side, someone to pray for me or simply someone who has been through it and can model a righteous life before me, they are there.

This week, a few of those women are here! Are you excited? You should be.

There will be 3, maybe 4 women who have been extremely influential in my walk and my faith. They will be here to share. You are going to love it. So come back on Wednesday (since Toddler Talk is Tuesday) and hear/read what they have to say.

You will be moved, inspired and uplifted. Trust me. You will love these women.

My loss - My reaction

Go HERE to read the 1st part of this.

I couldn't pull myself out of bed for weeks. Did I really lose my baby? Was he/she really gone? I didn't want to face the world. I didn't want to see the people who shared in the joy of our recently announced pregnancy. I wanted to be alone, in silence.

I got tons of phone calls, people telling me it wasn't my fault. I 'knew' it was. Whether I did something wrong or my stupid body just couldn't carry my baby properly, it was my fault. I know better now, at least most of the time.

I got a call from a close friend, telling me not to blame God. What nerve! I never blamed God. In fact, I had never depended on Him more. I put my faith in Him to get through it all, I knew I could not get past this time without Him. I cannot tell you how many times I prayed, how many hours were spent with him in prayer or silence, listening for Him to tell me what to do next, how to use this for His glory. How the death of my unborn baby could result in glory was beyond me but I knew that He had a plan. I still don't know His plan but I cling daily to the hope that He will use that precious baby for good somehow.

Although the phone call made me beyond angry, it made me think. My husband and I were the youth leaders at our church. If this one person thought I was blaming God, what was everyone else thinking. After a few weeks at home, I decided I needed to go to church and face the crowd.

I got all the courtesy hugs and sympathetic words. I cannot tell you how many people told me stories of their own miscarriages and pointed to their now healthy children. Or how many people told me that I would be okay and I would have plenty of babies. These words did not comfort me. I wasn't worried about future babies, I knew they would come. I wanted the baby I lost, I wanted that baby's life to be recognized. I wanted that baby's death to be mourned.

Before church even began, I ducked into the office to hide. The church secretary was there, we ditched service and hung out in the office until everyone had left the building. I snuck out of the building and went back to my cave. I stayed there for another month.

I had to get back to work. We were struggling to pay our bills. My time off had put us into debt, not to mention our medical bills. We weren't trying for a baby, we didn't have insurance and I didn't qualify for any of the emergency medical care. We are still paying off debt acquired in that time. We had to move out of our apartment. We stayed with my grandma for a few months after that, trying to get back on our feet financially.

I had to re-enter the world. I had been hiding for too long. I was getting lost in my sorrow. Although I needed the silence, I would not recommend anyone dealing with loss being alone as much as I was. Going back to reality was tough but I managed.

I still struggle. The past few weeks have been extremely hard. This Halloween will mark 5 years of my pregnancy loss, my child's death. In my moments of weakness, I have had people say things like "you were only 3 months pregnant" "At least you weren't further along" I encourage you, to NEVER use these words. A life is a life. Please do not belittle peoples feelings or loss. Do no get me wrong, this is not to say that it wouldn't have been more devastating if I were further along or even more so if I had actually held my baby. Simply that the place and stage I was in was already bad enough. Comparisons were/are NOT needed.

I'm not sure why I am feeling the need to share this all with you or why I hadn't already. I don't know what it will make you think or feel. I hope that in some way this will help you to understand me and other mommys like me better. If you have had a loss of your own, I hope in some way I can encourage you or we can encourage eachother. Like I said, I'm not sure of the purpose of any of this, all I know is that God will use it. Somehow, He will use our circumstances, even the worse of them.