Twas the week after Christmas

So how are you feeling on this Monday after Christmas?? Overwhelmed with cleaning and organizing like me? Why in the world do we pack so much in during Christmas break that we are exhausted afterwards?!?! I am serious, WHY? My house is a wreck but filled with all neat things that we received for Christmas (which we are very thankful for) but what do we do with it all? I guess this isn't a very encouraging message today but it's something that is weighing on me so I needed to get it off my chest.

Do you make a new years resolution? Well I haven't spoken one out loud for the past few years but I must admit that in my head I always think weight loss, organization and be on time (my Hubby will love that one). But do I follow through? Not usually. We rush rush rush all year, smack right into Christmas then rush into the new year. Will you join me in slowing down? My husband and I came up with a plan last night to hit one room at a time and not try to tackle the whole house at one time, but it's tough to stay in one room, are any of you that way? I start cleaning or straightening one room then end up in another and after a while the whole house is in chaos... I'm REALLY going to try this one room at a time deal!

As far as the weight loss resolution, well that one is still in my head but honestly I'm depending on God to help me through it. I've asked that He change my heart towards working out and eating right and that He makes both of those things part of my normal routine, although I know it will take a lot of work on my part as well.

Being on time - well I'll put it this way, my Husband has had a watch for years that he actually wears but it says 12:15 ALL THE TIME. It's kinda funny! I got his watch repaired for Christmas and sent him on a hunt to find it. Here's the little riddle that went along with it:

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, Mommy and Abigail were sneaky as a mouse… Daddy thought all was lost but he’ll soon know that we have it all under control.
The stockings were hung, presents under the tree, Abigail and Mommy came up with a clever scheme. Daddy was out shopping while Mommy and Abigail continued their plan, they were excited with visions of Daddy figuring out their scam. Daddy arrived home and called out by name, now Mommy, now Abigail and quickly they came, to greet him at the door so he wouldn’t spoil the surprise, soon he will know that his gift had arrived. With a tree full of presents and Santa Claus too, Abigail’s gift will make Daddy shout WOOHOO! We love you Daddy and want to help you in 2010 to follow through with your resolution to be on time again and again…

So with all this said, I hope you will enter this week with a peace even if your house is a wreck like mine. Tackle one room at a time and take a deep breath as you ease into 2010! Blessings to you all during the New Year!

Clean Out Your Closet

I was cleaning out my daughter's room last year around this time and found myself COMPLETELY overwhelmed! I don't know about you but I hate sorting through clothes, toys, nick knacks or really any kind of cleaning in general. SO this particular Saturday was not my favorite. As I put stuff aside to donate, packed clothes away for our next baby, threw A LOT of junk (I'll call what it is) in the trashcan I felt refreshed and powerful. God spoke to me about the holiday season and how we need to "clean out our closet" to prepare our hearts for the season. We need to allow our hearts to receive the true meaning of the season. Thanksgiving is meant for celebrating what we are THANKFUL for, what are you thankful for? CHRISTmas is meant for celebrating Christ's birth not Santa popping in late on Christmas eve with a bag full of goodies. Although the goodies are fun and exciting we should be excited about what God did for us when He sent His one and only Son to earth for one purpose only, US!

How do we "clean out our closet"?

#1. Figure out what separates us from God. Me personally, I get separated by busyness - that's a HUGE one for me. I once heard Sheri Rose Shephard say something like this at a conference at Open Door... the devil might not be able to take away God, he might not be able to break our faith BUT he can make us busy – that’s a trick of the enemy. That is powerful to me, I get sucked in to my busy schedule so easily then there's no time for God, no time during this season to be truly thankful. Tricky enemy! So figure out what prevents you from spending time with God, get rid of whatever it is or make some changes to your schedule, learn to say NO.

#2. Stay focused on HIM. Remain in His Word, have quiet time! Romans 12:1 says Therefore I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your act of worship. 2 DO NOT CONFORM any longer to the pattern of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His GOOD, PLEASING and PERFECT WILL. Do not conform to the world friends, be transformed by His Word, accept His good, pleasing and perfect will for your life.

#3. PRAY... PRAY... PRAY!!! I think that pretty much speaks for itself!

James 4:4 says You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. HATRED toward God, wow! I personally want to be a friend of the Lord not the world, what about you!

Separate yourself from the world during this beautiful time of the year, stay focused on HIM and pray my sweet friends. I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving, CHRISTmas and New Year!

How to overcome...

I said I'd share how I overcome in my last post... since then I hit a mental block as to how I should put it into words. One of my best friends just sent these scriptures to me as encouragement. I found it very fitting to use this as my blog post as to "how I overcome". God blesses us with particular friends to help get us through difficult situations. Through His Word, His strength when we have none and His blessing of positive friends and family I overcome.

I hope these scriptures bless and encourage you as much as they did me:

Psalm 130:5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope
Psalm 147:11 the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.
Proverbs 24:14 Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.
Isaiah 40:31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Micah 7:7 But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Romans 4:18 Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, "So shall your offspring be."
Romans 5:1-5 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we[a]have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we[b] rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3Not only so, but we[c] also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
Romans 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
2 Thessalonians 2:16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope,
1 Timothy 4:10 (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.
Hebrews 11:1 [ By Faith ] Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

(Love & appreciate you Angie!)

Do you struggle??

Ok, today is a let's get real day... A fellow blogger asked me when I first started blogging what I wanted my blog to be based on, what I wanted the theme to be, well I really want this blog to be about encouragement for myself and others. A place where I can go and share God inspired thoughts and stories with my friends.

I also want it to be about honesty...SO today I need encouragement! I'm putting this out there in the hopes that some of you will see this and realize that you are not the only one with struggles and that together, with God's help, we can get through. My husband said something on Sunday that has stuck with me this week, "God does not want to hurt us". That's SO TRUE! I have gotten sucked in recently to being all about me and my struggles and what's making me sad but God does not want to hurt me, He wants to bless me. If I can stay there in my mind, I'm at ease but is that an easy place to stay? (Feel free to comment about that!)

I truly feel like the Hubbard house has been under attack, the enemy found a few windows for a sneak attack but we are shutting those windows! I'm sure some of you are curious as to what our struggles have been, well we've been dealing with the loss of our cat, Downy, who was in my life for about fifteen years. She was my girl! We all loved her very much. She was very sick for months before we had to put her to sleep but the last few weeks were awful. I'm sure some of you do not connect with animals and I understand that, but the Hubbard family does so this made for a very sad and emotional time at our house. Another BIG thing that we are dealing with right now is our infertility. I've never blogged about this but to sum our situation up, my husband and I have been trying to have another baby for a little over three years. We conceived our sweet Abigail with no trying at all, we were off birth control for three months, did what we needed to do :-) and Abigail came into the world thirty-seven weeks later. We are considered an "infertility mystery", on paper we should be able to have as many children as we want. For the last three years I've found comfort in God's plan being perfect and have said over and over that we want what God wants, it's true - we TOTALLY want what God wants. But to be honest with you, I haven't been able to find comfort in that for the past month or so. I've prayed all along that I would not be the girl who couldn't go to baby showers or be happy for friends and family that were expecting. I'm sad to report that I am kinda that girl right now. It's awful, I feel guilty for feeling this way. BUT I know that I am human and that those feelings are normal and ok to experience. I have prayed for and been there for girlfriends going through the same stage, I receive that it is ok and in my heart of hearts, I do trust that the Lord's plan is perfect. I haven't really been mad through this wait but I am in a bit of an irritated state right now. My poor hubby and daughter, they have been dealing with an ill wife/mommy recently. Please pray for me and my family!

SO... those are two big things I've been dealing with, a death and not getting my way. Very normal things for any of us to have to deal with. But it's hard isn't it?!?! Let's stop here for today, I'd love to hear what your struggles are and what helps you overcome.

The next post will be how I overcome... God is ABLE, I'll start with that!

Proud Mommy

I fell in love with my daughter the second I found out I was pregnant. I have enjoyed watching her grow from infant to toddler to now a mature little four year old young lady. I find myself being more and more proud of her each day, I hear from parents of older children that it only gets better, I look forward to it.

My daughter decided to donate her hair to Locks of Love last winter when her Daddy explained that I donated my hair to the same cause after we were married. She expressed her desire to donate her hair so we ventured down the road of long knotty hair which included many impatient moments from Mommy, Daddy and Abigail as we used the dreadful hairbrush! Bless her heart, it was tough to brush her hair after bath time when it was wet but brushing it when it was dry after a long day at daycare was nearly impossible. Let's just say it was not her favorite thing to do! She wanted to cut her hair all summer but she remained patient until we arrived at the projected ten inches needed for Locks of Love. We made that long awaited trip to the hair salon last week where the famous Mrs. Wendy who has special lollipops cut Abigail's pretty blonde hair ten inches shorter and right in front of our eyes Abigail transformed from a child to a young lady - with the cutest new do I might add! She was so excited, thrilled might be a better word! I don't know if it was the cute cut or the sugar from the candy she was eating but she was a happy little girl.

This is one of the many things that impresses me about my daughter. Her willingness and desire to share with someone in need melts my heart. I am thankful for the caring spirit God blessed my Abigail with and know He's going to use it for His glory.

Check this link out if you would like to donate your hair to a great cause...

http://www.locksoflove.org/

He Spoke

My girlfriend emailed and said she checked out my blog today and didn't see any new post... SO here's a new one... (LOVE YOU MONIKA!)

It's been a month and a half since She Speaks and I am just getting back to writing about it. Why are we so busy people?!?! Honestly, it's taken me this long to process it. I'm sure I'm not the only one that returned from that amazing weekend in awe of God's presence then walked smack dab back into the world. BUT God keeps reminding me that I need to put my thoughts on paper (so to speak)... So here it goes...

I've already shared my message from She Speaks in my earlier post, as a side note I'd like to say thanks to those that gave me feed back at She Speaks and those that posted comments. Feedback is so important, right Lynn??? Now let me share some of the neat things God did while I was at She Speaks. (I'd love for any of you readers to post a comment about some of your experiences at She Speaks if you were there or have been in the past).

I was paired up thanks to Amy Carroll with such a neat roommate that I'd never met before She Speaks but we hit it off perfectly. The first night I was there I met a neighbor from Stantonsburg, NC who became dear to my heart almost instantly. God introduced me to some of the most special women, it constantly blew my mind. I started off the weekend by participating in the early bird women's ministry session which I thoroughly enjoyed, God confirmed His call on my life to minister to women during this session. Throughout the rest of She Speaks I attended informative, encouraging, motivating and, at times, totally hysterical and emotional sessions with amazing P31 women. Lysa TerKurst shared some of the most touching details from her life, she encouraged me to let the walls down and share my heart with the audience. Micca Campbell absolutely cracked me up during her teaching, she knows how to captivate an audience that's for sure!!! I not only learned how to tell a story but also learned what colors look best on me and great stylish tips. Shari Braendel had me rolling when she lead What Not to Wear!!!

I participated in a speaker evaluation group with Lynn Cowell, a P31 speaker. It was such a great experience, nerve wracking but great! I had a migraine when I gave my testimony, sneaky attack from the enemy, but I don't think it was a train wreck, just not my best. I felt great about my speech I presented the second night. I received tones of positive feedback along with some helpful tips. I appreciate my group and Lynn so very much!

I cannot close without sharing how the Holy Spirit worked through She Speaks. Us gals were introduced to each other for a reason, no question. I have been lifted up by so many sisters I met only for a weekend, we continue to stay in touch and love one another from afar. She Speaks is way more then a conference to learn, it is a weekend of worship and a special time to meet with the Holy Spirit! The P31 Team prepared a prayer room which was amazing, they had many names of God spread throughout the room, all of our names were prayerfully placed on a name of God, mine was on Jehovah Shalom - The Lord is Peace. The scriptures listed with it were Numbers 6:22-27, Judges 6:22-24, Isaiah 9:6, Hebrews 13:20, it also stated "God defeats our enemies to bring us peace. Jesus is our prince of peace. God brings inner peace and harmony". Every woman I spoke with about this felt their name was placed exactly where it should be, I felt the same way about mine. During the closing session of She Speaks, we were asked to come up and pick a scripture at the cross. (This part really blew my mind.) I chose Proverbs 19:21 Many are the plans in a man's heart but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. This is almost exactly like what I believe is my theme verse, Jeremiah 29:11. Confirmation is SUCH A BLESSING! One of my speaker eval group partners was sitting beside me, she said her scripture was just like the one she'd spoken on earlier in the weekend. Another friend said she walked in the closing session overwhelmed with information from the weekend, then she picked her scripture that was on rest and her burden was lifted. I'm so sure every woman in that room picked the scripture placed there specifically for them!

I could go on and on about She Speaks but I'd like to close with a prayer...

Lord, I love you so much! She Speaks was such an amazing experience, thank You for providing the means for me to attend. Thank You for Your Holy Spirit Lord! Thank You for all of the P31 team and their hard work and love for You. Lord You are amazing, I am still in awe of Your presence during She Speaks. I ask a special blessing and protection over all the women that attended, please help them as they are preparing or in the midst of speaking, writing, ministering Your Name! Protect those that are in harms way when they talk about You Lord. Thank You for all my new sisters Lord! In Jesus Name ~ AMEN!

She Speaks

Ok, so I was so filled up at She Speaks that I am just now getting to a place that I can put it all into words. I'm going to start today by sharing the message I shared with my evaluation group (a big thank you to all my She Speaks sisters, I appreciated your honesty and love). So here's the message God placed on my heart to share at She Speaks and with you...

We are forgiven even when we don't wear our listening ears

Do you wear your listening ears? Do you hear God’s voice, do you take time to hear His call? Big questions, huh? Let me share with you a moment that reminded me to tighten MY listening ears, God truly does speak to us in some colorful ways!

Recently I was taking a shower & shaving my legs (which ONLY happens on the weekend so it's a BIG DEAL). My sweet 4 year old daughter came in the bathroom and said "whatcha doing mommy?". My first thought was, duh - what does it look like but instead of sarcasm I went with "taking a shower baby (in my sweet mommy voice) don't open the curtain". Ok, what do you think happened next? SHE OPENED THE CURTAIN! Side note, I do not like it when my daughter and/or husband open the shower curtain while I’m shaving because I immediately get chill pumps, then I have razor burn... ladies, you know the drill. I know it's silly but it’s a pet peeve of mine… Anyway, as soon as my daughter opened the curtain I turned into mean mommy and yelled “do you listen, where are your listening ears”, she said “I don’t know but I’m getting out of here!". I felt so bad about yelling at her, it broke my heart but she was pretty much right back to business as usual. I asked her to forgive me when I got out of the shower and she did as she always does. If only we could all be as forgiving as my sweet 4 year old!

A few days later I was still thinking about this and how badly I felt about biting my sweet girl's head off. I started thinking of new and improved mommy of the year responses. Then it dawned on me, God must want to yell at His children (ME) all the time too, I'm sure He's constantly thinking ARE YOU LISTENING, WHERE ARE YOUR LISTENING EARS?

God reminded me that He loves us even when we don't wear our listening ears. He doesn’t yell at us, instead He forgives us and with a Fatherly voice reminds us how we should listen to His desire for our life, He reminds us of His plan and how perfect it is. God's response is the correct response, mine was not!

Romans 5:8 says “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God sent His one and only Son to die for us knowing we would not wear our listening ears, Jesus has already paid the price for our lack of listening. What an amazing love He has for us! His love is never ending, it’s forgiving, it’s merciful, it’s full of grace EVEN when we don’t wear our listening ears.

I found the definition of Grace online at www.freedictionary.com which states that grace is the “Divine love and protection bestowed freely on people, the state of being protected or sanctified by the favor of God” – how awesome is it that we are PROTECTED/FORGIVEN by the blood of Jesus... which He gave FREELY even though we are not good listeners!

SO my challenge to you is to TIGHTEN YOUR LISTENING EARS (as I tell my daughter)!

Psalm 81:8 says "Hear, O my people, and I will warn you—
if you would but listen to me, O Israel!
10 says “ I am the LORD your God,
who brought you up out of Egypt.
Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.”

HE wants to fill our desires, He wants to bless us!!!
Listen to His call, hear His desire for your life, it’ll be much better than anything you come up with on your own! After all, we don't want to miss out on a blessing He has in store for us!


I'm planning to share everything God placed on my heart during She Speaks in a future post. I will say this, He taught me so much, He started a healing in me, He introduced me to many new sisters who love Him just as much as I do, He did a great work during She Speaks. He truly is AWESOME!

NOW wear those listening ears!

Heartfelt scripture and my life verse: JEREMIAH 29:11

ALL SMILES...

I am all smiles today friends... I am excited about so many different things, She Speaks ESPECIALLY, visiting w/ close friends, alone time & connecting w/ God, so many awesome things are running through my mind right now. I'm leaving in a few hours to make my way to Charlotte, NC. I CANNOT wait to see what God has in store for the 600 women attending the She Speaks conference, what am I saying... I'm ALREADY feeling His presence! He is so good! I am dying to share my speech w/ you but I won't go there just yet as I need to save it up & see what God's going to do w/ it Saturday night.

I will share my scripture though, we all need some of HIS WORD- Romans 5:8 says "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us"... yes He did friends, Christ died for us w/ NO STRINGS ATTACHED!

I want to encourage you today to hear His call, His voice. Don't miss a blessing today friends! Ok, I'm not sure where I was going w/ this blog posting... I'm pretty much just shouting JOY & happiness! That's what this post is about, JOY in JESUS!

Happy days!

Today's heartfelt scripture is above

Quick Post...

I feel led to add a quick post today about how thrilled I am to be meeting so many new sisters through She Speaks. I can't even explain how much I'm witnessing God's presence right now! To all my new friends, you have already been a blessing to me, can't wait to meet you in person!

GOD IS AWESOME!

Today's heartfelt scripture...
1 Samuel 18:1-4
1 After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. 2 From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return to his father's house. 3 And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. 4 Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt.

This makes me think of my husband, he & a friend went to CIY w/ the teens from church a few years back & became each other's "Jonathan". It was really cool to see that connection occur! Friends are so important, God certainly has a plan when He connects each of us, even if it for a season.

Blessings to all this weekend!

Sunshine

I was uplifted this morning as I drove to work w/ my daughter... we discussed what we are thankful for as the sun's rays peaked through the fog. It was beautiful, mornings like that are priceless!

Today's heartfelt scripture... Genesis 1: 1-5

The Beginning
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was [a] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.


God never ceases to amaze me, even over small things like my drive to work...

Excited

Listen, I am still trying to understand this blogging thing... As you can tell, I haven't kept up w/ it BUT as I prepare for She Speaks, I am encouraged to get into it & really understand how all this works. At the very least I'll put a post up now & again.

I have been disconnected from my Heavenly Father recently, which is nobody's fault but my own. (I'm very aware of that b/c He is ALWAYS available!) BUT I am very encrouraged this morning... As I prepare for this conference, I am filled w/ so much joy & excitement, I can hardly stand it. I am hopeful for speaking opportunities once I complete She Speaks but more than anything I am excited about seeing God work during this time of preparation & through the duration of the conference. I am already witnessing His work & His ALMIGHTY power through emails, blogs, etc... seeing/hearing from others as to how they are preparing & how God is preparing them is so neat. It has truly encouraged me today!

It's on my heart today to share that if we truly let His work flow it will be perfect. I see that not only is this situation w/ the conference but in all situations, if I would just put me aside & focus on Him everything would go much more smoothly! Why am I such a ding dong sometimes, often times, when I allow me to stop His plan from flowing?!?! Jeremiah 29:11 - My FAVORITE!!!

My brother is an addict to many things, pain killers, alcohol, who knows what else. He recenlty completed a 6 month Christian rehab program. My family was informed yesterday that he had "fallen off the wagon" & what did I do, jumped to conclusions & got all worked up... what should I have done, gotten down on my knees immediately & lifted my bro up!!! God told me in the midst of my rant that if I would be quiet & listen I might actually hear His voice. So I did & He made it very clear to me that He revealed Himself to my bro during rehab & He can - WILL - do it again! Oh praise God! I am more encouraged today, even after hearing that news about my bro. He does know the Lord & God can pick Him right back up.

I'm shutting the door to the enemy today, won't you join me?!?!

Today's heartfelt scripture... Romans 15:13