Early morning cheerfulness can be extremely obnoxious.....tee hee

Is Someone Getting the Best of you??

I guess the theme of my life over the past year....or the thing in which God was trying most to teach me, was how to forgive..FORGIVENESS. So if your tired of hearing about it, I'm sorry to say here is another one moving in that direction.



Ive been spending alot of time reading over the past few months, and I'm loving all that the Lord is teaching me....sometimes i get overwhelmed with the amount of wisdom that is coming my way, I've even had to pray that the Lord would help me to retain it all. But i LOVE it. Anyway, I've read this amazing book by Beth Moore called "Get out of the Pit" I was looking back over my notes i wrote down during the time i was going through the book and i wanted to pass on some of the wisdom from it.



First of all I love it when Beth Moore begins to talk about the life of Joesph....remember Joesph was the one with the coat of many colors, the one whose father loved him most, and whose brothers hated him. They hated him sooo much they threw him into a pit and went and sat down to have a nice lil picnic.



Now in situations like this where an innocent person is wronged people tend to look to God and wonder "WHY GOD??" I know i do....in fact i do that on almost a daily basis, especially when i decide "maybe ill watch the news tonight" thinking maybe they will have something positive to talk about and then end up getting blindsided by the story on the baby who was beaten to death or the child that was left all alone for days.... but Beth Moore says something that is key about being thrown into a pit.....



"God did not haphazardly or accidentally let Joesph's brothers throw him into the pit. He had already thought it out in advance. He had looked at the good it could ultimately accomplish, the lives that could be helped and even saved. Then and ONLY then in his sovereign purpose did He permit such harm to come to His beloved child."



Now listen up people.....I'm not saying that the things God does are always easy to handle. But lets always keep in mind that he does have a purpose. Always. And if we seek Him first He will always lead us in the right direction.



So lets look again go back to Joseph....He went through ALOT....he was thrown into a pit, pulled out of the pit and sold into slavery by his OWN brothers, accused of adultery, thrown in jail, and not until several years later was he released. After going through ALL of that the Pharaoh found favor in him, and he was made second in command in all of the kingdom, he was also reconciled to his brothers. So you see The Lord had a plan, and had he not been thrown into a pit.....he would NEVER had been in the position he was several years down the road.



That leads me to the forgiveness issue. One thing that I have learned from another book i have been reading "Changes that Heal" is that when you are wronged you have every right to be upset or to call sin a sin. Mourn, grieve, be hurt, get angry, whatever you so choose to do. HOWEVER, there isn't a specific allotted time period for that, but you are expected at some point to own those feelings as your own choice, let them go or forgive, and MOVE ON!! You have got to realize that how you respond to hurt can affect your life and the lives of those around you.



*Remember, forgiving someone does not mean you are saying what they did to you was right. It is releasing yourself and them from the prison or pit you have fallen into because of the unforgiveness.



Beth Moore says "A pit is an early grave Satan digs for you in hopes he can bury you alive.....



Wow!!! it makes me think about all the times i was upset with people in my life, and how when there name came up in a conversation it would send me straight into a HORRIBLE mood. He was BURYING me alive in my unforgiveness towards these people.



She goes on to say "God changed the way I looked at the entire situation when I began to see that my grudge against people who hurt me only strengthened the grip of my bondage to them.....Our grudges only work to further entangle and emesh us with the persons we wont forgive."



I want you to also understand that when you forgive someone that does not mean that he or she needs to be let back into your life (now don't get me wrong you can if you so choose to). It again simply means you are letting yourself and them out of the prison the enemy intended to bury you alive in.



I hope this wisdom that God has asked me to share with you today has helped you to see that there may be a situation where may need to extend some forgiveness.


In closing my question is: Is someone getting the best of you??? Because you should be giving your VERY best to your Holy God and those closest to you. Don't waste your best on holding a grudge.


Here is a verse that you can dwell on that ties it all together.....



Genesis 50:20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.



LOVE YOU ALL!!!!

Favorite Reads coming soon!!

ABOUT ME

My name is Staci, I am a NICU nurse wife and mother.  My husband and I married in 2000 and had our first child in September of 2001 and our second in January of 2006.  I adore all three of my boys.

I am not perfect, but I fully believe the mistakes and downfalls in my life are the very things that have molded me into the woman I am today.  And I just couldn't change that for anything.  I believe that our stories are important.  You never know who's life you will touch by sharing them and it is why I have chosen to blog.

I welcome your thoughts and comments and cherish them.  Thank you for stopping by Staci's Heart, and come back again soon!!  

EMAIL ME HERE

Valentines Card for Daddy!!

This Valentines the kiddos wanted to make a card for daddy, and cookies for the kids in the culdesac. So after school, we headed to target for the stickers and glitter, and cookie dough.

Here are some pics of the boys working on daddy's card.

The finished product.
The cookies.

Intercedeing Spirit

I just realized something.....

So my morning usually goes something like this.

• Alarm goes off and if I have enough energy at 5:30 am Ill roll outta bed and go to the gym....(i addmit the last two days I've choosen the lazy route)
• after the gym I come home and wake up the boys (husband included)
• then I make breakfast, cereal, oatmeal, eggs whatever fancys the kiddos
• get the lunch box ready
• get the clothes ready
• check logans backpack and make sure its packed
• shoo him and his dad out the door BUT not without a kiss.

Then its mommy time RIGHT?? WRONG!!!! I have another child.

Usually by that time Mickey Mouse Club House is on and this is the part I just LOVE..... He uses this word that nither Jason nor I have quiet figured out. Now dont get me wrong the child can TALK!!! But this one we just dont hear quiet right. Anyway, he'll look at me with those BIG beautiful eyes, stand at the foot of the couch and say "hee whooo momma hee whoo" and all the while he will pat his lil hand on the couch as if to say, momma lets sit together and watch my favorite show.

What I realized is that even though I have NO idea what he's saying in my heart I KNOW what he is saying.

I think it is the same for God, most times we may be speaking and acting in a way that would not be pleaseing to the Lord, or our words or actions may not make any bit of sense to anyone else around us. Even us. But God KNOWS his babies. He knows what we are saying what our spirit is saying.

26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Even when we dont want to admit that we need the Lord, the Holy Spirit within us knows, and crys out for us. If you think you can run from the Lord....you are SOOOO wrong. He is ALWAYS there for his babies. He is always ready for you to crawl up into his lap, and watch your favorite show together.

Holy Spirit Led

Just wanted to encourage those of you who know God, to use the Holy Spirit within you.

God gave you the gift of the Holy Spirit to help guide and direct you. To help you make God driven decisions.

There was a situation not long ago where the Holy Spirit was trying to guide me. For me when the Holy Spirit is saying no to something I feel OVERWHELMED with sickness. In lamens terms i felt like i was gonna hork all over the place (sorry for that :) )

Anyway, He was saying no and I just knew it was the Holy Spirit speaking. Naturally I had people who questioned me on the matter and challenged me over and over. I became very overwhelmed with frustration and eventually (as I should have ) I questioned my soverign Lord "God, am i really doing the right thing?" Am I making the right decsions in my life.....are you really speaking to me through your spirit....please speak to me for I am listening" I ploped down once again on my couch and dove head first into his word. And IMMEDIATELY he spoke.

And this is what my awesome God said to me.......

Romans 8:6
6The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;

Romans 8:9a
9You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit...

Romans 8:14-15
14because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.[a] And by him we cry, "Abba,[b] Father."

I like how he says you did not recieve as spirit of fear, or for me he said this is ME talking not fear.....and where he says you recieveed a spirit of sonship. I love how that is described sonship, makes me feel protected....he is trying to protect me.

Now this situation was DEFINATLEY gonna cause me to suffer and here is what he said to comfort me...

Romans 8:17
17Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Basically if you are my child....you are gonna be called to sacrifice and your gonna suffer through this and when it is fixed or mended I (the Lord ) will be glorified.....and you will share in my glory.

And here is the kicker....i LOVE when he comforts me....its awesome....so when i asked God to speak I wrote down in my journal "GOD, I am FRUSTRATED" Here is the best part of what he spoke that day.

Romans 8:20-21
20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that[a] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

When the Lord speaks to you through his spirit...dont let anyone make you feel like you aren't hearing him. You do what the Lord has asked of you no matter HOW FRUSTRATING or how hard it is. He made that decision for me in hope that I (his creation) would be liberated from my bondage and brought into the GLORIOUS freedom of the children of God.

AMEN right????

Oh and I stink at spelling and my spell check doesnt work, so sorry if you cant read it......:0)

Now this is just scary....

This is Logans kinder picture 2008

This is me kinder 1985

Now i dont want to hear anymore about how much Logan looks like his daddy...... :) we are even wearing the same colors.....

I love this....

This was given to me several years ago.....it touched me then and i felt it was worth sharing.


The will of God will never take you,
Where the grace of God cannot keep you,
Where the arms of God cannot support you,
Where the riches of God cannot supply your needs,
Where the power of God cannot endow you.

The will of God will never take you,
Where the spirit of God cannot work through you,
Where the wisdom of God cannot teach you,
Where the army of God cannot protect you,
Where the hands of God cannot mold you.

The will of God will never take you
Where the love of God cannot enfold you,
Where the mercies of God cannot sustain you,
Where the peace of God cannot calm your fears,
Where the authority of God cannot overrule you.

The will of God will never take you
Where the comfor of God cannot dry your tears,
Where the word of God cannot feed you,
Where the miracles of God cannot be done for you,
Where the omnipresense of God cannot find you.

EVERYTHING happens for a purpose. We may not see the wisdom of it all now, but TRUST and BELIEVE in the Lord that everything is for the best of His children whom he loves.

Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

This is Landon one of my precious sons. He is a mess!!! But I couldnt love him more, he is the most adorable child.

Just wanted to share a little bit of heaven the Lord has blessed me with.

I know...

I've been completely uninspired to write lately, though i promise i will soon.....however i am behind on updateing you with pictures as well so here are some of lil mans bday party!! ENJOY!!!

the cake, this was a PAIN in the butt to make but i think it came out pretty darn cute if i do say so myself. Nana helped with the icing.....

Happy birfday to ewe.....
blow out the candles ne ne (thats what landon calls himself)

mmmm yummy nammy (thats what him calls amy :0) )

Time to open the presidents , obviously something was very funny

OOOH TOOOODOOLES (you have to know mickey mouse club house to understand ;) )

this is the present aunt amy gave him, it is his FAV
it is a BUBBLE blowing machine!!! rediculous amounts of bubbles come out, hours of fun!!

He had a royal blast chasing around the bubbles and trying to eat them of course;)

Me and my Mimaw

Me and my nana

I had forgotten to take a pic of him with his new bike, he wants to be like his bubba sooo bad, he was THRILLED to get a bike for his birfday, so here he is with it all proud and what not!!