Verse to Share...

A sweet friend of mine sent this to me this morning, what a challenge!

My children, love must not be a matter of words or talk;

it must be genuine, and show itself in action. 1 John 3:18

Tuesday's Treasure: Gratitude Part II

God's is still working on me about being thankful and how gratitude can strip away the sinful parts of our lives.

In my quiet time this week I learned that there will be times when we lose the luster in our lives and it is vital to know how to restore it. When my watch starts looking dingy, I get out the cleaner and start rubbing away all the filth. How much more do we need to take a close look at our own filth.

An attitude of gratitude rids our lives of the film of frustration, the rust of resentment, and the varnish of vanity-all destroyers of self esteem. Without God's touch in our lives, there is no sparkle. But when we allow Him to give us a good cleaning, we are no longer hidden treasure; we become sparkling jewels that beautify His kingdom!

Titus 3 (The Message)

When God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, He saved us from all that. It was all His doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God's gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there's more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.

Lord, thank you for being a loving Savior that is still working on me. I am reminded of the song that I learned in sunday school as a child, "He's still working on me, to make me what I ought to be!"

Thank you for the gift of today, I give it back to you Lord....all for You and for Your glory. Purify my heart with your refining fire!

Fun In My Fairy Costume!

Our sweet friends the Penders, Louders, and
Scharbauers were oh so brave and had a Halloween Party for me & all my friends!

Tuesday's Treasure: Gratitude

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, and confusion to clarity.

It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and

creates a vision for tomorrow"

Melody Beattie

November is just around the corner. Can you believe it? With the Thanksgiving holiday quickly approching, I feel a sudden attitude of gratitude. My hope is to take this month and really appreciate the many blessings God has given me.

I am loving Colossians right now. In Chapter 3, verse 16 we are instructed to "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God."

So...Today....I am grateful for all those things that go missing because their absence reminds me how blessed I am to have had them at all.

Love This....

Thank you for this sink of dirty dishes; we have plenty of food to eat. Thank you for this pile of dirty, stinky laundry; we have plenty of nice clothes to wear. And I would like to thank you, Lord, for those unmade beds; they were so warm and comfortable last night. I know that many have no bed.

My thanks to you, Lord, for this bathroom, complete with all the splattered mess, soggy, grimy towels and dirty lavatory; they are so convenient. Thank you for this finger-smudged refrigerator that needs defrosting so badly; it has served us faithfully for many years. It is full of cold drinks and enough leftovers for two or three meals. Thank you, Lord, for this oven that absolutely must be cleaned today; it has baked so many things over the years.

The whole family is grateful for that tall grass that needs mowing, the lawn that needs raking; we all enjoy the yard. Thank you, Lord, even for that slamming screen door. My kids are healthy and able to run and play.


Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me says You have richly blessed my family. I shall do them cheerfully and I shall do them gratefully. Even though I clutch my blanket and growl when the alarm rings, Thank you, Lord, that I can hear. There are many who are deaf. Even though I keep my eyes closed against the morning light as long as possible, Thank you, Lord, that I can see. Many are blind.


Even though I huddle in my bed and put off rising, Thank you, Lord, that I have the strength to rise. There are many who are bedridden. Even though the first hour of my day is hectic, when socks are lost, Toast is burned and tempers are short, my children are so loud, Thank you, Lord, for my family. There are many who are lonely.


Even though our breakfast table never looks like the pictures in magazines and the menu is at times not balanced, Thank you, Lord, for the food we have. There are many who are hungry. Even though the routine of my job is often monotonous, Thank you, Lord, for the opportunity to work. There are many who have no job.

Even though I grumble and bemoan my fate from day to day and wish my circumstances were not so modest, Thank you, Lord, for life. LORD, THANK YOU !!!!

My little Aggie

Tuesday's Treasure:Gratitude

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, and confusion to clarity.

It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow"

Melody Beattie

November is just around the corner. Can you believe it? With the Thanksgiving holiday quickly approching, I feel a sudden attitude of gratitude. My hope is to take this month and really appreciate the many blessings God has given me.

I am loving Colossians right now. In Chapter 3, verse 16 we are instructed to "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God."

So...Today....I am grateful for all those things that go missing because their absence reminds me how blessed I am to have had them at all.

All You Ever Wanted To Know About Me...

I was challenged to do this by a blogging cousin and so I will challenge my readers to the same. Let me know when you post yours!

I AM...always growing!

I WANT...to lose some much needed pounds :)

I HAVE...a BIG God!

I KEEP...a stash of swiffer wet bottles...I am obesessed!!

I WISH I COULD...be better in the kitchen

I FEAR...something bad happening to my family

I HEAR...my little one putting all her babies down for "nite-nite" (love it)

I DON"T THINK... Chris will ever trust me with our finances..I am awful at simple adding and subtracting

I REGRET... not working out everyday

I LOVE...my days off with Baby K

I AM NOT...going to let circumstances steal my joy

I DANCE...to Barney...yep...I said it

I SING...all the time! In the shower, in the car. I sing really loud when it's just me in the house

I NEVER...want to look back and say, "I wish I would've/could've."

I CRY WHEN I WATCH...movies about death or young people that lose sight of who they are in Christ

I AM NOT ALWAYS...perfect! Can you believe that?

I HATE THAT....there are people that don't know about God

I'M CONFUSED ABOUT...how to be a super-mom

I NEED...to be packing for a trip to Lubbock to see the Ags play

I SHOULD...be on the treadmill instead of on the computer

Have a blessed Friday!! Gig Em!

Sneak Peak at Our New Family Pics!!

Can't wait to see all of them!!!

http://www.amandamcneelyblog.com/

Tuesday's Treasure: I give up...and that's okay

Lately when I look in the mirror I expect to see a confident woman who is juggling all the "balls of life", she is in the best shape of her life, has perfect hair, and of course...has on perfect lip-gloss!

Okay, not really but sometimes I feel like I make expectations for myself that are not obtainable. And when I fail at all the checklists I have made for myself, I beat myself up and feel like a failure.

Yesterday at church God was giving me a side message to our study in Revelation. It's okay that I feel inadequate as a mom, wife, and friend. The fact that I can't do it all on my own gives me an opportunity to put my my dependence on Christ to rely on Him..instead of myself. I will always fail my expectations and my greatest treasure is to become even more in need of His strength in all things.

I am on assignment from God to being a loving wife, teacher to my little one, and a friend that loves at all times. But it is a path of disciplined grace. Richard Foster explains : "It is discipline, because there is work for us to do. It is Grace, because the life of God which we enter is a gift which we can never earn....Discipline in and of itself does not make us righteous, it merely places us before God....The transformation..is God's work." What you are today is what you are becoming; You are today what you have been becoming; Every day is a little life, and our whole life is but a day repeated. And lastly..it's all because of grace.

Lord, thank you that I don't have it all and thank you for giving me the grace and freedom in you to render myself helpless-in need of You.

Help me to "strip off every weight" that keeps my spirit down and hinders me from being all that I am through you. That's the key Lord, I am nothing without you, but in You "I can do all things". So I will take today, this day that you have graced me with and accomplish all that I can-and if I don't get it all done...that's just okay. :)

Kaitlyn's Funny Phrases

Kaitlyn is saying some of the cutest things!! To hear her sweet little voice is so much better...but I am loving

"Bye Duys (guys), See ya!"

" I sorry" (she says this when she falls down or when you stub your toe..anytime something hurts and it's so funny)

Papa Harper will say "Go Longhorns". Kaitlyn starts shaking her head and says "No, no Go Aggies!"

We've all been sneezing and coughing lately and she will get right up in my face, hold my cheeks and say "Bless you Mommy"

In the morningns when Chris takes her to my mom's on the day I work I say "Love you baby" and she say " I love you too...but it's more like "I bout you too"

Kaitlyn is loving saying her prayers. Her favorite part is A-men! Love it!!

Grandma Harper taught Kailtyn the B-I-B-L-E song. It's so cute at the end she yells BIBLE! And then she immeditaly says "Jesus", which means she wants to sing Jesus love me. When we get to the "Yes, Jesus loves me" part, she sings in really high pitch "Loves Me"!! Love it!!