How can I encourage you in the midst of all the voices and all the noises in the middle of cooking dinner, while feeding a toddler, while letting the dog out and letting her back in How can I encourage you? when the baby is napping and the dog stops yapping when the hum of the baby monitor meets the humdrum of the washer and dryer and it's a lot quieter How can I encourage you? I'm right here, too what freedom and blessings all day right in front of me and yet I can't seem to see them clouded by worry and wondering as the moments flee How can I encourage you? self, bless the Lord soul, sing to the Maker this has purpose and eternal value as a little soul watches my every move and hears my words and tones and songs How can I encourage you? right where I am is where I've been placed planted, rooted, with the opportunity to share Jesus the daily isn't lost on me, the present is His opportunity Right where you are is where He has placed you don't let your day be lost, the present is where He meets you God didn’t set us up for an angry rejection but for salvation by our Master, Jesus Christ. He died for us, a death that triggered life. Whether we’re awake with the living or asleep with the dead, we’re alive with him! So speak encouraging words to one another. Build up hope so you’ll all be together in this, no one left out, no one left behind. I know you’re already doing this; just keep on doing it. 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11
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With all that's gone on in our world the last few weeks, it seems like everyone is getting crazier and crazier. Or maybe we just have more news and the word travels faster? I don't know. But in this 24/7 news culture, it seems that the loudest voices aren't the ones speaking hope. I just thought with all our sharing and retweeting, as Christians, as the supposed majority, we should do our part in sharing a little more hope. "'Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.' At this they exclaimed, 'Now we know that you are demon possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that whoever obeys your word will never taste death. Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?'" (John 8) Important to note:
Tasting Hope The taste of sweat in your mouth on a long run. Unmistakeable. And kind of gross. The taste of salty ocean when an unexpected wave crashes into you, buoying you into the reality of its power and your smallness. The sweet taste of wedding cake being crammed into your mouth by your beloved. Hey, that's all that most of us get! We all understand it - it's one of the five senses we learned about in grade school. But the other day while reading The Story the phrase "will never taste death" stood out to me. I hope it's a reminder to you if you're a believer in Christ of the hope that you have. The hope we are commanded to share. Let's spread the taste of hope, because of the infinite mercy and wonderful mystery of the One who tasted death on our behalf. But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. He is greater than Abraham. Jesus is Messiah. There is hope."We never know where God has hidden streams. We see a large stone and have no idea that it covers the source of a spring. We see a rocky area and never imagine that it is hiding a fountain. God leads me into hard and difficult places, and it is there I realize I am where eternal streams abide." -Streams in the Desert What comes to mind when you think of a well? Here are a few of my random journal scribbles. They provide water. They bring life. Even in drought. Sometimes you have to dig deep to get to that water. They bring water from the ground of all places. What was unseen is revealed. You need a bucket or something to bring the water up. Water is there, but you have do expend effort to bring it to the surface. If the well is good, the water lasts for years and years. You get to use well water even when city water is regulated. People "go to the wishing well." I think of Jesus and the woman at the well, or Jacob meeting Rachel for the first time. I think of him rolling away the stone that covered the well, Rachel watching in awe of his strength, of him giving her a kiss! I became a dog mom in 2011 when Marcus finally gave in to my protests that the apartment pet deposit would be worth it. I'm so glad he gave in. And I'm so glad I let him pick the dog. We got her from CAPS; so if you're local to the Houston area, go adopt. In 2015 when Jaxson joined the fam we realized several of the ways they're alike. Some are pretty comical. Obviously, I know that human kids are way better. But still, being dog parents taught us mini-lessons that prepared us in many ways to parenting a human child.
1. They're both afraid of the vacuum and blender. So special arrangements are made. Dad takes the kids outside so mom can clean without any barking or crying. 2. They both go for the pile of crumbs, dirt, and dust when I'm sweeping. It never fails, if I've got a pretty good pile ready to put in the dust pan - either the dog's walked through it or the baby's crawled through it. They're fast. 3. They both cost me a little extra money at the grocery store, but they are so easy to spend for. Those little bones she'll devour in minutes, or those cute bath toys he will love for $3. I'm a sucker. My first year of motherhood has made me realize so much about my mother. Here are 10 things I learned from you that I would like to thank you for, mom. Thanks for being such a great mom. Happy Mother's Day. 1. I don't have to do anything to earn or keep your love. If I had to take the SAT a third time because I did worse after getting tutoring, it didn't matter. You made sure we got what I needed (those 15 points!) to get the scholarship. 2. You would do anything to keep me from feeling hurt, pain, or loss. No matter what was going on, I knew I could tell you. I still do. PLUS, you totally kicked cancer's butt. 3. Late nights or long days are worth it. All J has to do is smile and for a few moments I forget that I haven't slept much this year. This little person is going to be a light in his generation. 4. Cooking dinner nearly every night for years and years wasn't something you did because it was always "fun." Sometimes it's a chore; sometimes it can be fun. Don't have all the ingredients for a recipe? Don't fret, you can wing it, and it will usually turn out great or you can just give it a new name. I totally turned slider burger patties into "sloppy burgers" for lunch today when I overdid the mayo. 5. The house doesn't have to be perfectly clean before you can have people over. What matters more than a magazine-ready living room or new decor is a house full of love and faith. A real house is more relaxed. 6. Traditions and routines, no matter how small and inexpensive, are often the most weighty and valued memories. I'll always remember weekend grocery trips with you and eating out for lunch while we were "in town." 7. The most teachable faith moments are the everyday ones - not usually the "official" ones at church. I'll always remember the time you bought the homeless man some Starbucks and told him that Jesus loved him. 8. Giving to others doesn't have to be Oprah-sized. Simple acts of kindness speak volumes. I'll always remember baking cookies for the widows and shut-ins and delivering them on Valentine's Day. 9. One of the best gifts to give a kid is that mom and dad are a team and they like each other. I remember you and dad being together on the couch or cleaning up in the kitchen and having your own joke or conversation going on - and the times you'd take rides on the four-wheeler or go out to the field - just the two of you. I see the importance of this now, even more, as it's so easy to give 110% to J and save only a grumpy little % for my husband. 10. The most important and freeing thing is, you don't have to know what you're doing all the time to be a good mother. You just guess, pray, and ask others for help, and adjust as necessary along the way... and they turn out OK. Thanks for being a wonderful mom and now a wonderful nana. Happy Mother's Day! I consider myself one of the lucky ones. I'm the one who thinks of blog posts when I lay my head down on the pillow. After the fog of post-vacation laundry, grocery shopping, and making 7-layer-dip and calling it "supper" has passed. And I can't sleep until I get up and get it out. I wish for ways to encourage you - wherever you're at. Job hunting, nursing a new baby, praying for a baby, aching for Mr. Right, caring for sick family members ... underneath the stack of bills, awaiting test results, or heavy with a sense of dread - I pray you can find encouragement in this verse. FEAR NOT, LITTLE FLOCK; for it is YOUR FATHER'S GOOD PLEASURE to GIVE you the KINGDOM. Luke 12:32 You've been handed the keys to something special. God is not worried that you're going to wreck it. He hasn't installed GPS to watch your every turn, or judge your every maneuver. He already knows the future. He's not surprised when you don't quite have enough strength on your own. In the midst of Jesus' command to not worry about clothes or food, but to "Instead, seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you" (Luke 12:31), He gives this assurance. He is a GOOD FATHER. He shepherds His FLOCK of children. And it's His GOOD PLEASURE to give his Kingdom ...The Greek word used for good pleasure is eudokeō: "It seems good to one, is one's good pleasure; to think it good, choose, determine, decide; to do willingly; to be ready to, to prefer to, choose rather; to be well pleased with, take pleasure in, to be favorably inclined towards one." Not only did Jesus leave His heavenly Kingdom to pay the price for sinners on the cross, He gives the Kingdom itself. No one is twisting His arm. Our attempts at good works do not indebt Him. He does it willingly. Because He wants to. Because it makes Him happy. During our recent trip to California, we went to The Getty Center, one of my favorite parts being the Robert Irwin Central Garden. While we strolled around snapping pictures and admiring the pattern of succulents and the bright flowers, I realized we're all, in some way, always trying to get back to the original Garden. Across history and cultures, we've built and admired gardens. Why are we so drawn to them? I think to be reunited with our Maker. He likes to be good to you. He is not acting out of character when He does good things to you. He is not always angry looking for a reason to punish. In some way, echoes of the Garden remind us of He is heart toward us. He is good. He wants to be with us. That He has paid the price for fellowship with Him. Will we accept His gift? Daily press in. Daily seek His Kingdom first. Fear not. Here's a message from John Piper on Luke 12:32. It's worth a listen. Love, Kennan I count being a media minister's wife as one of my biggest blessings. For starters, I get to see some of the behind-the-scenes work that goes into church media life that many don't even know about. The creative process is both energizing and tiring. There are failed attempts at new strategies to bring change, as well as big dreams that come to life and point people to the Lord in meaningful, powerful ways. Sometimes I'm one of the first people to see a testimony video and weep as it moves my heart and brings me to tears. Other times I get texted a photo of the new stage design or the mock-up for an upcoming publication. All the while, I'm proud of the man who put his heart and talent into making it appear effortless. The best church media is media that doesn't draw attention to itself. I'm also the one of the first to share my husband. Sunday mornings in a groggy haze I whisper, "I love you, too" as he kisses me goodbye around 5:30 a.m. I get up a couple hours later, make biscuits for two, and take him a few when I get to service - somehow always a few minutes late - my new "on time" as a mom. Thursday nights I keep the oven on warm with the remnants of dinner awaiting his late-night return after band rehearsal. And beyond the "normal" church events, there's also weddings, birthday parties, funerals, youth discipleship weekends... And sometimes, on weekends like this one, there are women's retreats. I missed last year's feeling too pregnant to be in a car that long. And for the first time, I'm by myself overnight with our 10-month-old son. Being a media minister's wife is a challenge, and it's a gift. I also believe it's a calling. Sometimes I have to say "no" to things. Other times, I get to say "yes," and learn the joy of little bursts of spontaneity. Like taking Jaxson to a small weeknight concert because Marcus is working. Or meeting him for lunch on a random day at a steakhouse (we never go to steakhouses!) because we're still carefully spending a gift card he got as a "thank you" from one of his weddings. So here's to my best friend who's kicking it with over a hundred Grand Parkway ladies in the Piney Woods tonight. I'm proud of you. I'm so glad to get to do life with you. We're cheering for you. I'm pushed to greater dependence on the Lord on these solo nights - as my strength isn't strong enough. My good attitude quickly runs out when there's pee in the tub, crumbs on the kitchen floor, and chewed up toilet paper rolls in the bathroom. He is sufficient. His joy isn't circumstantial. PRAISE. Married ladies, in whatever ways you support your man, whatever his profession may be, remember that what you are doing on the homefront is irreplaceable and valuable and important. Single ladies, whether you're raising littles on your own or living alone, press in to the Lord's friendship. Take your burdens to Him. Eleanor Roosevelt said that "Women are like teabags, we don't know our true strength until we're in hot water." So with that, I'll fill a glass with sweet tea, flip the baby monitor on, and run a hot bubble bath. I know Saturday night's coming and my Piney Woods camper will be home soon. "Debt is dumb. Cash is king. And the paid-off home mortgage has taken the place of the BMW as the status symbol of choice." Yep. I've got that memorized. Here are more typical symptoms of a Dave Ramsey-aholic. 1. If someone calls the Dave Ramsey Show and asks anything to do with the Baby Steps I know the answer before Dave says it. After all, the Baby Steps are simple. They're for babies. They work. Why would anyone think they'd be the ones to try to change them? I've taken advantage of my stay-at-home work-at-home mom freedom and typically take Jax on an afternoon stroller ride. While we walk, we listen to Dave Ramsey. What else? 2. I actually like thrift stores now. I get a real kick out of stretching a dollar. Those white LOFT jeans, I got 'em for $2. Those GAP capris? $2. And don't forget the more-than-cute-barely-worn dress shirts for baby J for just 75 cents. I've learned the Buckner thrift store ways. It's something Marcus and I enjoy doing together. And while I used to head straight to the books, I've learned to dig a little harder and have found some real treasures. Nothing like making that fun money last. 3. I fill out all of the surveys. All of them. Free chicken sandwich if I tell you how my visit was with a few clicks? You got it. Free Route 44? Sign me up. I love seeing the survey at the end of receipts. Free is fun. My husband and I took Financial Peace University in 2011 and it changed our lives for the better. To find a class near you, click here. I love love stories. That's part of the reason I wanted to share several Real Love Stories with you on the blog in February. But after church on Sunday and meeting with our Grand Parkway community group later that night, I realized the incompleteness of sharing just part of the picture. The effortless way our love stories begin doesn't indicate the manor in which they will last. Marriage is hard. Being a wife is not usually love notes and spontaneous date nights. Sometimes it's piles of laundry and schedule disagreements. Here are a few observations from women who are in the thick of it. Committed. But in the thickness of day-to-day marriage. 1. Sometimes you are called to speak knowing you won't be heard. Moses was commanded to speak but told he wouldn't be heard. How's that for encouragement? Go, get 'em Moses. You tell Pharaoh what he's got coming if he doesn't let My people go. Sometimes our soft, gentle obedience to speak the truth in love might mean we're not heard the first time. (And just if I was about to forget, I spotted this pic above on Instagram this morning.) 2. Sometimes you will need submit to leadership you don't agree with, knowing it's ultimately God you are submitting to. I was cleaning our office closet earlier today, something I've been putting off since before Jaxson was even born, and I found this note I'd saved from a Bible study a few semesters ago. 3. Sometimes it will feel like you are doing everything around the house. I mean. Everything. You can't count. It will always feel like you're "losing." It's likely to never feel 50/50 in marriage, so you've got to find a way to ask for help when you need it, let things go when they are not absolutely necessary, and be OK with a little more "mess." Marriage is wonderful and beautiful and worth it! But we're missing the big picture if we miss the fact that it represents God's covenant with His bride, the Church. We will quickly lose motivation to do what's right in marriage when we lose Christ and His bride as our frame of reference. Then it becomes "I'll do this, if you'll do that," or "You get your way here, and I'll get mine over here." If you've got a few minutes, check out the message from Neil on Sunday. “The Christians idea of marriage is based on Christ’s words that a man and wife are to be regarded as a single organism...The male and the female were made to be combined together in pairs, not simply on a sexual level, but totally combined. I'll leave you with a few questions Neil asked during the sermon: What is malnourished in your relationship? What has grown cold? And one more C.S. Lewis quote....
He also says in Mere Christianity: "Being in love is a good thing, but it is not the best thing. There are many things below it, but there are also things above it. You cannot make it the basis of a whole life. It is a noble feeling, but it is still a feeling. Now no feeling can be relied on to last in its full intensity, or even to last at all. Knowledge can last, principles can last, habits can last; but feelings come and go. And in fact, whatever people say, the state called ‘being in love’ usually does not last. If the old fairy-tale ending ‘They lived happily ever after’ is taken to mean ‘They felt for the next fifty years exactly as they felt the day before they were married,’ then it says what probably never was nor ever would be true, and would be highly undesirable if it were. Who could bear to live in that excitement for even five years? What would become of your work, your appetite, your sleep, your friendships? But, of course, ceasing to be ‘in love’ need not mean ceasing to love. Love in this second sense-love as distinct from ‘being in love’-is not merely a feeling. It is a deep unity, maintained by the will and deliberately strengthened by habit; reinforced by (in Christian marriages) the grace which both partners ask, and receive, from God. They can have this love for each other even at those moments when they do not like each other; as you love yourself even when you do not like yourself. They can retain this love even when each would easily, if they allowed themselves, be ‘in love’ with someone else. ‘Being in love’ first moved them to promise fidelity: this quieter love enables them to keep the promise. It is on this love that the engine of marriage is run: being in love was the explosion that started it." If you're looking for encouragement in your marriage, check out these great resources: Revive Our Hearts Focus on the Family FamilyLife Matt and Jessica met at a gas station when they were in high school. "I can say it was about as close to love at first sight as you can get," says Matt. It took Jessica a few years to catch the same vision. But Matt was patient ... and persistent. "I was very cautious about dating," says Jessica. "I had committed to only date a guy when I felt like he was the guy I was going to marry. Sounds crazy, I know, but I believe God definitely revealed this to me and saved me much heartache from not dating anyone but my husband." Jessica began praying for her future husband when she was 13. As she entered her teen years, she began to feel that God wanted more for her than jumping right into the dating game. That there was something better. She began dreaming about what her future husband might be like and the characteristics that she wanted in a man. "During this waiting, I was also challenged by the thought that if I had these high expectations for my future husband, he probably had high expectations for me as well, and I needed to be developing the characteristics of a godly woman and a godly wife." During her high school years, Jessica did turn down a few dates. "I knew that none of these guys were the guy that I was going to marry, and I simply didn't want to have to explain these frivolous relationships to my future husband," says Jessica. "The amount of fun or excitement that I could have gotten by dating these guys was simply not worth it to me. I know some girls may feel like they don’t want to turn anyone away because 'What if he is the one?!' However, I firmly believe if you are trying to honor the Lord and follow His lead, He will show you the right guy when he comes along." Love At First Sight So back to the beginning of this story: Jessica was on the way to a high school football game with friends (Matt's cousins and extended family) when the two were first introduced. "When I met Matt, I had been praying for a friend, someone I could trust and who would encourage me and spur me on in my walk with the Lord," says Jessica. Some of the character qualities Matt first noticed about Jessica was her positive attitude and maturity. "She radiated Christ," says Matt. "She was obviously beautiful." A few of the things that later drew Jessica to Matt was his integrity, strong character, and passion for the Lord. "It seemed that Matt brought up the Lord or some type of spiritual conversation every time we talked," remembers Jessica. "He told me that he was praying for me often and would ask about specific things he could pray for me." Just Say Yes Matt made his intentions known early on. "He told me up front that he wanted to date me in order to pursue marriage, and that he would wait as long as it took for me to say 'yes,'" shares Jessica. "After I held him at arms length for a while - ignoring his phone calls, sitting in strategic places so he could not sit next to me ... I know, I was awful... we finally began emailing regularly and talking on the phone every week or so, which developed into a solid friendship." They were just friends for about a year before she finally agreed to date him. "For 100 days straight, he wrote me a little note with a verse, and told me how he was praying for me/us. He would either hand-deliver these notes, or mail them to me so that I would get one from him every single day. This absolutely blew me away!" A year later, the couple got engaged. Throughout their eight-month-long engagement, they continued to guard the purity of their relationship in practical ways. "We did not live together or spend the night with each other or anything like that," says Matt. "We didn't kiss until our wedding kiss. We tried to guard each other and waited until we were married." As they each finished up their junior year in college at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, they committed to not be alone in each other's apartments. "These were sometimes inconvenient boundaries or seen as 'silly' by some, but they did help keep our minds and bodies pure before we were married," says Jessica. They also encourage other engaged couples to consider the length of their engagement prayerfully. "We knew that once we felt God leading us towards marriage, there was no reason to postpone [marriage]," says Jessica. "I wish all girls could know and experience God's best in this area of their life. There is no doubt in my mind that God designed Matt just for me and me for him. I truly believe that God brought us together and has given us an indescribable love for each other." Wedding Bells They married on July 11, 2009. Jessica surprised her groom with a song at the ceremony. "I surprised Matt by singing the song 'Wait for Me' by Rebecca St. James," says Jessica. "This was a song that God used throughout my single-lonely-praying-for-my-future-husband years to encourage me and let me know that He was preparing my husband for me. It was very special to be able to incorporate it into our wedding as a testimony of God’s faithfulness." Good Days Ahead "It is great to have such a wonderful support that is always there and has your back. You are never by yourself," says Matt. "It was more than worth the wait, so much more than I could put into words," says Matt. I didn’t just marry the girl of my dreams, but also the best friend, partner, and support that I could ever have imagined." I had the privilege of being Jessica's roommate for two years before she left me to be Matt's forever-roommate. :) I was encouraged by her trust in the Lord for His best then, and I still am. |
PodcastListen to devotionals shared at FBCSA MOPS on Kennan's Podbean Podcast channel here.
Marken Media Co.Marcus & Kennan own Marken Media Co. serving the multimedia needs of small businesses. Known by the #devinecolorwall, we strive to foster a space for the community to CREATE • COLLABORATE • CELEBRATE.
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KennanI'm a lover of words. Sometimes I edit, cook, craft, or sing. I'm also a wife and mom. Categories
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