God is shouting

I guess this will be a long post...and with different subjects. 

I don't really remember a time when God would speak to me constantly about something through someone else. Maybe He has, but I don't remember.

But lately it seems that everything seems to be saying, "I'm right here". God is here, with me. 

Jan, 2011. My bowls - her new toys.

They said the other day at church that this year God has great plans for me. Duh!! I know that, it's so easy to say that once you've been a Christian for a while. Like in that song where it says, "I guess I thought that I had figured you out, I learned all the stories, and I learned to talk about how you were mighty to save, but those were all empty words on a page..."

Anyway, what's His plan for me? Because I want to know. I've been stuck for so long in the I-used-to-do-this-but-know-I-have-a-baby-mentality, that it's hard to let go. It's like I felt my plan was one and I knew it, I can say I knew it, but then I'm on pause button while I'm a mom.

And Pastor Dave said I have to let go, I have to say bye to my past if I want to see my future. It makes sense, I want to be fulfilled as a mom, but I struggle with the fact that I don't have the time I used to. 

I like that Elizabeth listens to me every time I tell her about God. But mostly, I like the fact that God speaks to me every time I'm teaching Elizabeth. We are reading Exodus and I like to show her pictures from her Bible, but I really read mine when it's kind of a long story, like the Exodus from Egypt.

I was explaining to her that there are different Bibles, all the same, but different translations and that children's Bibles are shorter and with pictures, because children like pictures. She likes mine anyway, she's always trying to grab it.

So I was reading to her about Moses and how he reacted when God told him he was the one that was supposed to go tell Pharaoh to let God's people go. I told her Moses was afraid, that he didn't feel he was fit for that job, and I said that when God calls you into something, He will equip you for that. 

God chose Moses. Moses was the one, he had a purpose from the moment he was put into the river by his sister, Miriam. He grew up in Pharaoh's palace, then he killed an Egyptian and he ran away. He probably thought and felt like I feel sometimes, that God had forgotten about him, that there was no purpose. And then God showed up.

The same thing happened when I was reading to her about Joseph (which happens to be right before they became slaves in Egypt). Joseph had a purpose, but that purpose didn't came to be until 13 years later when he saves his family from famine, and brings them to Egypt with him. His life was on pause also, but not really. 

The purpose is a whole thing, there are pauses and different paths, but all lead to the end God wants you to have. I mean, assuming everything you do is godly. And actually, there is no single purpose, there are different things God wants you to accomplish. 

Joseph was a slave, then he got out, and served Pothipar. Then he was thrown into jail, then made friends in jail, got out again.  Then he became almost Pharaoh, was in charge of Egypt and bla, bla... He accomplished many things on his 13-year-pause from his purpose, and all those things were orchestrated by God. God knew every single one of them. 

And see, there was not ONLY one purpose, but many. First, that He would serve Potiphar, that he would help the guy to get out of jail by interpreting his dream, that he would interpret Pharaoh's dream, etc. It's like that movie, It's a Wonderful Life. You are here for many things, not just one.

She plays with her toy bin

My pause now is Libby. Oh, Libyshhhhh, like my cousin Haidee calls her. I love you. I hope one day you could read this and laugh at how your Momma struggled with silly things while raising you... and know that I would do anything for you, I would give my life for you. 

So Exodus 6:6-8 really stood out for me, "I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD"

I don't really know why it spoke to me, but I feel I'm under a yoke that it's not Jesus'. I'm a slave to my past, but God will bring me out. He will be my God, He doesn't forget about me, all the contrary. This time, this season in my life has purpose. Teaching Libby about God has purpose, and He will bring me to the land He promised. I don't know where that is, but it's okay, I don't have to know everything.

To finish this I will write what my Bible said. It reminded me of Nancy again:

She likes to get out all her toys

"Most of us want to know God's plan for our lives, but we're not always sure how to find it. One common misunderstabding is the idea of God's guidance will come to us out o the blue, and that it has nothing to do with what we're doing right now. But if we are always looking around for God's next assignemnet, we run the risk of ruining whatever we're working on right now. In the Bible, we can see that often God's call came while people were completely immersed in the challenge of the moment." 

True that. Moses was a run away, David was a shepherd, Gideon was a food gatherer for his family... I am Mommy, although I don't hear that yet, but I will. 

 Jeff told me yesterday that I have an opportunity that most people would want. I get to stay home with my daughter. And that if I thought about it, it will be very soon that she will be going to preschool, and then school, and I won't get to spend all day long with her. I can do something else with my time then, I can volunteer where I please, that time will come again. 

But right now, I only have this small window to make a difference, a real difference, and teach her about Jesus. He said, "Imagine that Elizabeth gets to share her faith in Jesus with such passion, that she becomes the next Joyce Meyer..." To what I responded, "Well, no, thank you..." 

He laughed and continued, "Well, the next Joyce Meyer with the gospel right. Wouldn't you look back and see that this time made that possible? It's just a matter of perspective."

He is so right. Besides, who wouldn't want to be this cutie's teacher?

My little student after eating.
Look how proud Mamma is at her mess.

So...changing the subject, Emerson brew some beer last week, and Libby helped him.

January 7th, 2012. Brewing day with Dadda.

Nancy Hunter sent me this via facebook. It reminded me that the seeds I'm planting with Elizabeth might one day produce very good fruit. She is my very own little disciple. I had always wanted that someone would listen to what I have to say about God. Well, I have her right in my living room every morning listening, she just doesn't know how to speak yet. But she listens...

Hmmm...what else?

My cake class is going alright. I've learned several things, like icing the cake the right way. I get to make a cake for a baby shower next Sunday as a favor. It will help me practice. Here are some photos of my work, before the first class and after the first class...

I wanted to take a class because of this

I will post some photos of a cake I'm baking now, just for practice before the baby shower. We have small group tonight so I'm guessing I'll take it there. 

Second cake 

Emerson has been taking the cakes I've baked to work, I'm glad because it's a ton of sweet stuff. We went to Michael's to buy pans and other things I needed for baking. 

First cake after first class

I really like baking cakes, decorating them more than anything. There's a weird feeling I get when I see it, and see that is pretty. Still I  need to learn, but I'm making progress considering I've learned almost everything on the internet.