Watch Your Mouth!

      If I'm being completely honest, this topic has been heavy on my heart the past week or so. I've been a little nervous on how to write this without coming across condemning. So, I'm trusting God will use this to speak encouragement to my fellow believers in Christ, with loving correction to some and a good reminder to others! Here we go!

Exodus 20:7 English Standard Version (ESV)7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

      I want to dig deeper into this verse and what it means for us as Christians, because in this day and age God's name is thrown around as if it were just an ordinary word we would use daily. (And not in a  good way.) We are called to use His name in such a different way than how we have conformed to using it lately. It saddens me that this topic is not discussed as much in church these days and how culturally normal it has become to use His name in such an awful way, not only amongst nonbelievers but amongst our own brothers and sisters as well.

      So, what does it mean to take the Lord's name in vain? I read an amazing blog about this (you can find it here) which I learned a lot from and will be using a lot of the information I learned to help me write this blog. So, let's look at some of the ways you can violate the Third Commandment according to other verses found in His Holy Word!

1) Blasphemy, or cursing God's name.

Leviticus 24:16 English Standard Version (ESV)16 Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

According to Webster's Dictionary, blasphemy is defined as "the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God." Blasphemy can be shown in many different ways, such as saying God is unjust or cruel, burning The Bible..etc. There are many examples given that happen all around the world daily, but this is not one I see as much personally. It's very important none the less, that we are careful what we say about God, that everything we claim about Him is backed up in His word.

2) False visions and false claims to speak on God's behalf.

Jeremiah 23:25-28 English Standard Version (ESV)25 I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’ 26 How long shall there be lies in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart, 27 who think to make my people forget my name by their dreams that they tell one another, even as their fathers forgot my name for Baal? 28 Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let him who has my word speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat? declares the Lord.

When I read this I think of people who have come and gone, saying they are true prophets yet their "visions or dreams" have not come to fruition. I have actually had personal experience with this one and within the last year or so been more aware of it happening in churches all over the world. So, not only should we be careful what we're claiming, but we should be even more aware of what's being spoken to us in this manner. I know a few good Christians who claim to be prophets who actually aren't and I have learned to guard my heart and test peoples words with His word, before I believe what they are saying.


      There are a few other examples given on the other blog, and I encourage you to look into them, but I am going to stop at 3 (which I will continue after making this side note.) I believe this third one is the real reason I have written this blog, it is the MOST COMMON way God's name is used wrongly. I deal with it daily, people say it, type it, meme it, any way they can use it they do. And so, I leave you with the third way you can use God's name incorrectly. As a fellow sister in Christ, I encourage other believers to be cautious of this, because unfortunately it is very common in the church. It makes me sad to say that, but I hear it as much among believers as I do among nonbelievers. Let us read this next one and truly check our hearts and our words daily so as to shine Him in a good light, and not in a light that is unholy.

3) Using His name as a swear word.

Leviticus 19:12 English Standard Version (ESV)12 You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.

      I cannot express enough how much this hurts my heart. There are so many different uses of this one (i.e. Oh My G*d! OMG! Oh My L**d! Jesus Ch***t! Oh, G*d. L*rd!) I have heard it come from the mouths of babes, from sweet church ladies and from men during football season. Christians and nonbelievers alike toss this word around frequently. I was talking with my mom about it, and although cursing isn't something we enjoy hearing, I would rather hear a thousand curse words then hear someone use His name in this way. IT IS SO IMPORTANT that we DO NOT conform to this cultural way of using His holy and precious name. We are commanded as His people to not profane His name, and this is included. We are called to be set apart and yet this topic is not discussed in cultural christian churches because everyone says this phrase daily. We need to be aware of why we are saying it, is it in prayer or in exasperation? One of those reasons is very wrong, and we need to be careful not to cross that line.


      So please, watch your mouth! And let us watch out for one another as we speak. Let us use His name in holiness, in prayer, in praise, and lets hold each other accountable to how we speak His name in our day to day lives. His name is above ALL names, do not poison it with the conforming pattern of this world and it's ways. Set your eyes on Him and use His name with love and peace. Amen!


   

Waves of Love

    Something is on my mind tonight as I sit outside on our hotel balcony and listen to the distant waves crashing on the nearby beach. Love. I know in 2015 I did a blog about love (You can find that here if you're interested!) But I feel as life continues on, this topic is needed to be shared more and more. His word says this... "Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13
    Lately I have felt smothered by the hate I see everywhere. Whether it be walking around hearing people talk or seeing someone post something. Hate is well known, and well used by all. Hate for the outcast, hate for celebrities, hate for the rich and hate for the poor, hate for our neighbors and dare I even bring into the blog...hate for our president. We ridicule openly on social media, we gossip to our friends, we write blogs and articles and books, make videos and start rallies. And I say "we" because I'm just as guilty, no one goes unchecked.
    But God...(this has recently been my new favorite saying!) But God, He is the true example of the opposite of hate. He teaches love and grace. To welcome the outcast and pray for the celebrity, befriend the rich and give to the poor, to open our door to our neighbors and pray for guidance for our president. There are three things guaranteed to last forever, faith, hope and love. But the absolute greatest? LOVE.

    So, I challenge you to change. Change your mindset towards others, even if you disagree with them. Change what you post on social media, because trust me, we all need more uplifting posts these days. Change your prayer life! I cannot stress this one enough, let me tell you what, your life will change when you start praying for the ones you don't even want to say the names of! I write this not only to share with you, but also to write this on my heart as I type it out. In a year where hate is running rampant, dare to be a rebel and share His love instead. Watch how our world changes, with just you changing how you think towards others. Waves of love crashing on the beach, breaking down the hate one tide at a time! For without love, and without His love, we would not last forever.

"Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God." 1 John 4:7

All The Nations

It's been a little over 3 years since I have written anything on this blog. To be specific, my last mission update was 8/21/16! My mom and I had a discussion today about the mission field and what it looks like for me right now. There was a time in life where I was called to third world countries; Africa, Haiti and almost Lebanon and Syria (I signed up to go with my church in 2018 but due to a family sickness was unable to go.) Now, I feel as if my mission field is right here, right now. After all, Jesus said.... 

"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 NIV) 

...and to me that includes this nation. He doesn't limit where He is with you, He will not be with you just in church, or just on a mission field in Zimbabwe or any other third world place for that matter. No, our God says He is with us ALWAYS!

So, what is my mission field looking like these days? As most of you know my family owns a boat called "La Cigale" that we travel around the states on. This year we decided to keep our boat down in The Keys as we returned to Ohio for the summer. Before I left I felt strongly called to begin to participate in some of the different ministries going on at a church called Big Coppitt First Baptist Church. We love it with all of our hearts and have found such a great family of faith there. I began singing in the worship band and also working at an after school program with elementary schoolers who have become dear to my heart. So, when we return this fall, that will become my mission field once more! I'm beyond excited to return and spend my winter worshipping Him with some amazingly talented and humble people, as well as reach out to children in public schools who desperately need Jesus at this impressionable time of life. It is a bonus that I'm able to enjoy this ministry alongside my family, as we work to befriend those around the marinas and beyond to build relationships and shine His light to everyone. God has truly blessed us with the life we live, and we try our best to give Him all the glory for it! We will be leaving Ohio on October 11th and begin driving down to Marathon, Florida where our boat is docked. Along the way we will be stopping at quite a few different places so we will not reach the boat until November, but we are very anxious to return to our home and the amazing friendships we already have there! I hope to give more updates via facebook, and post more blogs on this site so that you can truly see what God is doing down in The Keys! Thank you all for your constant prayers and support, it really does take a village! I encourage you, if you're not feeling called to a third world country, do not be discouraged! We are all missionaries, and this entire world is our mission field. There are neighbors just around the corner who may not know Him. God can use you here in the U.S. too! So, listen to His calling on your life and know that whether it's Africa or America you are called to make disciples of ALL THE NATIONS for His glory!

Big News! (A quick update on what's going on in my life!)

If you haven't noticed, I really haven't been posting many updates or blogs on this page. I apologize to my followers, but there hasn't been much to write about. So, I've decided to catch some of you up on what is happening in my life instead. Here goes!

If you haven't heard already, I have left Children's Lifeline and returned to the states. I came home around March and have been missing Haiti on and off ever since. (I applied for another internship at another mission but the position was filled.) Since being home I've really committed my time to hanging out with friends and enjoying my family. I started a new blog, one that I post very random things on. It's called A Smackeral Of Life. If you don't get that reference I advise you to go watch some Winnie The Pooh! Life has been pretty relaxing....but wait....there's more.

I'm on a boat trip! My family left on August 15th from Sandusky Harbor Marina and have been living on our 32 foot Bayliner since that day. We are traveling The Great American Loop. For those of you wondering it looks like this...


I know, it's super huge, but I wanted to make sure you could actually see it! We will be gone a total of 10 months, and so far it has been amazing! I love traveling so much and adventuring the different places has been awesome for me! Not to mention all of the photo opportunities! I'm also in charge of a blog for our trip. So as you can see, I'm very busy adventuring and writing for my two other blogs! I will most likely not be posting on this account very much, but I encourage you to go to my other two blogs and subscribe to them. In order to subscribe find the box on each page that says "Follow By Email" enter your email, hit submit, and then look for a confirmation email sent to your email address. MAKE SURE YOU OPEN IT AND CLICK THE LINK!! I really stress that because sometimes the email pops up in your junk or it pops up and people delete it. But you HAVE to click the link in the email in order to make sure it's activated! Thank you everyone for your constant support and I look forward to writing to you on my other blogs!

www.wilsonsonthewater.blogspot.com   The blog for my family's 10 month boat trip
www.asmackeraloflife.blogspot.com      My own personal blog

After The Storm

These past couple of months I’ve been stuck on a theme. From my last two blogs you will see it begin to form. Both of them had to do with storms in our lives. The first of the two talked about what I did before my “storm,” ways I tried to avoid it, cover it up…etc. The second was what I did throughout the “storm,” suffered, worshiped, watched butterflies….etc. So now I have decided it is only fair to finish this series with a blog about what I’ve been doing after the “storm.”

If you have been following along on my blog for quite some time you’ll have noticed that recently I’ve been struggling a little bit with this thing called life. I wrote about the bump in the road I had created. How it not only affected me and God, but also three of the most important people in my life. I expressed how deep the Father’s love was for me, despite my bump. The next blog was written in the midst of my storm. I was suffering, emotionally and in all honesty, I was suffering physically as well. Eating was hard and emotions were high. I wrote out a prayer for those who were suffering, one which I whispered through tears as I typed it out. 

God has been gracious and faithful and forgiving. He has restored my joy, my love for life and my appetite! So now that I’ve gone through this rough patch what am I doing about it? Have I shrugged it off as if it didn’t happen or have I learned from it? Have I used it to witness to others in their own storms or have I kept it hidden? Here’s the answer to all of those questions that may be going through your head. 

I have seen struggle,pain, lessons learned, people hurting from my decisions, abundant tears and sleepless nights. But above everything else I have seen God’s grace, joy, guidance, forgiveness, love and His hands wrapped around me. Through it all my eyes have been opened and on Him and through it all I’ve learned so much! So have I kept this all hidden? OF COURSE NOT! Although sometimes it’s hard to share what I went through I believe God gave me my storm in order for me to witness His greatness to other people around me. I’m currently home now and will not be returning to Children’s Lifeline. It has not been easy leaving the place I love but since I have been home God has spoken to me in many different ways and has truly shown me why He guided me back home. 

So yes, I had a “storm” in my life. We all go through the phases. But the most important part is if we run from them or learn from them. I’d like to think my “storm” has made me stronger as well as strengthened my relationship with certain people in my life as well. So next time you’re going through a storm just stop and listen to Him, He is the true rainbow at the end and just as He promised He will hold you and guide you the entire time. 

Music and Butterflies

((Warning! Please excuse my spelling and grammatical errors. I did not have time to go over this!)) 

The past 2 weeks haven't been the greatest. Stress, fatigue and tears have been constant company. Besides God, some amazing friends, my boyfriend and my mom, there are two things that have gotten me through these weeks…..music and butterflies.

“Through it all, though it all my eyes are on you. And through it all, through it all it is well…..So let go my soul and trust in Him, the waves and wind still know His name.”

This song has been on repeat in my head and on my phone. It is my song of complete and pure surrender. From smiling and singing at the top of my lungs with my coworkers, to on my knees with hands held high whispering it through the tears. This song has been a comfort and constant reminder that God must have His way and I must trust Him and say, “Lord, no matter what, it is well with my soul.” It hasn't been easy but God never promised it would be, He just promised He would take care of us and never leave. 

        Butterflies. I rarely ever see them here. If I do it’s by a flower or on a tree. I love butterflies, they're reserved and quiet yet their wings call out in beautiful colors as to say, “Look at the magnificence God has blessed me with!” They are silently radiant. Now that I’ve explained that I do not see them much, I have seen 6 in the past 4 days! Not by flowers, or on trees, but right by me! I’ve gotten one huge thing out of these sightings. Hope.

I recently wrote something to someone about finding beauty in the storm. I will be the first one to tell you that right now I’m in a storm in my life. So seeing the beauty during the storm is amazing and butterflies are full of it. Did you know that butterflies symbolize transformation? Probably. It’s pretty easy to see why it would stand for that….but did you also know that butterflies represent souls?  It is depicted as such in some ancient Christian tombs and many Christian artists have used this symbolism in pictures of Jesus holding a butterfly. So lets tie those two things together using one word shall we? FAITH. A butterfly goes through a huge transformation yet the whole time trusts its cocoon. Our soul goes through huge transformations repetitively and just like the butterfly we must trust God as our cocoon. To hold us and guide us and mold us into the creation He wants us to be. To help us to eat up as much of His word as possible before the transformation so we are equipped during it and to help us spread our wings and fly after the transformation. So next time you see a butterfly let it give you this hope. That it is possible for you to hang on during the storm and in the end you will fly higher than you ever could.

These two things have really spoken to me the past two weeks and I hope if someone else is out there struggling as well that they find comfort in these words. If you’re interested the song I quoted is called “It Is Well” by Bethel Music & Kristene DiMarco. If you’re suffering hear this prayer….

Dear God, I know I am not alone in this storm. I know you are there to comfort me and to help guide me. Let the lightning flash waves of your beauty into my soul and the thunder be filled with your voice commanding me to do your will. Help me to trust your every move and to let you mold me into the creation you want me to be. Help me to say that through it all it is well with my soul. Amen.

"How Deep The Father's Love For Us"

Have you ever hit a bump in the road? Not just a small little rock, or a slight dip, but a HUGE bump? One that was so big you had to slow down to almost a complete stop in order to get over it? Let me ask you this…. have you ever hit a bump on your spiritual road to Christ? I hit one recently, I wasn’t ready for how big it would be. In fact, I saw it coming but I tried to avoid it by taking detours. In doing so I only made the bump bigger. Bumps are scary, they literally rock your world and most of the time are bigger than they seem. Sometimes you see them coming and other times you don’t. We all have bumps in our road but God has something even better. Love.

“How deep the Father’s love for us, how vast beyond all measure. That He should give His only son, to make a wretch His treasure.” 

I’m going to let you in on a little secret….you can’t tell anyone okay? Move a little closer, make sure no one is reading over your shoulder. Are you ready? …….most bumps in the road are created by…….YOU! Shocking right? I know I was surprised when this truth slammed me in the face. Now, before I get the attention of you analytical people who will say “Actually they are created by sin, meaning they’re from Satan himself.” This is correct, but did you know that God granted you choice? God does not force anyone to follow Him, it is a choice you must make in your heart and in turn proclaim publicly. So, without being too technical lets continue our chat. In order to explain this with depth I’m going to tell a little bit about my bump, without disclosing what exactly it was.

My bump was self created. Something I chose to do. Something my sinful self wanted to do. I created this bump after looking at Satan’s temptation for me and failing to say no. That was step one in the making of my bump in the road. The second step was trying to cover it up. I didn’t want to see the bump I created, and I definitely didn’t want anyone else to see it either. Little did I know, until after the fact, that I wasn’t actually covering my bump. I was making it bigger. The third step were the detours I took. I was ready to avoid my bump at all costs. I didn’t want anyone to notice it and tell me, so I swerved left and right. I took back ways and front ways and side ways….you get the point. In all honesty it took me farther away from the bump. I didn't hit it as soon, but as I was cruising along my side roads other things crossed its path and made it even bigger. 

By the time I came face to face with my bump it was HUGE. I knew it wouldn’t just effect me, it was now going to effect some of the people I care for most in this world. But, I couldn’t turn back. So I stopped. I literally pulled over and began to speak with God. I pleaded and begged for Him to remove the bump, to forgive me for the wickedness I had created in my life and others. And amidst the sobs I heard Him whisper this sweet melody….. 

“It was my sin that held Him there, until it was accomplished. His dying breathe has brought me life, I know that it is finished.”

HIS DYING BREATHE HAS BROUGHT ME LIFE……. Take in the depth of those words! How deep His love is for us! Even as we continue to create our bumps, try to avoid them and make them bigger. The end of my bump story goes like this….. 

There I was, stopped on the road, facing my bump an dreading how deep it was going to be. But, I had something else to do. I had to confess to others about my bump. And so, I did. I talked to the three most important people in my life and told them about the bump in the road that I had caused. They prayed for me, they looked into their own feelings, they read the Bible and then they all pulled up beside me on the road. So at this point it was me, God and three others. We all got ready to go and stepped towards the bump. But, you know what happened? I’m not going to tell you…..HA! Sorry! Okay, I'm kidding I will finish it for the sake of your sanity. I got over my bump...but not alone. I made it with God carrying me and those three people holding my hand. It is possible, especially when you have an amazing, merciful, graceful God on your side! So yes, I sin, I fail, I’m not perfect, I fall short, I create bumps….HUGE bumps, but……

“How deep the Father’s love for us, how vast beyond all measure. That He should give His only son, to make a wretch His treasure…………It was my sin that held Him there, until it was accomplished. His dying breath has brought me life, I know that it is finished.”

AMEN!!!!