It's Wednesday evening and Hurricane Earl is predicted to do some serious damage sometime tomorrow, only a shanty 3 hours from the house. Our area is under a hurricane "watch" but not yet a hurricane "warning." And so, we are in limbo. Do we sit here and wait and pray or do we pray and leave...our decision: to pray and wait. LOL. Oh the joys of life. We have our clothes and supplies packed and waiting at the door, just in case in the even that we do evacuate.
So where is my mind at tonight amongst this? LIFE. A small 4 letter word that in itself is taken for granted. We are all guilty at times of breezing through life on "autopilot" and we tend to forget that we have a God who is greater than ourselves and greater than our circumstances...But if we just breeze thru it on autopilot, taking it all upon our own shoulders, it is as if we are standing in the middle of a Catagory 5 hurricane with our eyes closed and our fingers in our ears singing, "Lalalalalala!" Take your fingers out for crying out loud!!! Run for shelter!!!.........but what happens when we reach the "evacuation call" and we were not prepared? Such as many people in history (Hurricane Katrina for example), people have been blindsided, unprepared, and faced a LIVING HELL, if we are not looking for our shelter, our tower, our refuge, our stonghold in times of trouble (Psalm 91). If we are not "prepared to evacuate," what are we going to be left with, where will we be? If you died right now, how would you stand before God? How will you explain that you were an "over-all good person" to an infinately perfect God who knows every sin you have ever committed? Will you wait until that final judgement to beg for mercy and ask for forgiveness?
In my thinking, this hurricane is much like our salvation, you are either prepared....or not.
MY BAGS ARE AT THE DOOR WAITING!!!
Psalm 91 NIV
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust."
Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and from the deadly presilence.
He will cover you with his feathers and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkeness nor the plague that destroys at midday.
A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand but it will not come near you.
You will only observe with yor eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
If you make the Most High your dwelling-even the LORD, who is my refuge-
then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
VINDICATED
Vindicated-vin-di-cate [vin-di-keyt]
-verb (used with object), -cat.ed, -cat.ing.
1. to clear, as from an accusation, imputation, suspicion, or the like: to vindicate someone's honor.
2. to afford justification for; justify, subsequent events vindicated his policy.
3. to uphold or justify by argument or evidence: to vindicate a claim.
4. to assert, maintain, or defend (a right, cause, etc.) against opposition.
5. to claim for oneself or another
6. Roman and Civil Law to regain possession, under claim of title of property through legal procedure, or to assert one's right to possession.
7. to get revenge for; avenge
8. obsolete. to deliver from; liberate
9. obsolete. to punish
November 2007...He came home heartbroken. His dreams shattered. Eight years of dedication and sacrifice stripped away with his honor, by the choice a man who seen him as just some Bible thumper who did not have his priorities in line, according to a social mind-set though not according to the Word of God. As he walked thru the door, my heart, that had prayed feverently for days and sick with anxiety, was broken as well. The pain on his face made the realization materialize that not only was his dreams and accomplishments in vain but that our family was now in a financial crises though still committed to live this military lifestyle with the exception of the luxuries that we had come to know and depend on.
Knowing that, with all of my sound intentions, I could not comfort my husband at this moment, I resorted to leave him laying in his own despair and thoughts and sit on the back deck, grabbing my Bible in the motion. As I sat with my bible in my lap, I cried out to the God of my hope, my rock, my fortress...my God who did not answer my prayers and grant us our hearts desire in that moment of decision. God why? God why? God WHY??? I screamed in my thoughts as the tears rolled down my face. In hope and faith, I opened by Bible.
Job 12... Okay, this seems appropriate, I guess. So there I began:Job 12:1 " Then Job replied: Doubtless you are the people, and wisdom will die with you!......" God why cant you just give me the answers that I need where I can understand? WHY!? WHY!? and so, I continued reading...Job 12:6 "The tents of marauders are undisturbed, and those who provoke God are secure--those who carry their god in their hands." ~SPLAT~ No, No, God...Why? A bird? REALLY? After all of this today, now a bird is going to POOP on my bible, my most treasured possession!!?? and so I cried..... I took a business card that was in my bible case and carefully scraped the gooey mess from the page opposite of what I was reading and finally found my resolve to continue reading where I left off. Job 12:7 "But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you;" Huh? No way? In haste I scrolled to the wet spot on the opposite page. Job 13:13 "Keep silent and let me speak; then let come to me what may. Why do I put my life in jeopardy and take my life in my hands? Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face. Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverence, for no godless man would dare come near him! Listen carefully to my words; let your ears take in what I say. Now that I have prepared my case, I know I will be vindicated." Now, with even more haste, I urgently ran to my husband to bring him comfort from God's Word...
Very shortly after, I found out that I was prgnant with our 4th child. After a previous very ill NICU baby, this pregnancy proved to be incredibly difficult both physically and in faith. Because of the trials of the prior November, my husband was able to be present for the pregnancy (both in and out of the hospital), delivery, and NICU stay for our premie baby before deploying for 12 months, a feet that I would have endoured alone if things had not of transpired in the manner that they did.
Now, nearly 3 years later, we have kept the faith through a 12 month deployment, prevailed through yet another difficult pregnancy and sick newborn, and encountered numorous other trials while still clinging to the promise of God. Our 5th baby, Danae (vindicate) Ayana (He answers) Kalin (faithful), is our outward confession of that faith as well as our license plate which reads "VINDKTD" LOL. We trust in God's Word....as we are waiting (still). I cannot wait for the day that we can leap with the joy of our testimony that had made us lame. God has so much in store for us all but we must keep our eyes on Him.
-verb (used with object), -cat.ed, -cat.ing.
1. to clear, as from an accusation, imputation, suspicion, or the like: to vindicate someone's honor.
2. to afford justification for; justify, subsequent events vindicated his policy.
3. to uphold or justify by argument or evidence: to vindicate a claim.
4. to assert, maintain, or defend (a right, cause, etc.) against opposition.
5. to claim for oneself or another
6. Roman and Civil Law to regain possession, under claim of title of property through legal procedure, or to assert one's right to possession.
7. to get revenge for; avenge
8. obsolete. to deliver from; liberate
9. obsolete. to punish
November 2007...He came home heartbroken. His dreams shattered. Eight years of dedication and sacrifice stripped away with his honor, by the choice a man who seen him as just some Bible thumper who did not have his priorities in line, according to a social mind-set though not according to the Word of God. As he walked thru the door, my heart, that had prayed feverently for days and sick with anxiety, was broken as well. The pain on his face made the realization materialize that not only was his dreams and accomplishments in vain but that our family was now in a financial crises though still committed to live this military lifestyle with the exception of the luxuries that we had come to know and depend on.
Knowing that, with all of my sound intentions, I could not comfort my husband at this moment, I resorted to leave him laying in his own despair and thoughts and sit on the back deck, grabbing my Bible in the motion. As I sat with my bible in my lap, I cried out to the God of my hope, my rock, my fortress...my God who did not answer my prayers and grant us our hearts desire in that moment of decision. God why? God why? God WHY??? I screamed in my thoughts as the tears rolled down my face. In hope and faith, I opened by Bible.
Job 12... Okay, this seems appropriate, I guess. So there I began:Job 12:1 " Then Job replied: Doubtless you are the people, and wisdom will die with you!......" God why cant you just give me the answers that I need where I can understand? WHY!? WHY!? and so, I continued reading...Job 12:6 "The tents of marauders are undisturbed, and those who provoke God are secure--those who carry their god in their hands." ~SPLAT~ No, No, God...Why? A bird? REALLY? After all of this today, now a bird is going to POOP on my bible, my most treasured possession!!?? and so I cried..... I took a business card that was in my bible case and carefully scraped the gooey mess from the page opposite of what I was reading and finally found my resolve to continue reading where I left off. Job 12:7 "But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you;" Huh? No way? In haste I scrolled to the wet spot on the opposite page. Job 13:13 "Keep silent and let me speak; then let come to me what may. Why do I put my life in jeopardy and take my life in my hands? Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face. Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverence, for no godless man would dare come near him! Listen carefully to my words; let your ears take in what I say. Now that I have prepared my case, I know I will be vindicated." Now, with even more haste, I urgently ran to my husband to bring him comfort from God's Word...
Very shortly after, I found out that I was prgnant with our 4th child. After a previous very ill NICU baby, this pregnancy proved to be incredibly difficult both physically and in faith. Because of the trials of the prior November, my husband was able to be present for the pregnancy (both in and out of the hospital), delivery, and NICU stay for our premie baby before deploying for 12 months, a feet that I would have endoured alone if things had not of transpired in the manner that they did.
Now, nearly 3 years later, we have kept the faith through a 12 month deployment, prevailed through yet another difficult pregnancy and sick newborn, and encountered numorous other trials while still clinging to the promise of God. Our 5th baby, Danae (vindicate) Ayana (He answers) Kalin (faithful), is our outward confession of that faith as well as our license plate which reads "VINDKTD" LOL. We trust in God's Word....as we are waiting (still). I cannot wait for the day that we can leap with the joy of our testimony that had made us lame. God has so much in store for us all but we must keep our eyes on Him.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Been So Long
There is a time and season for everything under the sun (eccl 3:1) and knowing this gives me a smidge of comfort in confessing and apologizing for the months that my blog has stayed stagnant. During this season, my crazy yet beautiful life has once again changed drastically. My dear hubby returned home from a year overseas and our family has shared in the loss of our beloved Maggie, but welcomed the two new additions: Sadie, the Mastador, and sweet Dani, the latest and greatest to the Jonesy household, making us now a family of 7 and 2 dogs. We have moved as well; putting our house, on the "charming" Shasta Drive, up for rent and moving closer to Howard's work in hopes of dwindling down on our debt so that we can embark on that next big, great adventure.
So, as we turn another chapter in our lives, I invite you once again to join our journey as we embrace this world head-on sharing the love of Christ, in hopes of impacting the lives around us. Bless you my Friends.
So, as we turn another chapter in our lives, I invite you once again to join our journey as we embrace this world head-on sharing the love of Christ, in hopes of impacting the lives around us. Bless you my Friends.
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