M2C Monday

pic from HERE

okay, i have had a WEEK! i am sorry to say i will not have a M2C post today! BUT....

i am going to my doctor as another step in the "getting healthy physically" side of thing. Hoping to have my cholesterol & iron profiles done. then to talk about a healthy goal weight (which he told me before was 150, but i was not ready to accept that and we compromised at 165). I am ready to go "there" now.

I am also going to get a solid weight! my scale gets switched as it is analog, and my kids like to play with it. So, i will get a good weigh-in tomorrow. ACK!!!!

i have been turning to God more and more over food or other things... Glory to His name!!

How was your week? If you are reading this, i would love to hear from you :)

Fridays with Frances

an entry from Opened Treasures (posted this last year):

Our Lips For Him

The lips of the righteous feed many...The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable.

   Proverbs 10:21, 32

The days are past forever when we said, "Our lips are our own." Now we know that they are not our own. And yet how many of my readers often have the miserable consciousness that they have "spoken unadvisedly with their lips!" How many pray, "Keep the door of my lips,"when the very last thing they think of expecting is that they will be kept! They deliberately make up their minds that hasty word, or foolish words, or exaggerated words, according to their respective temptations, must and will slip out of that door, and that it can't be helped. The extent of the real meaning of their prayer was merely that not quite so many might slip out. As their faith went no farther, the answer went no farther, and so the door was not kept. Do let us look the matter straight in the face. Either we have committed our lips to our Lord, or we have not. This question must be settled first. If not, oh, do not let another hour pass! Take them to Jesus, and ask Him to take them. But when you have committed them to Him, it comes to this--is He able or is He not able to keep that which you have committed to Him? If He is not able, of course you may as well give up at once, for your own experience has abundantly proved that you are not able, so there is no help for you. But if He is able--nay, thank God there is no if on this side!--say, rather, as He is able, where was this inevitable necessity of perpetual failure? You have been fancying yourself virtually doomed and fated to it, and therefore you have gone on in it, while all the time His arm was not shortened that it could not save, but you have been limiting the Holy One of Israel. Honestly, now, have you trusted Him to keep your lips this day? Trust necessarily implies expectation that what we have intrusted will be kept. If you have not expected Him to keep, you have not trusted. You may have tried and tried very hard, but you have not trusted, and therefore you have not been kept and your lips have been the snare of your soul (Proverbs 18:7).  ~ Frances R. Havergal

I grew up in the late 70's early 80's. Graduated high school in 1992. In the early years, I knew the Word of Faith  and Charismatic movements. This was, at times,  married with the teachings of the Prosperity Theology. I just accepted everything as it was taught.

As a teen, I was not a Christian, which would call in to question if i ever was one as a youngster. I knew what to say, how to act, etc., but i truly don't believe i was "saved". I lived a life of absolute sin, which was the outworking of a lot of pain that i lived with. i cursed my Lord Jesus. God became nothing more than a genie in a bottle that i would call out to when i was so sad i couldn't breathe. I would play an old Amy Grant album or something, and just cry, or sleep.

I went through a treatment program the last part of my junior year in high school, for drug and alcohol addiction. you have to focus on a higher power, and i knew that the only one bigger than me could be God. So, i chose God to be my "Higher Power" for my program, and no more.

Finally the day came when i went to youth group with a friend that kept inviting me. I realized that i truly needed a Saviour. that i was a sinner. i became a Christ-one that night. Now, i still lived in a difficult situation, but i knew i wasn't alone....for the first time.

I started going to a charismatic church, since that was what i had grown up with. Then i ended up going to a Vineyard church. I remember the first time i went to the youth group (i was about 17). walking in, i could not believe that 70-90 teens could be worshiping the Lord. It blew my mind. Then, they actually had fun with each other, without drugs or liquor. i kept coming back, and ended up involved.

This is a huge flyover of many years of my life!  While in the Vineyard, the Toronto Blessing occurred, and it reached our area one month after it "broke out" there. I became heavily involved in it. heavily. Movements that were big as a result of this were called Third Wave, The River, Latter Rain, Vineyard, Pentecostalism, etc. Now, some of these were around before the Toronto onslaught, but some began during it.

 Eventually i met my husband at a Vineyard church. We ended up leaving that church, and attending a Pentecostal one. After a number of years there, we left there after a poor decision was made by the leadership (without consulting the members) that was against what the Bible teaches. We met with the Pastor and were told we just had to trust the leadership. We couldn't, so we left.

Eventually we landed at a Baptist church that is a part of the Baptist General Conference church (now called Converge Worldwide). It was a bit of a change for me, who was so used to the charismatic, pentecostal way of doing things. This church had order. no one shouting out at inappropriate times. no one saying things i couldn't understand. no one shaking. no one falling. no one drumming us up to emotionalism during the singing time. This made me really start to look into things. And what i discovered changed my life and freed me in ways i never imagined.

I was praying in my head (heart) for a friend's mom one night, who was dying of brain cancer, and i didn't know what else to say to the Lord. I had always been taught to just pray in a tongue when i prayed, so i started to. i happened to be rocking my daughter who was about 8 months old. i stopped, mid-rock, and said "i don't know what i am saying, and this seems strange. i don't even think God knows what i am saying." i put my baby in her crib, and went out to  the living room, directly to my Bible. I read all the verses i had ever used to defend my charismatic tendencies.  I read study notes that explained these verses, what the Greek originally really said. i was stunned. What i had been taught to "do" to directly talk with God was wrong. The TRUE gift of tongues is always a KNOWN language, and used to proclaim the Gospel or to edify. For more on this, please READ THIS by Dr. John MacArthur, Jr. God listened to me when i prayed in English.  I realized how i had been taught to place experience or "words" over what the Bible taught. ACK!

It has been a number of years now that my husband and i have been out of these movements. It cost us a lot to leave. We lost many, many friends when we left the Pentecostal church.
but....
I have walked in more freedom, and grown more spiritually under the solid teaching of the Word of God, more than i ever did through all the shakes, twitches, false tongues, and "experiences" in other movements. You honestly don't realize how much bondage there is in them, until you are on the other side of it.

So, what inspired this post? i am sure you may be wondering! i recently got back a couple of books i had loaned out. One is the book pictured above. i have been re-reading parts of it, and was once again reminded of what i have come out of. Recently i had been asking the Lord about what i had experienced all those years.  This book reminded me of how i had opened myself up to things that were NOT of the Holy Spirit. And it helped me realize that i am not alone.

The other book i have been re-examining is Charismatic Chaos by John MacArthur. This is an excellent book that examines the excesses of these movements. I knew some of the people in this book. i sat under their teaching and was blown on and knocked down by them. i know that what he writes about in this book is very real, and very much needs to be heard.

well, thanks for listening. If you have experienced the excesses of these movements, know that what happened to you was not right. Pick up The Other Side of the River, and give it a read. Pray and ask God for healing for your spirit, which was most likely wounded. Read and pray over God's most excellent and sufficient Word!

There is hope, and there is healing.

I would love to hear your thoughts :)

M2C Monday

I am late on this today! Read chapter one and am processing quite a bit, actually.

The biggest thing? Choosing healthier foods when i do eat.

Why was this a big deal? It is a big deal because, although i have chosen to eat only when i am hungry, i haven't always chosen the best food to eat. Here is what i wrote in my notebook last night:

pg. 19 ~ Newsflash for me... when i am eating when i feel hungry, these need to be times when i am choosing healthy foods. It's not like i am eating a bag of chips, but i do tend to choose an unhealthy lunch (pizza left-overs instad of turkey sandwich). 

So ~ it's not just NOT eating unless i feel hungry. It's making healthier choices for meals when i AM hungry. Add much more fruit & veggies; less carbs (whites). When i have a snack, be intentional with what i am choosing. Am i choosing something that will temporarily satisfy me, but give me a sugar high/crash? (And yes, even the "healthy" granola bars can do this! What is the first ingredient????) 

There you have it! Then i read this quote by Lysa on page 20: "Just feeling full isn't the answer to sticking with a healthy eating plan."  TRUE STORY!

I do believe i have some healthier choices to look forward to in the near future!

There has also been MUCH progress in the area of turning to God alone to satisfy my cravings. This week was one.emotional.week!  God gave me plenty of opportunities to turn to Him to fulfill my needs. And you know what? He did. every.time. Praise His name!

I forgot to weigh myself this morning, so i will have to do that in ONE WEEK :-)

How was YOUR week? What is ONE change you have made to be healthier?

Fridays with Frances: Poetry

Today, a stanza of a poem written by F.R.H.

Oh, let me give

Out of the gifts Thou freely givest;

Oh, let me live

With life abundantly because Thou livest;

Oh, make me shine

In darkest places, for Thy light is mine;

Oh, let me be 

A faithful witness for Thy truth and Thee.

~Frances Ridley Havergal

Leavin' on a Jet Plane...

 I just found out that my Babe is "Leavin' on a jet plane" {insert great old song!} to go to Frankfurt, Germany. The kicker? He had just been told last week that he wasn't going to Germany this year... It would just be one guy. Brian was relieved, and came home and told the kids he didn't have to go! The next day he told me (thought i heard him tell kiddos). I was ecstatic. I absolutely hate it when he has to fly. Yes, i trust God to care for him. and for us. i still hate it.  Yesterday i received a call from Brian informing me that he would be going to Frankfurt, as well as 2 other people.

i cried.
yes i did.

Funny thing is, i have been missing a disc i really enjoy listening to...Painted Red by JJ Heller. one of the best discs, seriously! All about how Jesus is everything. i was looking for something in the office when i came across it!! i set it out in the family room to listen to later. Well, i hung up from talking Brian (getting the news) and i prayed. Then i put the disc on. and it was just what i needed to hear. every.song.  There was a reason i couldn't find it!! it was so i could find it and hear it when the Lord wanted me to!

So, i was able to accept it. But guess what? The enemy of my soul wanted me to eat, eat, eat my way through the stress. i had to keep saying "NO! I WILL NOT EAT MY WAY THROUGH THIS!" 
And you know what?
i'm not. 
i am choosing to pray and go to God when i am feeling the stress, instead of going to food. He is such an amazing Comforter! 

O.k. So, why does he have to go to Germany anyway? I will tell you...there is a special Christmas Village-type show that is there where companies can go and see the new materials, trends, styles, etc. for seasonal decorations. It's a pretty big deal, actually. He will be gone for 4 nights, which doesn't sound like a lot to some, i am sure. But the kids miss him something awful when he is gone, as do i.

The picture with the Santa's is from the convention. Brian is the manager of product design for a private company. He designs Christmas and other holiday decorations for retailers. One of their big customers is Target Stores. So, it is always good to go and find inspiration, new materials, see vendors that make their designs, and everything else.

I am at peace with him going. gonna miss him. a lot.

praying through it...not eating through it ~ THAT is growth!! M2C (Made to Crave) has really made a difference for me...turning to God, not food. i am pretty sure i allowed food to be my comforter last year when he went.... THANKS, Lord, for growth!! 

All I Need ~ JJ Heller

M2C Monday

Good Day, Fellow Cravers!!

cuz that is what we are. whether or not you are working the book by Lysa or not, we are ALL cravers. We all crave something: food, clothes, sex, money.... on and on it can go.

The goal? to CRAVE God, alone! When i am feeling like i want to go shopping (b/c i have had a bad day, 1/2 day, hour) it is because i am trying to satisfy my craving for peace, happiness, belonging. When i turn to the kitchen and i am NOT hungry, i am trying to satisfy a craving. Maybe it is even because i am bored. So in that moment, what am i craving? meaning, activity, purpose? Where can i go for that, instead of to food? I can go to GOD, in His Word.... and there are no regrets. no guilt. no fear when i am turning to my Lord to satisfy my cravings.

I worked on the introduction more this past week. We may have M2C Mondays for a LONG time!!! Here is a quote from page 16 in the intro:

"God made us capable of craving so we'd have an unquenchable desire for more of Him, and Him alone. Nothing changes until we make the choice to redirect our misguided cravings to the only one capable of satisfying them.   Getting healthy insn't just about losing weight. It's not limited to adjusting our diet and hoping for good physical results. It's about recalibrating our souls, so that we want to change--spiritually, physically, and mentally. And the battle really is in all three areas."  ~Lysa TerKeurst, Made to Crave, pg. 16

So, i have been asking God to give me the "want to" to make the changes that are needed. The power of the Holy Spirit is available to all of us to make the changes we need/want to make. Spiritual changes.. Going to God first, not food or shopping, or other people.

I have been eating less (eating til i am satisfied, not overly-full), and choosing more healthy foods. Simple changes, really... like adding a banana in the morning. Adding fruits/veggies definitely helps! There are practical things i am doing, so that changes are being made in the physical areas.

Making changes in my thinking (mentally) has been the most exhausting, to be honest! I am constantly thinking about WHY am i wanting to eat! I want my reasons to be right. And until it becomes second nature, i am going to have to ask myself the "why" questions. i am standing on the promises of God...they are for me, and for you!  We were not made to be in bondage to food (or whatever else we turn to). We were made for FREEDOM in Christ!!

ok... here is my Monday weigh in: 184 (This is my week...and i literally gain about 2-4 lbs. in water weight!)   the scale cannot reflect the changes inside me, and to be honest i was a bit disappointed (even though i know where i am in my cycle). I can't pay too much attention to the numbers :)  The numbers are not what matters....
my jeans are roomier (a little!). sometimes our weight may remain the same, but we are losing!
My husband and a couple other people have noticed a change in my body size!! And it DOES feel good to hear "wow... have you been losing weight?" But that is my opportunity to say "Yes, because i am turning to God, and not food." AND I DO SAY THAT!!!!

To GOD alone be the GLORY, for GREAT things He has DONE!

How was your week? 

Fridays with Frances

I am always challenged and encouraged, uplifted and awakened from apathy, when i read the writings of Frances Ridley Havergal (1836-1879). She is best known for her beautiful hymn Take My Life And Let it Be. She wrote many poems, hymns, letters, and books. I would like to post her writings on Fridays here at Never Forsaken. What follows today is from a book that is a compilation and abbreviation of some of her writings, called Opened Treasures...Enjoy her thoughts on the beautiful Word of God!

Make It Personal

And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in goodness and truth.       Exodus 34:6 

Every part of God's Word is a revelation, more of less clear, of Himself. When we do not see this, it is only that we miss it, no that it is not there. Do we not know how very possible it is to read the historical parts merely as history, and the prophetical merely as prophecy, and the doctrinal merely as doctrine, and miss the vision of God which everywhere shines through the glass darkly, if only His good Spirit opens our eyes to see it! And even when we do trace out God Himself in His recorded works and ways, how often we miss the personal comfort of remembering our own close and personal interest in what we see of His character and attributes. I questions if there is a single chapter, from the first of Genesis to the twenty-second of Revelation, which will not reflect the light of this beautiful little lamp. Whether your gaze is turned upon a promise which reveals Him as the loving One or a warning which reveals Him as the loving One, or a warning which reveals Him as the Just and Holy One; whether you read a history which shows His grand grasp in ordering the centuries, or a verse which shows His delicate touch upon the turn of  a moment--as you admire say, "This God is our God." When you read, "Great things doeth He which we cannot comprehend," and the splendid variety of His Book gives a glimpse of His power and glory in upholding the things which are seen, from the hosts of million-aged stars to the fleeting flakes of the "treasures of the snow," say, "This God is our God."

Glorious in holiness, fearful in praises,

Who shall not fear Thee, and who shall not laud?

Anthems of glory Thy universe raises, 

Holy and Infinite! Father and God!

Pure Love...whoa.

The goodness of human love is taken for granted

We turn it into a lust that tears us apart

We give up God's gifts for dust and ashes

And blame him for the pain growing in our hearts

~Sara Groves from the song Song of Solomon

Was walking the dogs when this song came on my nano. i was thunder-struck by the line: "We give up God's gifts for dust and ashes, and blame him for the pain growing in our hearts." It almost hurt to hear it. it forced me to look and question if i have given up any of God's gifts, for things that will fade away.... My answer was troubling. 

yes. i have. many times.

i have given up the wonderful gifts He has given me. i have forfeited true, real, lasting peace by not turning to Jesus, but turning to shopping or food to fill my ache. doesn't work. the guilt i feel afterwards is awful. is it worth it? no. i feel just as empty and restless as i did before, with added guilt. great.

there are many other things that i could list, but won't. you get the picture. the chorus of the song goes:

Sweet song of Solomon
Remind us of love much purer than our own

I was reminded of just how amazing God's love is for me. For my children. Reminded of how PURE His love is. i cannot grasp it in my finite mind. a pure love. no ulterior motive. no perversion in it. unadulterated. not jaded. not a love that gives something in order to get something. PURE love. Pure. His love is so much purer than mine. Thank You, Jesus!

And in remembering, i realize that i truly want to embrace the gifts that He given me...

And through it all, in my imperfections, He loves me. and i am NEVER FORSAKEN!

(I didn't meant to highlight the txt...sorry!!)

Made to Crave Monday (M2C Monday)

WELCOME to Made to Crave Monday!!  This is where i commit to posting about my journey through Lysa TerKeurst's book, Made to Crave. From now on, look for M2C, as that is what i am calling it for short :-)

i read the introduction last night. i am good. could sit on that for a week!

i may have a friend join in on the journey through the book, which is pretty exciting, since everything is better when you can have accountability :)

Okay... here are my stats... and YOU can keep me accountable as well!

Height: 5feet 6 1/2inches

Weight: 182 lbs. this morning

Goal: Healthy!! According to my doctor, I should shoot for about 155-160 lbs. I have moderately-high cholesterol, and I DO NOT want to take medication for it. Losing excess weight will help. Also, my biggest goal is to turn to Jesus for my needs, instead of to food, shopping, other people, music, or whatever else i may look to for comfort. 

M2C is NOT a weight-loss program. I want to be VERY clear about that. It is a lifestyle change...acknowledging that i have allowed OTHER THINGS to fill me, outside of God. From what i understand, if i am turning to food, shopping, music, etc. instead of turning to God and His Word, i have made those things idols.

TIME TO DETHRONE those things and ENTHRONE the King of kings!!!

pic from here

In the introduction to her book, Lysa shares how there are things that she knew needed changing, but that it was easier to rationalize all the reasons to NOT change. This resonated with me, for sure! My big excuses have been:

* i deserve this BIG bowl of ice-cream. Do you know what the kids were like today????

* my metabolism is just low.

* it really isn't THAT big of a deal, is it?

* i sorta eat healthy

* i don't turn to food ALL the time, just some of the time

Now you know what my excuses/rationalizations have been! it is all out there :) 

it is a little frightening to hit "publish post" now!

What are the biggest excuses you use to keep from making needed changes (not just with food! i had to go a number of months NOT shopping at Old Navy, as it was my "happy place")?

fresh...Craving Oranges now!

The new look for the New YEAR!! hopefully it reflects a little bit more of my personality than the drab grey did!! :-) 


Looking forward to hearing from ya'll..


FYI: I am re-reading a GREAT book called Made to Crave. i will be sharing my journey through it here...(& abbreviating it M2C) 


stay tuned!

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!!! 

we had a wonderful season of remembering our Lord's coming: His birth, life, death, and resurrection. 

During the break from school, my 2nd grader, Magdalene, let us know that she wants to be homeschooled next year! wow... i truly wasn't ready for that, though i DID sense some stress for her at school. We talked about it, and now next school year i will be homeschooling a 7th, 4th, & 3rd grader! whoa... i can't believe i just wrote that. and i am so confident that this is what God desires for us. to have Maddie ask,well, that HAD to be the Lord directing! 

i am actually LOOKING FORWARD to it, even though i know that it means a bit more work on my end. God will strengthen me; He will uphold me. 

I BELIEVE! 

As i have committed to knowing Him better, He is making so many things so clear. i PRAISE Him for His goodness. For the Word...The Bible. For how He speaks through it..

Looking forward with HOPE and PEACE this year :)

~jeanette