I am who God says that I am

I needed to hear this today.  It is a re-post from a while ago.

The world is constantly telling us that we are NOT 

Good enough 

Skinny enough 

Pretty enough 

Smart enough

Rich enough

I am tired of trying to live up to the world's idea of who I should be and constantly failing.  It is a never ending battle that I never win.

 Let's choose to look at what the creator of the universe says about us! 

There is an amazing list of statements entitled  "Who I am in Christ" that the reminds us of who we are. Take a look at just a few of them and be reminded that you are deeply loved and called by name. 

God says these things about you!

I am alive with Christ (Ephesians 2:5). 

I am free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2).

I am born of God, and the evil one does not touch me (1 John 5:18).

I am holy and without blame before Him in love (Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:16).

I have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16; Philippians 2:5).

I have the peace of God that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7).

I have the Jesus living in me; greater is He Who is in me than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).

I have received the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus, the eyes of my understanding being enlightened (Ephesians 1:17,18). 

I have no lack for my God supplies all of my need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19). 

I can quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one with my shield of faith (Ephesians 6:16).

I can do all things through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:13).

I am more than a conqueror through Him Who loves me (Romans 8:37).

I am greatly loved by God (Romans 1:7; Ephesians 2:4; Colossians 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:4).

I press on toward the goal to win the prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward (Philippians 3:14). 

 God has not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). 

It is not I who live, but Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20).

Live in the knowledge and truth of who God says that you are! 

There have been days when quite honestly this is difficult for me. I know my sins and shortcomings, they are always before me. At times it becomes difficult for me to think positive thoughts about myself. In these times I choose to believe God and what He says about me.

Listen in on my conversation with Him.

 "God, I have a hard time believing that you see me as special or worthy. I have failed again and again to do what I have promised. I just can't do it, I can't be what the bible says I am. I am just too weak and so unbelieving."

In those moments, I almost always hear Him whisper, "I know you are weak, but I AM strong. My grace is sufficient for you. I can do all things through you. Just let me. Trust me. Trust me. Trust me." 

I am choosing to trust Him, to believe what He says about me. 

How about you?

You can view a complete list of the I am statements here.

I am so Thankful for the Sides! Paleo Recipes

Lessons from Paleo Recipes.

There are many big things in life that cause us to be thankful. Health, wealth, new life, success, joyous celebrations, reunions, forgiveness, sacrifice. All of these create emotions of gratitude. Yet every day, quietly surrounding us are the sides. The little, almost insignificant events, that fill in the small minutes of our lives give us a plenitude of thankfulness. The quietness of a moment, a smile from a friend, the tender touch from a child, these are the special "sides' of life!

As I am writing this I am singing, "Give Thanks" by Don Moen.

Give thanks with a grateful heart

Give thanks to the Holy One

Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son

As I made a Paleo Thanksgiving meal the importance of the sides were reinforced in my stomach this week!

The big items of ham and turkey are fabulous- but the sides stole the show on my table. Below are the savory recipes. 

Green Beans with Bacon and Mushrooms
Recipe can be found here.

This recipe was very quick to make and so delicious! I would eat the whole bowl for dinner!

















Quinoa Stuffing


Ingredients
1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken broth
1 onion diced 
2 stalks of celery diced 
2 tsp poultry seasoning
salt and pepper
1 Tbs olive oil                                    

Directions
Saute celery and onions in olive oil.
Add poultry seasoning.
Combine in pot with quinoa, chicken
broth, bring to a boil then simmer for
30 minutes. Remove from heat and let 
stand for 5 minutes. Season with salt
and pepper.  

So yummy!

My guests ate the whole bowl!!

Zucchini, Carrot, Blueberry Muffins
2 1/2 cups almond flour
3 eggs

1/4 cup coconut oil
1 cup shredded zucchini
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup blueberries
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 zested lemon

Combine every thing except zucchini, carrots and blueberries. Then fold these in the mixture. Spoon into lined muffin tins, sprinkle with chopped walnuts and   bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Remember to be grateful even for the sides!

Guest Blog -My Grace story

My story is one of His Grace, Love and Forgiveness.  Fifteen years ago I was in a very different place in my life.  I was in a relationship with a man that was far from Honoring God in any way.  I became pregnant, we really never discussed it with each other, and his response to me was to give me the money for an abortion.  That told me that he did not intend to support me if I decided to keep the baby.  I was young and did not have the means to support myself very well let alone myself and a child.  I did not want to shame my family or become a statistic of unwed mothers with children.  So I decided it would be best to terminate my pregnancy.

I made and appointment with the clinic, the day of my appointment was a beautiful bright sunny day in the middle of August.  They took me back and did what they call counseling.  This is where they tell you that your baby is not a baby; it is just a clump of cells.  At this point I am ready to get this over with.  The next step was to do an ultrasound to see how far along I was, which turned out that I was about 6 ½ weeks along, so they told me that they could do the procedure with no problems.  You must be at least 6 weeks pregnant before they will do the procedure.  The next room they put me in was the actual procedure room.  It was very sterile and white; the procedure table was directly under a skylight.  As I lay there waiting for this to be done, all I could do was feel like I was making the worst mistake of my life.  It was too late, the procedure had already started. 

All I could do was stare out at the clear blue sky as this happened.  My thoughts at that time were all of God and how it was as if He had a window to my soul that day.  I did not like how I was feeling as this all came to an end that day.

I went home that evening and tried to justify what I had done, I did this for several days without really telling anyone  (one friend did go with me and try to talk me out of it, but my mind was made up that day).  This friend was amazing, she was there to talk to and did not judge me for what I had done.  As the week went on the guilt of what I had done was eating me alive.  The following weekend I tried to commit suicide by swallowing a bunch of pills. 

As I sat on my bed waiting for the pills to take affect I heard a voice say to me “RaeAnn, this is not what I want for your life.”  And in one swift movement I was regurgitating the pills.  

Later  I talked with my one friend and she suggested that I talk to someone that we worked with.  This lady’s husband was a youth pastor at a church.  She thought that maybe this lady would be able to talk with me and help me through this or maybe her husband would be able to point me in the right direction for some help.

I did meet with this lady and her husband about 2 weeks after my abortion at their church, he made some calls on my behalf the following week and found a Bible based abortion recovery program called Mourning Joy Ministries.  I went with it but was a bit unsure of how I felt about this at first. I was afraid that God would never be able to forgive me for what I had done.

The youth pastor’s wife went with me for my initial meeting with the leader of the recovery group and I did feel a little better about things as far as going through with this group thing.  In the meantime I continued attending their church every Sunday and along with going through the recovery program I began to see just how God sees His children.  I was amazed at the love and forgiveness that I was experiencing. 

This verse helped me to understand how God saw me:

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  Psalm 139:13-15

As I continued to dwell on that verse and go to my group and church,  my life began to change and for the first time ever in my life I knew what It meant to want to live for someone Greater than myself.  Six months later I made a Profession of Faith in this church. Later I began to serve in our youth ministry and have been serving God ever since.

It is amazing how God works. He can will take something so terrible and bring something good from it.  I have had the privilege to share about my experience with others at events and in a ministry to help others that have been through the same thing, so they too may experience God’s Grace and Forgiveness.

Please remember this, 

for it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8

 I also believe that there are no chance happenings in life.  God places people in your path for a reason.  My two friends that helped me through this horrible time in my life were a huge part in me turning my life over to Christ.  If it had not been for their love and support I do not know what may have become of my life.  But because of Christ in them, they loved me and did not judge me & they taught me what it is to be Christ Like.  I am eternally grateful to them for investing so much into my life. 

RaeAnn

Thank you for sharing your story of God's healing grace with us RaeAnn!

For more information

www.abortionrecovery.org is the ARIN network which stands for Abortion Recovery International  & is based in California has a lot of information for almost any place internationally .  They have a 24 hour help line 1-800-712-4357

www.hopeafterabortion.com is a link to Project Rachel for people in the Catholic denomination all over the United States.

www.michiganpregnancy.com is in the state of Michigan – Michigan Pregnancy Resource Centers

Thank you note to Ramona

It has been a while since there has been a blog. Recently I had the privilege to be alongside of my husband and his family as we said goodbye to my mother in law. It has felt in congruent for me to write as I was grieving, almost frivolous. Every event in our lives leaves an impression and this one has left an eternal one in my heart. 

Thank you Ramona

You taught me so much about how to show love to others.  Thank you for giving me a great recipe for it! 

Ramona's Love Recipe

• Welcome people with a big hug.
• Tell people that you are so happy that they are visiting.
• Be concerned about them and their comfort. 
• Offer the best of what you have when a friend is with you.
• Invite people into your home no matter what it looks like.
• Encourage guests to fall asleep on your couch.
• Remember others birthday with a song.
• Be willing to sacrifice for others in need.
• Share your joy with a song or a dance, no matter where you are at! 
• Keep memories alive by sharing stories about people you love.
• Say goodbye as if it were the last time you would see someone.
• Always say "I Love you".

I am forever grateful for these lessons of love that you modeled for me. Thank you for including me in your family, welcoming me into your heart and giving me a beautiful life with your son,