Whatever is true…think on these things.

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Phil 4: 4-9

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”

I asked a very trusted friend how she deals with bullies and this is what she gave me. A memory verse. I’ll be honest, I was a little perplexed. I was looking for something that would put my “problem” in it’s proper place.

In other words, I wanted to convince my problem that I was right and she was wrong, and make her go away and well… I learned that I am my problem and other people’s actions and opinions are God’s problem.

I cannot control others, but I can control my response. My assignment for today is to praise God and rejoice in Him.

Alrighty then..

His Beloved

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I’m taking a break on my thoughts of bullies for an important message. I hope you watch this video.  Pastor Pete Wilson from Crosspoint church interviews sex therapist Betty Tyndall and author Randy Elrod about Sex, Lies, and Religion. I’ll admit, I am blown away.

I’m still gathering my thoughts on bullies and will write more about it soon, I promise. For now, I leave you with this. Please let me know your thoughts – whether positive or seemingly negative. I want to know. Thanks.

 

Edited:  The video isn’t embedding correctly. To see it please click on this link:  Sex, Lies, and Religion Interview

 

Thanks.

Bullies Don’t Scare Me Like They Used to.

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But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. —

Know any bullies in your life? I once believed that bullies were something that only existed on the play ground at school or on the walk home. I can remember being chased home by a boy up the street with threats of annihilation. Mom said he had a crush on me. I don’t believe her. I really think he just liked the fear that he was able to get out of me. It was a control thing.  I wasn’t the only kid he did that to. Sad part is someone had enough and ran him down with a car when he was older.

It was no different with the A-List girls. You’ve seen the movie “Mean Girls” haven’t you? — Them. Those ultra popular, pretty girls, who live to make the awkward, late bloomer as my mother would call it, girls like me miserable. I would inevitably allow those girls to define who I was — a sniveling mess of mascara hiding in the girls room – as an ugly, stupid, never get it right kid. The more they taunted, the more invisible I wanted to become.

I spent most of Jr High and a lot of high school hiding from girls like that. I was also a majorette and in student council. You’d think I’d know better. But I didn’t.

I’m embarrassed to admit this, but I got brave one year. As fate would have it, one of these mean girls was alone in the locker room. Her goonie body guards were nowhere to be found and I came up behind her, grabbed her hair and body slammed her face into the locker. What felt good for about five seconds didn’t feel so good afterwards. Her goonie friends weren’t as missing as I had thought and faster than you can say “detention” they threw my half dressed body onto the co-ed gymnasium floor, landing me at the feet of our middle school principal.

Getting even with cheap shots like that is never worth it.

Bullies exist well into adulthood and I’ll write about that tomorrow. For right now, I’d love to hear from you. Have you ever been bullied? What did you do?

Find Your Strongest Life, Marcus Buckingham – Book Review

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fysl_cover_full

Overview

In Find Your Strongest Life, Marcus Buckingham reveals the powerful key to bring fulfillment, peace, and control into a woman’s life.

In today’s world, can a woman truly “have it all”? A fulfilling career full of passion and performance? A belief that she is truly becoming the best, authentic version of herself? A happy, healthy life outside of work?

Countless women would roll their eyes at the possibility. Work is overwhelming. And for many of them, add the necessities of family and home. It all feels disconnected, out of control, and relentless.

In Find Your Strongest Life, Marcus Buckingham reveals the powerful key to help women draw enough strength from life to feel fulfilled, loved, successful, and in control. Even more, he helps women reconnect with their purpose and gives a starting point for change. A research-based message that applies to work and life, Find Your Strongest Life shows women how they really can have it all . . . the right kind of all.

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Marcus Buckingham is a world renowned speaker and corporate consultant. He is a member of the Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on Leadership and Management and graduated from Cambridge University with a Master’s Degree in Social and Political Science. He definately has credentials.

Finding Your Strongest Life was born from a workshop he led for Oprah Winfrey. The workshop was such a hit that 1.7 millon people down loaded the three hour video. When the workshop was featured on Oprah’s show, more than 100,000 unique contributors came online to post messages. There definately seems to be a need for this book and Marcus’ message.

Even though the book is very well written and full of ideas and actionable items, I personally did not read anything new in this book. To me there is a lot of common sense ideas and application. That could very well be because I am 44 years old, I’ve had a corporate career, my children are almost grown and I already live what I consider to be a very strong and fullfilled life. I’m already doing the very things Marcus talks about. If that isn’t  you, and you want to know more about how to live a strong and fulfilled life, check it out.

For more information about this book see the following resource pages.

Marcus Buckingham Bio

Sample Book Content

Purchase Information

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finding Rest

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It is in the quiet of morning, that God sings to my heart a love song so strong and pure that nothing can stand against it and beauty finds rest.–Deana O’Hara

What moves you?

What voice calls you in the morning?

Where do you find rest?

Ablaze Church Update — September 28, 2009

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Welcome to our weekly update. Helping everyone keep up with what’s new at Ablaze isn’t always easy. The most difficult aspect of that is finding time to report.

We have many wonderful things going on right now. The best is our home congregation, OSL, voted to allow $15,000 that was reserved for a land purchase to be moved in order to pay for Open Arms Institute to come in and do a Market Research Study. This in-depth independant study will provide us with clear cut answers as to whether or not Broken Arrow is indeed a viable area for our church plant and learning center. I think that is a positive step in the right direction. Once we receive the results of this study, our core team will have a better understanding of the road ahead.

Our voters meeting this past weekend helped clarify a lot of questions that did still exist in the minds of people at our home congregation. One of the questions was is Ablaze a Mission Start or a satellite/Daughter location? According to LCMS COVENANT CONGREGATIONS site, we are both. The words are really used synonymously through out synod. Which can be confusing to people, I know. OSL is a Covenant Congregation and has been since 2008. We are the only Convenant Congregation in the state of Oklahoma. I think that is exciting.

The good news is both locations, our home location at OSL, and our Mission location in Broken Arrow utilize the same staff, same resources, and are part of the same body.

Broken Arrow is growing to the point that we need a new facility to meet in. We need our own place. This is why, now is the time to begin researching our options within the community we serve.

Our youth that meet at Ablaze are now wanting to meet during the week for fellowship and Bible Study. Our leaders, Erric and Jen are looking into viable options for that.

Wonderful things are happening.

All Glory to God.

One Month Tomorrow

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Can you believe that I dropped my oldest son off at college one month ago tomorrow? I didn’t think I’d survive the change. I mean part of me knew I would, and part of me was afraid I wouldn’t. You can read how it went HERE. I am happy to report that things have gotten easier for me. Even though I miss him a lot, I no longer cry at the drop of a hat.

I realized that I was treating the situation as if he had died. And he hasn’t. But I was treating it that way. Telling myself that Charlie would want me to be strong. What kind of mother am I if I just curl up and stop living because my son moved out? I’m better than this. And I willed myself through my first couple of weeks. God and I got really close again, trust me.

It’s not that I haven’t been planning for this. I have. My boys are a huge part of my life, and yet I have made sure they are not my total life lest I wake up feeling hopelessly alone when they leave. What I didn’t expect was the tidal wave of emotions. I didn’t expect to grieve.

But you know what? Grieving is okay.

We still facebook each other. He does call. And he has visited home once already. College is going great. He’s going to be just fine. And so am I.

She Did What She Could – Elisa Morgan

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I am giving away a free copy of “She Did What She Could” written by Elisa Morgan this month. Please be sure to leave a comment on this post for your chance to win.

shedidwhatshecould_140What is the premise behind your new book, She Did What She Could?

  Most of us care deeply about the needs around us – poverty, injustice, everyday concerns of those in our families and in our offices and in our neighborhoods. But faced with the challenges of getting food on the table and children to and from activities and keeping up with our jobs etc, we feel more than a little overwhelmed. Who has the time or the energy to start another nonprofit or to participate in yet another celebrity-help-the-world-athon? We conclude we have to do something BIG to make a difference. Not true. We don’t have to do something BIG to make a difference. In a Bible story where Mary of Bethany anoints Jesus with a beautiful gift of perfume before his death, Jesus applauds her action saying, “She did what she could.” We can make a difference every day by simply doing what we could in the given moment before us.

  When did the idea for this book/movement come to you?

 I’d been reading what I call the “Girl Stories” in the gospels – stories where a woman is the main character. I was stopped in my tracks by Mary’s acting out her love for Jesus and by his pairing her action with the gospel. Mary lived loved. She acted out her faith by doing something with who she was and what she had in a moment that mattered. At the same time I was reading that story, I was suddenly overwhelmed by issues in our world like the HIV-AIDS pandemic and poverty and needs everywhere I turned. I began to think about the power of one of us acting and then another and another. I began to prayerfully wonder – what if I did what I could – just like Mary did? And then each of us did what we could? The whole world could be changed!

 What percentage of church members are active in ministry?

 It’s reported that 20% of the people do 80% of the work.

 What reasons do you think members have for not serving?

 Lots of folks don’t participate due to the busyness of life and the perception that unless we do something BIG it won’t make a difference. We feel guilty that we can’t do MORE. We feel inadequate because we aren’t more godly – or because of something hidden in our past. We feel incompetent because we aren’t trained. We’re tired and overwhelmed. And then there’s the fact that lots of us aren’t even “members” of a church. We’re not sure what to do with church – even though we love Jesus. We have a million struggles that keep us from “doing”. SDWSC gives a bite-size offering to everyone to participate in living out our faith and making a difference.

 Do you feel that many church members are intimidated by those who are very involved at church?

You bet. If you’re not in the “in crowd” or gifted with public gifts like teaching or are marginalized in some way, it’s WAY intimidating to step up and say, ”Hey, I’d like to help.” SDWSC welcomes ALL to join in and act. It refreshes those who are weary in well-doing as well.

 In the book, you point out that this message of everyone doing what they can is Biblical. What story are you referring to specifically?

 The story is told in Mark 14 but is also told in Matthew and John as well. Just before Jesus’ death on the cross for the sins of all humankind, Mary of Bethany took a jar of nard, a very expensive perfume, and poured it on Jesus – as a symbol of anointing his body before his death. In a moment when the gesture would mean the most to him. You get the impression that Mary hadn’t really planned out this action. It seems more spontaneous. And while the nard was expensive, that wasn’t the main point. Mary acted out of her understanding that Jesus really was the Christ and he really loved her. She wanted to give back. She took what she had – nard – and acted with it in a moment that mattered to Jesus and to the world. She did what she could.

 You’ve shared your message with the MOPS organization. What has the response been so far to the SDWSC (She Did What She Could) movement?

 Moms are passionate about being the best moms they can be. They’re also passionate to make a difference in their world. They know that they may not be able to do something GIANT in the day to day of raising children. SDWSC gives them a methodology for acting in a way that matters in their daily lives. With a neighbor or a coworker. With a child. To care for the earth. To reach out to someone who has less and needs more. Moms have pasted the SDWSC flare on their Facebook pages and are telling the SDWSC stories, encouraging others to do what they can as well.

 How do you hope churches and ministries will use your message to mobilize their members? 

 Those who’ve never served can be invited to join in with the practical – doable – message of SDWSC. And those who are weary in well-doing can be encouraged that Jesus doesn’t ask us to do EVERYTHING or ALL we could but rather WHAT we could do.

 How do you hope readers can change their lives with your message?

 She did what she could (SDWSC) is a mantra that rules my days as opportunities come before me. I run each through the grid of SDWSC. Is it something that I can uniquely handle? Is it a moment that matters NOW? Will I make a difference if I do WHAT I could – not ALL or EVERYTHING I could? I hope and pray that readers will do the same. She did what she could. When I do what I could and you do what you could and we do what we could – we can change the world. We can be the body of Christ in action, on the earth, demonstrating individually and together what it means to live loved.

 Morgan_Elisa_BT-transAbout the Author

 Elisa Morgan is a nationally recognized speaker and the author of more than fifteen books, including the best–selling What Every Mom Needs and Mom’s Devotional Bible. Elisa has served as CEO of MOPS International since 1989. She is also the publisher of MomSense and FullFill magazines and is a frequent contributor to Christianity Today. Elisa is married to Evan (vice president of strategic development for RBC Ministries, known internationally for Our Daily Bread, and founder of christiancourses.com). They have two grown children and one grandchild and live in Centennial, Colorado.

Wordless Wednesdays – The Evolution of Beauty

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Thanks to Hilary Blair for this one. If you’ve ever wondered how the femmes in the magazines can look so great, you need to watch this. No wonder our perception of beauty is distorted. Watch the video that’s still causing a stir all over the world. Length:1:23

Ablaze Mission Start Broken Arrow 9/15/09

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Our core team had a group meeting last week, and then a board meeting this week.  Ablaze Church is still running strong, and we are facing some very real blessings that are driving new needs.

Having a mobile church is taking it’s toll on our people and our equipment.

Moving things in and out of our trailer, and storing them in a non-climate controlled garage at Our Savior has caused breakeage. We have replaced $6,000 worth of equipment this year alone.

The team is getting tired. Our core team is there every Saturday from 3 pm to 10 pm, loading, unloading, sound check, teaching, praising, and packing it all back up. That doesn’t include the additional 10 – 20 hours during the week for planning, practice, and administration.

We’ve outgrown our facility. We feel like the Old Lady who lived in a shoe – we have so many kids we don’t know what to do. We’ve run out of space at our present location and our youth group has grown to the point they want to meet outside of Saturday night.

These are all good things, and we need prayers for a more permanent location. 

Having a 100% layminister/volunteer run mission start may work in the beginning, at some point though, paid staff needs to be hired in order to move forward. We are at that next step.

So my friends, please keep Ablaze Church in your prayers as our core team comes up with a plan for the future.

Pax

Deana

ABLAZE CHURCH IS A MISSION START SPONSORED BY THE LUTHERAN CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOR, LCMS, TULSA OKLAHOMA. IT IS FULLY SUPPORTED THROUGH IT’S OWN VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS AND MEETS AT LIBERTY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AT 7:00 PM EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT. THE SUPPORT STAFF ARE 100% LAY-MINISTRY VOLUNTEERS. OFFICIATING THE SERVICES IS REVEREND TIMOTHY DREIER, ORDAINED LCMS MINISTER AND SENIOR PASTOR AT THE LUTHERAN CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOR. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE OUR WEB PAGE AT WWW.ABLAZECHURCH.COM