Loves Like a Hurricane..

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I pray that if you have jealousy in your life, let it go. Give it over to God and let Him know that you love Him and let Him teach you what it looks like to have a holy jealousy. Jealousy if rooted in flesh will rip you apart and tear apart your relationships. Let God show you how much you are worth.Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame (Song of Songs 8:6, NIV).

Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame (Song of Songs 8:6, NIV).

God is a jealous God.

The root idea in the Old Testament word jealous is to become intensely red, referring to the way our face changes color with rising emotion when something or someone very dear to us is threatened. Both the Old and New Testament words for jealousy are translated “zeal.”

The definition for zealous is: fervent, dedicated, passionate, or devoted.

In other words, being jealous and being zealous is basically the same thing in the Bible. God is zealous – eager about protecting what is precious to Him. It’s the kind of jealousy that compels God to relentlessly pursue each one of us, no matter how we try to evade Him with our indifferent attitude or our propensity for sin.

I let jealousy take me over sometimes and no it's not the good kind described in the Bible. My jealousy is one that almost ripped apart my marriage in the early years. I was so afraid that if Buck went somewhere without me, even with guy friends that I was missing something, that maybe he wouldn't come back, that he would see that being married wasn't all it was cracked up to be. I saw myself very replaceable and didn't know why anyone would really want to stick around when the going got tough. I was passionate about my marriage and devoted, but in the wrong way. My jealousy didn't have trust in it. My jealousy was of flesh not of God. Something else that is bad about this story is that all of this came to the surface while we were away on missionary training...bad timing huh? Here we are supposed to be all "Godly" setting the example of what it means to have a Godly marriage and "going out into all the world to tell others about Christ," and I'm here yelling, having fits over my husband having "one on one" time with his leader at this training. Listen folks this was bad...I even was so mad that I told him I would pack my bags and be waiting at the courthouse when he got home (side note we are in Alberta Canada at this time). Long story short a teacher that we had at the time was a life changer for us and our marriage. The Lord gave him insight onto what was going on and called us in to talk with us and really helped me work through some very deep rooted problems in my heart.

So what is the point of all of this? Do I still get jealous at times? Oh yeah....I get jealous with Buck, with my friendships, etc. Does it still cause arguments? Yeah, but now I see it and I have a choice to make, do I want to dwell on it and let it rip me apart along with my relationships, or do I wanna grow and realize that God has me?

God is a jealous God, but His jealousy is Holy. He fights for us. But in that fighting for us He makes us feel loved, accepted, and worth the fight. He is so jealous for us that He died for us, and in that dying He was still pursuing people when He told the Father to forgive the people that were hanging Him on the cross because they knew not what they were doing, and also told the thief on the cross that He would see him in paradise.

So that is my little confession for the day.  I pray that if you have jealousy in your life, let it go. Give it over to God and let Him know that you love Him and let Him teach you what it looks like to have a holy jealousy. Jealousy if rooted in flesh will rip you apart and tear apart your relationships. Let God show you how much you are worth.

Vote for who? Vote for What?

So you are all ready to vote for that "change" and this year it seems there are those thinking the next great leader is on their way and then there are others (like me) where the blank ballot sadly looks more enticing than any candidate. Either way I believe we can all learn some things from the wisdom shared by Andy Stanley. 

• Put Your faith ahead of your politics. Christ follower first, Dem/Rep second.
• We can disagree on whats best for people but we can't disagree that whats best for people is whats best.
• Whats best for our neighbor is really whats best.
• Four questions to consider and asked when discussing the election
• What led you to that view?
• Have you always held that view?
• Have you met Him/Her?
• I get the most of my information from the media how about you?

* We are both marginally informed and both probably wrong and dont know what we're talking 
   about.
   All we know is what we are told. 

Let your opinion be known, argue your point BUT never make a point at the expense of influence. And Never jeopardize a relationship. 

Life Means So Much

 Death.

      Something we all have in common and that most think they can beat. When some think of the word death fear grip them. For others tragic memories of how it came, others how it was a blessing, and others anger. For me I've had one person that I loved pass away, my grandfather and it was a blessing when the Lord took him because he was suffering. But in the moment I got the phone call numerous emotions flooded my soul because my flesh and spirit were battling each other. See death was never supposed to be something we experience. So when someone dies our earthly thoughts take over. Our spirits however if the loved one was a child of God, takes over and it makes us yearn for our heavenly home. Yes we miss them, still cry over them, but we know they are finally in perfection, what we were made for. See when I die I know I will finally get to stand before my loving heavenly Father and see everything in His perspective. I have a goal and that goal is to hear Him say, "well done my good and faithful servant." So my life has purpose. For those of you that aren't a child of God, what's your purpose? What are you living for? If I die and I'm wrong what did I lose? What did I waste? Nothing. But if you are wrong you are risking eternity. When we take a breath and exhale, we are not guaranteed the next inhale. So yes death stinks, takes away some loved ones before we are ready to give them up, but if they are a child of God let your spirit take over and rejoice that they are in perfection. They are finally home. They made the journey. We are just passing by here. So my prayer is that you will get right with Christ. Live with a purpose. Eternity is in the balance. Death has no favorites...no age limit. Live with eternity in mind.

Welcome Back Back Beautiful Ache

The world is poor because her fortune is buried in the sky and all her treasure maps are of the earth-Calvin Miller
 After a long hiatus I decided to return to writing blogs with the help of my better half. Within the last year or so she has come across the gift of words/writing which has been her expressing her heart on Facebook. With this we hope it leads to interaction among the readers and the bloggers, and be an encouragement through this walk of life that is a "Beautiful Ache". My hope is for the most part this blog will offer more than mere words but will reassure one another its okay not to have the answers when the ache comes our way. Personally I've been "lost" much of the time with the treasure maps in my hands. Grumbling, complaining has found its way to the depths of my heart when I truly have so much to be thankful for.  So my hope is as our thoughts are expressed here, we realize there's only one true fortune. And with the fortune that we do have here on this side of Heaven we have been blessed to bless others as we walk in this Beautiful Ache.

The Explicit Gospel

For whatever reason you are checking out this blog take some time and listen to Matt Chandler explain the Explicit Gospel...

Merry Christmas!!

MY Precious Etch-a-Sketch

      Always wanting more and more is never enough. Nothing makes us want something more than your neighbor, family or friend getting something new. A car, house, phone laptop. Admit it soon as you see the latest greatest laptop or ipad you look down at yours and realize you are now a proud of owner of a Etch a Sketch. Some of us get so consume by our wants its like "Smeagol" now is living through us "my precious". But like with him many times once we get something we have wanted so long we wish to be free of it. I know its not just me with the "case of the wants" from a 7 course meal at Golden Corral  when its about 2am (why is legal to show restaurant commercial after hours) to seeing others having things or going on vacations.

The Word clearly states our problem
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? ² You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

I would like to think, believe that I just want to be content with my walk with God. And if anything just give me Wisdom to live my days as Solomon requested. But again that thought doesn't hold water when a want is before me, not a need but a want. These wants are usually enjoyed for a period of time like a child with a Christmas toy. I will soon be "needing another want". And as for the state of contentment, that changes monthly if not weekly when bills come our way or the billion dollar lottery is advertised and you realize you have a better chance of finding Bigfoot in your backyard. But hey maybe God is going to grace you this one time with this "jackpot"

And of course we promise to use the majority of the winnings to make the world a better place. And use the money wisely. Sure we may suck at it now and be in debt and spend more on self than others but that will change when we have millions (See: sarcasm). Just a note to self: God does indeed bless us and that is to be a blessing to others.
So this issue comes more alive to me during the holiday season when we turn Thanksgiving day into a brawl for a new TV or toy. And for my wife and I we have a sons birthday to celebrate just a week before Christmas. We have discuss how to go about this and one suggestion was to buy for him only on his birthday and very little or nothing on Christmas so he can be taught the real reason for Christmas and buy for others who have little or nothing. The problem with that is between family and friends he may get "everything and then some" for his birthday and he wouldn't even realize he didn't get gifts for Christmas.                                               
God this is a struggle for most of us and it shouldn't be. You indeed have place before us an offering of the most precious gift in the world. And yet whenever we find ourselves wanting more its saying that Your gift does not satisfy. This time of year may our hearts truly look to you and may others see in us the contentment that this world could never offer but found only
Two things I ask of you, O Lord; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches,but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. - Proverbs 30:7-9