Day 6-Encouragement

Encouragement is contagious! I have to be honest, I have slacked on my daily devotion over the weekend.  It seems like that is when I get out of my routine and get off track with life; however, Sunday morning at church, Pastor challenged us to get into the word more, worship more, and spend more time in prayer.  He challenged us not to say we would do it, but rather ask God to help us do it.  This week, I am asking God to help me spend more time with Him.  Today, being off work, I was able to read more than just my daily devotion.  I felt led to read Ephesians 4 because my devotion was all about encouragement.  What better book in the Bible to read?!?! Below is Ephesians 4 with a couple key verses highlighted as well as some of my feelings toward this chapter.  I hope reading this chapter will encourage you as well...after all God's word is the real thing. 

Ephesians 4

Unity in the Body

 ¹ Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, (Are you living the life that you are called to?  So often we get caught up in life and take for granted who we are.  I know I have really been struggling with living my life all for Him...One day when I meet the Lord, I want to stand before Him and be proud of the life I lived...I have a lot to more to live for to be able to do that!) for you have been called by God. ² Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. (We need to be patient and gentle with others especially non-believers.  Sometimes I think that is one of the hardest things for us to do as believers. For me, my family will call me out on it a lot thinking that I am judging them or others.  I know I don't purposely try to judge but I think a lot of times, Christians come off as being that way.  I am making it a challenge to genuinely love others by showing patience and love.) ³ Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. (My challenge this week and for the rest of these 30 days is to be united in the Spirit. Giving Him all the glory as well as my time.) ⁴ For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. ⁵ There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶ and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all.  ⁷ However, he has given each one of us a special gift^[a] through the generosity of Christ. ⁸ That is why the Scriptures say,
   “When he ascended to the heights,
      he led a crowd of captives
      and gave gifts to his people.”^[b]
 9 Notice that it says “he ascended.” This clearly means that Christ also descended to our lowly world.^{[c] 10} And the same one who descended is the one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire universe with himself.
 ¹¹ Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. ¹² Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. (Am I building up the body of Christ like I am supposed to?  This has been a struggle for me lately...am I doing all that I should be for the Lord? for our Church family? I love working with our Sunday School class, but at the same time I feel like I should be focusing on the middle school and high school students at our church and trying to build up those students.  I know we don't have a lot in that age range, but I know there has been a couple I see every Sunday that have been on my mind lately.) ¹³ This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
 ¹⁴ Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. ¹⁵ Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. ¹⁶ He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.(I love these verses!)

Living as Children of Light

 ¹⁷ With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. ¹⁸ Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. ¹⁹ They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.  ²⁰ But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. ²¹ Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, ²² throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. ²³ Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. ²⁴ Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.
 ²⁵ So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. ²⁶ And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.”^[d] Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷ for anger gives a foothold to the devil. (One of the biggest marriage advice I have heard given is exactly this: don't go to bed angry! I believe this is very important in a marriage, and my husband and I make sure we do not leave or go to bed upset with one another.)
 ²⁸ If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. ²⁹ Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. (This is the key verse that lead me to read Ephesians 4.  "Let everything you say be good and helpful so that your words be an encouragement to those who hear them." That is my challenge this week...to be careful what I say about my family, friends, students, and coworkers.  I may not say things that purposely hurts others, but I know I sometimes say things I probably shouldn't to someone else.  I challenge myself to be really be careful to not say anything that could be hurtful if that person heard me saying it.)
 ³⁰ And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own,^[e] guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
 ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. ³² Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. I challenge you to give yourself a challenge this week...what will it be? To grow closer to God by spending more time with Him? To watch what you say to others? To be an encouragement to one another? To get active in your church family? To not go to bed or leave angry? There are so many challenges in this one chapter of the Bible! Pray that God will help you get back on track this week.  I know I am praying for His help this week!

Day 5-Placing your hopes and dreams in God's hands

"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen." Jeremiah 29:11-12

My challenge today is to place my hopes, dreams and future into God's hands. Sometimes I feel this is one of the hardest things to do. Sometimes I feel my hopes and dreams are slipping away, but when I turn to God...study God's word, seek His will, and spend time praying with God daily, God will pull you back in, bring you to his will and let your dreams be fulfilled.  God's will for our lives are far better than our own hopes and dreams! We must never lose hope because God promised us peace, joy and eternal life! God always keeps his promises!!!! Always!

Day 4

Day 4-Worship Him
 "You must worship the LORD your God
      and serve only him." Matthew 4:10


Today, I am challenging myself to worship my Heavenly Father, not just with my words, but also my deeds.  I must honor Him, praise Him, and obey Him with my whole heart.  As I try to find purpose and meaning in my life, I am seeking Him and his will and purpose for my life.  I have to remember that no matter how busy life seems, I must first seek HIM and HIS will for my life.  

"Worship is not taught from the pulpit. It must be learned from the heart." Jim Elliot

100 Day of School

So the 100 day of school is fast approaching; therefore, I am already starting to plan for it.  I want to make this day a special day...a  fun day of learning that the students will remember. Working with young kids, I have to be fast paced or they will get bored and into trouble.  Below is some ideas I came up with that almost any age group can do. 

I plan on starting my day out with the following:

100 exercises-10 jumping jacks, 10 toe touches, 10 twists, 10 claps, 10 slides, 10 high fives, 10 jumps, 10 tippy  toes, 10 bows, 10 arm stretches

100 seconds of silence-yoga style

100 seconds of dancing

100 chant-students repeat after me.  I will saying it like a cheer to get them excited!

Then my students will go into stations. I plan on doing stations two different times throughout the day...once in the morning and once in the afternoon; therefore I have ten stations.  I plan on having them work in each station for 10 minutes.  (This means they will work with 100 stuff for 100 minutes)

100 day stations-I am going to mark arrows with tape on the floor to show where they rotate to, play music during work time, when music stops and bell rings, the students move to the next station by following arrows on floor

Stations

Station 1:Practice writing and stamping the number 100.

Station 2: Paint 100 fingerprints

Stations 3: Put together a 100 piece puzzle

Station 4: 100 chart picture-The students will color each number on the 100 chart as I say the number.  When they are finish, they would have colored boxes to look like the number 100.

Station 5: 100 cutout picture-I plan on using our die cut machine and cutting out a 1, 0, 0 for each student. Each student will turn these three numbers into a picture of their choice.

Station 6: The students will build something out of 100 legos

Station 7: Make 100 day necklaces by stringing 100 fruit loops on a piece of yarn

Station 8:  The students will try stacking 100 coins or blocks without letting them fall

Station 9: The students will link together 100 unifix cube and measure to see how if something in the room is that length

Station 10: Students will each bring in 100 snacks in a ziplock bag. (100 skittles, 100 goldfish, etc.) They will combine all their snacks together and eat their snacks.

Before our 100 day of school, we will make hats to wear along with our necklaces.  

Along with all of this, our students will also join with the other classes at our school for a piece of 100 day cake, 100 day songs, 100 day questions, and get a picture with Zero the Hero (Our principal will be dressed up as Zero the Hero!)

Day 3-God's Word

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away."

"Nobody ever outgrows scripture; the book widens and deepens with our years." C.H. Spurgeon

"When you meet God, open your Bible.  Don't rely on your memory; rely on those printed pages."-Charles Swindoll

So today is day 3-all about reading God's word.  Really this isn't anything new for me lately.  I know God is telling me to spend more time with Him! To pick up His Word and just read! Now that's a challenge.  I can pray in my car, at work, in bed, with others, etc....but reading His word?!?! Now that takes time, energy...sometimes I get so caught up in life I forget what is really important.  This week, a long with it seems like every week, I am challenging myself to read, read, and read some more! Honestly, we shouldn't rely on memory or the thought that we already read that book of the Bible before...we need to be willing to read and spend time with Him over and over again.  Because "the book widens and deepens with our years."

Day 2-Prayer

Day 2-Prayer
"We must leave it to God to answer our prayers in His own wisest ways. Sometimes, we are so impatient and think that God does not answer.  God always answers! He never fails. Be still. Abide in Him." Mrs. Charles E. Cowman

Day 2-PRAYER! What a powerful thing! I can't imagine my life without it! There are so many times in my life where I had to lean on were prayers to my Lord!  When all else failed, I was able to have my faith in the Lord and my relationship with Him to lean on.  I know life throws us ups and downs all the time, but sometimes it really throws us down.  In my case, I am reminded of the day I found out my mom was going to have to have a quadruple bypass.  First, I remember eating at a small pizza place in Oakland City...the day before my college graduation.  I get a phone call from my mom telling me she is going to the hospital for chest pains.  At this point, I am worried, but don't it's very serious.  That night, I find out my mom has been emitted into the hospital for tests and will be missing my graduation and my graduation party.  After my graduation party, I visit my mom before heading off to Florida with a group friends for my very first interview for a teaching position.  As I cross the border into FL, I get a call from my sister telling me my mom is going to have open heart surgery.  Upset, scared, nervous...all the uneasy feelings overwhelm me.  My dad and sister tries to comfort me, making it sound like it isn't a big deal.  When we arrived to where we were staying we stopped for lunch.  At lunch my friends decide to pray for my mom.  We pray that the doctors would have to hold off on the surgery until I get back.  As we were paying, I receive another phone call from my sister, telling me that due to my mom's diabetes and white blood cell count, they would have to wait a couple weeks!!!! RELIEF!!!  Wow! Talk about the power of prayer! God knew how important it was for my whole family to be there together!! Another example...my younger brother was in California for military training when her surgery was scheduled.  The head guys got wind about our mom and sent him home...told him that was a family emergency and that he needed to be there with his family and to top that off my brother who lives in TN was also able to make home!!! God is good all the time! He hears and answers our prayers.  Those answers may not always be our answers, but God knows what is best! He never fails us.  It may feel like it at the time, but trust me this is only one example of all the times that He has answered my prayers in unusual ways! So when in doubt, when you have no where else to turn, turn to prayer! Turn to God! Other answers to prayers:

***I lost my memory card that had pictures of my college graduation, my brothers' high school graduation, and my sister and I fixing my mom up after her surgery-I went to pick up my pictures after having some of them developed.  I couldn't find my card.  I asked the guy working the photo booth.  He hadn't seen it.  He called the guy from the night before.  He hadn't seen it.  I had went through every picture and even cut each apart.  (I had gotten smaller prints.) I said a prayer to God...at this point it was the only thing I could do.  That card was stuck at the bottom of the envelope  the whole time.
***I lost my job.  After church one Sunday, a few weeks after our wedding, Jason told me he felt like needed to fast one meal day and asked if I would like to join him during this time.  I chose to do so feeling I needed to get closer to the Lord and find more time to spend with Him. We decided every night for dinner we would pray...not just pray, but really pray...really give our heart up to the Lord.  That week we decided to fast, I got called for four interviews, got a call back from my old job wanting me back, and a couple other offers after not having a single call all summer! Tell me God isn't good! One of those interviews was for the place I am working at now which is a job I love and enjoy!
***Red eyes! So a couple years ago, I had this red eye problem...not sure what caused it or how to get rid of it...the eye dr didn't even know what it was. I had it for a good 2 months or longer.  He had given me several different types of eyedrops...none that were working.  He finally told me if this last type didn't work, he would have to send me to a specialist. That weekend, I went to a youth convention with the youth at my church.  I remember hearing a song about healing...I remember asking God to heal my eyes...nothing else was working and honestly I hadn't thought to pray about it until that moment.  It was almost as if God was telling me in that song, "Ask me to heal it."  I gave it up to the Lord during that song.  I woke up the next morning, my eyes were clear!!!!!! And they stayed cleared!!!! Crazy how God works! Trust me, it would have been easier for God to have cleared it with those first $80 dollar eye drops that I cried about having to spend money for! However, God had his own plan, his own way of healing...and it wasn't just my eyes...it was a reminder to seek Him for my everyday needs.  It reminds me of mine and Eli's talk that one day on our way to Poseyville...God is every profession...even a doctor, an eye doctor at that!

Ok so these are def not even close to the prayers God has answered for me!! These are only a small few.  God has answered so many small prayers and now when I can't find something, I stop and say, "Ok God show me where this is, I have no clue where else to look!" Why can't I remember to just stop and ask Him in the first place?!?!

James 1:22

"But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves." Ok so after hearing this at church and now reading about it in my 30 days of Challenging Your Faith, I think God is trying to tell me something.  I need to make decisions day by day that are pleasing to Him.  I need to really love His word and dig into it to truly understand it and what He wants for my life.  It seems like lately that I have been so busy and caught up in life, that I have forgotten to spend the time with the Lord like I should be.  I pray that I can get back into the word and be the way I was when I was first saved.  I think that life gets the best of us at times and we forget what is really important.  Once again I feel like I am just going through the motions...and once again God is calling me back...reminding me to take a break from daily life and spend some time with Him, but not just time, but true quality time.  You know the difference when you pray, but your prayer becomes a memorized prayer that you pray everyday and you realize you have forgotten to pray from the heart. That's how I am feeling right now...my morning prayer time is just becoming a routine in my day.  I am challenging myself to 30 days with the Lord...really with the Lord! Day 1-a repeat from the message at church today...ummm is God speaking to me?!?! I am challenging myself to be a doer and not a hearer only! I'm ready for the challenge!!!