Corporate Prayer & Praying Scripture

I just got off a prayer webinar with my fellow Siestas. We meet every Monday and Thursday nights at 9pm CST to pray for Joanne. Joanne is our sister in Christ who suffered a massive stroke on January 11. She is on the long journey to recovery now in a long-term acute care hospital and will soon be moved to a rehab hospital. Joanne is making daily strides and we are so excited and praying for a complete healing over her.

But meeting online with these ladies who I have never met and only follow on "The Twitter" has made a huge impact on my prayer life. The Lord promises that where two or three are gathered in His name, he will be there. And y'all, He makes his presence known. I love these sisters in Christ and look forward to hugging their necks one day. Their prayers are amazing and such an encouragement to me.

That last few months for me have been incredible in my relationship with the Lord. I have learned so much. The most exciting part for me is learning how to pray Scripture. I've always heard people pray Scripture and told how powerful it is, but I've never really done it. It is SO powerful. Here, for example:

Lord, I come to you. I am weary and burdened. Give me your rest that you promise. I want to learn from you and your gentleness and humbleness. Thank you for your rest for my soul and for your yoke that is easy and your burden that is light. Amen. Matt. 11:28

I am so grateful for Jesus. And for sisters who love Him so. And love each other; even when we don't know each other, but we share a bond, that is Jesus Christ.

I want to pray for you. How can I pray for you?

SSMT #4

Who's memorizing Scripture with Beth? Here's mine for these next two weeks:

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing, and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2 NIV

Our pastor began a series on Romans and the title is ALL IN. You can vew the bumper video here. As a church, our pastor is encouraging us to memorize Romans 12:1-2 so I decided it would be a perfect verse for my next SSMT.

This verse is so convicting for me. God wants us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices. That means DAILY laying aside my own desires to follow Him. It means putting all my energy at his disposal and trust Him to guide me. And the second verse calls us to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. It has to be a choice that we make in both our heart and in our head. We see worldly things around us all the time. Unhealthy food, laziness, immoral values, materialism. Our flesh desires these things. But remember, we have to lay aside our desires and sacrifice our selfishness and be transformed by the renewing of our mind. I'm thankful for God's mercy. I'm a naturally selfish person, wife, mom, sister, and friend. It's a constant struggle for me. So this verse will be a constant reminder for me to lay aside my desires in my relationship with the Lord, but also in my relationship with people.

I know this verse and have read it a million times and could probably almost say it from memory, but I don't know it verbatim, which is what Kirt (our pastor) encouraged us to do. Memorize it VERBATIM. So here we go. Honestly, I'm thankful I chose this one that I know partially because, well, I have a confession. The last SSMT I didn't work on at all. It's terrible, I know. So these next two weeks, I've got two to work on. Here's my last one (SSMT #3):

"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. When you pass throught he waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.'" Isaiah 43:1-3a

It's long, but is SO encouraging. And the Lords says "When you pass," or "When you walk," not if. In life there will be fire and raging waters and storms. And He promises that WHEN we go through these blazes or storms or raging waters, He will be with us. We won't be swallowed up in the river or burned by the fire.

So what Scripture are you memorizing? Post it in the comments.

Valentine

Dear Jim,

Love, Ashley

P.S. Thanks to Joanne for this idea.

My beauty necessities

Show Us Your Life is all about beauty tips on Kellys Korner, so here are my beauty necessities:

My Hair: I use Biolage Hydratherapie Shampoo and Biolage Conditioning Balm. I have tried to use some cheaper shampoo, but I'm hooked. This stuff does the best on my hair! After showering, I use an AMAZING microfiber head wrap that my mom got me a long time ago at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I.LOVE.IT. I even take it with me when I travel. It soaks up so much water, but not too much to make my hair dry and frizzy before I blow dry it. I highly recommend it! :) Before blow-drying, I use Aquage Straightening Ultra-Gel and Chi Volume Booster in a red spray bottle (it smells so good!). Blow-dry, then straighten with a Chi Straightener. Then, this...

This pin comb is AWE.SOME! It's expensive, but SO good for teasing. My hairdresser, Tracie, has one and uses it on my hair and it works so good. So I asked for it for my birthday in December and got it! (Thanks Mom!) Then I use Aquage hairspray.

Skin Care: Honestly, I'm terrible about washing my face and all that. I go to bed with make-up on, then go workout in the morning, then shower afterwards and wash my face with Neutrogena Oil-free Acne Wash. No, I don't have acne, but it's what the doctor told me to use when I was pregnant with the girl and had terrible prego acne. And I just never quit using it. Sometimes I'll wash my face at night if I shower at night. I'm bad, I know. For face moisturizer, I use Oil of Olay 7-in-1.

Make-up: A mixture of everything really. Revlon foundation, Mary Kay concealer, Clinique blush and loose face powder, Clinique and Revlon eyeshadow, Covergirl eyeliner, and Mary Kay mascara (which I just started using and I LOVE). I also just got hooked on this:

I was cleaning out my kids closet the other day and found this still in the package. Santa put it in my boys stocking at Christmas and so I just stole it. I love it. It has just enough color. I'm not a big lipstick girl so this is perfect.

So that's it. There's my beauty necessities. I'm not sure if they are TIPS, but it's my regimine.

Kindred Spirits

Have you ever had the kind of friend that you could go to with anything? Maybe even do nothing with but just be together. When the feelings bubble up from where you’ve stuffed them, when you’re rejoicing, when you’re feeling angry, when your PMS-ing, even when you know you’re wrong, you can share them with this friend. She will listen with a grain of salt. She may try to encourage you to get on the right track, but would never judge. She will pray for you but she would never betray your trust.

I have a couple of friends like this, but one in particular. We have been friends for several years, but just in the last year or so we have become very close.

Kindred spirits.

I have stood by her side when she thought life couldn't get any worse as a mother of young children, taken care of her when she was sick, helped clean her house before family came to town. I see my friendship with her as a listening ear, and a praying heart- advice when she asked.

And she has done the same for me. Even when I knew God needed to change my heart, and I would say, “I KNOW this is wrong thinking, but I feel… can you pray with me for God to change my heart?“

I am doing Beth Moore's David Study and I'm at the part where Jonathan makes a committment to David and so friendship is heavy on my heart. In the Bible, there are examples of great friendships. These friendships are influenced by God, and their bond is bound by their faith.

“…the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.” (1 Sam. 18:1, NKJV)

And I think of the song by Michael W. Smith, "Friends". The first part of the chorus goes: "And friends are friends forever, if the Lord's the Lord of them." I truly believe that. If our bond as friends is bound by our faith in Jesus, we will be friends forever.

Have you ever had a friend like that?

Faith of a Boy

"Millions of people are watching the State of the Union on TV right now... but SCORES of angels are rejoicing with our Father over my boy's decision to follow Christ!" -- my mom

I was putting the kids to bed and we were doing our usual chatter, I prayed over them and kissed them goodnight. Afterwards, something about Heaven came up. I just casually started talking about who I want to see, like Noah or Daniel. We talked about what we would ask them. The girl said something about having Jesus in her heart and the boy said he had Jesus in his heart, too. The girl said, "No, you haven't asked him into your heart."

He started crying and said he wants to but doesn't know how. He said he wants to go to Heaven. I explained to him that all you have to do is pray and confess to God you're a sinner and thank Him for dying on the cross and ask Him to come and live in your heart. But he said he couldn't say all that (like remember it all). I told him I could say it and he could just repeat after me. He seemed very troubled about wanting it so badly, so we did. This was our prayer: "Dear Jesus, I confess that I'm a sinner. Thank you for dying on the cross for me and saving me. Please come in to my heart and live forever. I love you, Lord. Amen." And then it was like a peace came over him. Then he started laughing and talking about how he wanted to see Mary and Joseph in Heaven and ask them what they did when they were kids like him.

Faith of a child.

Part of me wanted to wait until Jim was home (since he was gone working over at the new house), but then I remembered Matthew 19:14 when Jesus says, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." So we went ahead and then he called Daddy after he did and seemed very excited to tell him.

One of the prayers I have prayed for my children since they were born was that they would come to know Christ at an early age. Now, both of my children have asked Jesus into their heart. Now I need to pray for their desire to be baptized. So would you pray for the boy? Pray that he comes to truly understand and learn to love the Lord with all of his heart, soul, mind, and strength? And would you pray for Jim and me? That we would be ready to answer his questions. And pray that the enemy would steer FAR away from my boy!

Now a question for you...have you answered God's calling on your life? The prayer is simple as you read above. If you have just prayed this prayer for the first time, please comment and tell me. I'd love to send you a Bible if you don't have one and encourage you on this journey.

Praying for Joanne

Y'all...seriously.

The Body of Christ just amazes me. I just finished praying (via gotomeeting) with several other women that I don't even know personally but through the online world and I am so encouraged. They have been meeting together on Monday and Thursday evenings to pray for Joanne Heim. Joanne is a 38-year-old Jesus-loving woman who suffered a massive stroke on January 11. Her husband, Toben, has been updating her blog and his twitter. Joanne and Toben have two young girls: Audrey is 12 and Emma is 9. Joanne has been homeschooling them so they just started back into a private school yesterday.

I have never met Joanne. I never even read her blog until I started seeing news about a fellow "Siesta". The time of prayer tonight over Joanne and the Heim family was such an encouragement to me. Sisters in Christ, coming together and praying for a fellow Sister in Christ. It's beautiful. That's it. Just beautiful.

"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them."

Matthew 18:20

Planning for Disney

Alright, my blog reading peeps, I need your help or advice.

We are planning a trip to Disney World. Who's been there? It's a little overwhelming planning it all! We are trying to weigh all our options: what resort? park hopper pass? dining plan?

Let me just say this - we are simple people. Our kids love to stay in a hotel. We could stay in the Hampton Inn and they'd be happy. I would be, too. I love to stay in hotels. I'd rather stay in a hotel with a free breakfast, then stay in the Marriot where you have to buy your breakfast and get the same kind of food. Plus, I love hotel waffles. So, all that to say, where have you stayed at Disney? We are planning on staying in a Disney resort just for easy access to the parks.

Now, the park hopper pass - is it really worth it? Our kids are 7 and 5. We are wondering if they'd even be able to keep up if we were to hop to different parks every day we are there.

Okay, dining plan - WHO KNEW FOOD COULD BE SO STINKIN' EXPENSIVE?!?! We are not big eaters and we've also heard that if you get the Dining Plan, you get a desert with every quick service and table service meal. Now, who really eats dessert after every lunch and dinner? I know we don't. So what's your advice on that? We do want to do a couple character meals and realize that those can be pretty pricey. But we don't want to have all this extra credit for meals when we leave.

What were your favorite character meals? Also trying to decide on that!

So, I need your advice. Ready? Go. Comment.

Until I figure it out...

...here is a more recent photo of us. The kids have grown up since the picture above was taken.

Beginning Again & SSMT #1 & 2

I've decided to get back around to blogging. I won't promise to post regularly, but I have missed it! I've gotten back into actually reading blogs since this beautiful woman had a stroke last week. You can see her picture on the side of my blog. Joanne is 38 and has two precious girls. I'm on twitter and have been following different Siestas that actually know Joanne in real life. It's so amazing to me how there are SO many people praying for her and the community of sisters in Christ that we have through this online world. God is so good.

Okay, so who's doing the Scripture Memory with Beth Moore? If you are, tell me your Scripture. Here are mine so far:

#1. "So is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11 NIV

#2. "God, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this solem counsel: Your salvation requires you to turn back to me and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on me - The very thing you're unwilling to do." Isaiah 30:15 The Message

God's word will not return to Him void. I thought that verse was so fitting for my first Scripture memory because it promises me that through all this memorizing throughout this year, His desire for me will be accomplished.

Y'all have a good Monday.

Catch up...

1. The boy had a field trip today with his class. His first field trip and he was SO excited! He got to ride with his best bud, which he thought was so fun! They went to the pumpkin patch where we went as a family and I blogged about here.



2. This past weekend, I was crazy busy with the Just Between Friends Sale. I did VIP tagging again like I did in the Spring. A friend of mine owns the franchise here, so I volunteered all weekend. It's fun, but tiring! I'm still recovering! I did hear from my friend today that my check with the things I consigned and the 20% of the VIP tagging I did will be a nice one!


3. Our dryer went out last night. I did laundry all day yesterday and then last night, I went to move a load over to the dryer and it wouldn't start. Jim and I have NO idea what is wrong. Jim is a smart guy and can do or fix pretty much anything, but he knows nothing about dryers. We checked the breaker and made sure it was plugged in good. And Jim checked the outlet and there is still power coming, so it's got to be the dryer. SO, we are going to look at a front-loading washer and dryer set tonight that he found on Craigslist for a pretty good deal. Guess we'll see! I did just make a whole bunch of money, so we'll see what these look like tonight. I'm excited about these - hope they're in good condition!


4. We pulled our house off the market. Actually, we pulled the sign and it's not in MLS anymore, but all the realtors in the office know we are still interested in selling it if they have someone come looking for what we have. It's been almost a year that it's been for sale, so we thought we'd give it a break and maybe get through the holidays. Who knows...


5. Jim is building me a mantle to go above my fireplace. I am so excited about it and will show you pictures as soon as it gets up!


6. I am so ready for Thanksgiving.


7. Speaking of Thanksgiving, I'm going to try to do Ann Voskamp's "One Thousand Gifts".

There are so many things to be thankful for and I want to get them down in a moleskin. Now, I don't think I'll make it to 1,000 by Thanksgiving, but even if I do just 10 a day, I'll have 350 or something by Thanksgiving. That should be easy. Look for a snippet later...

8. My cousin had her very first baby this past Friday! After 8 hours of labor, Levi James was born! I absolutely cannot wait to meet him!

9. It's time to wake up the boy and go pick up his sister from school.

See ya!

Pumpkin Patch 2009

We went to the Pumpkin Patch tonight! I love going; it's one of my very favorite things to do in the fall. I just wish it was "pumpkin patch weather" and not 90 degrees out! Come on Fall! The kids were so excited!

I played around with Photoshop.com...

And again

What's your favorite thing to do in the fall?

Happy Fall, Y'all!

Not Helpless

I remember singing a song, "Ah, Lord God" as a child and singing it at the top of my lungs.

Ah, Lord God
Thou hast made the heavens and the earth
by Thy great power
Ah, Lord God
Thou hast made the heavens and the earth
by Thine outstretched arm
Nothing is too difficult for Thee
Nothing is too difficult for Thee
O great and mighty God
Great in counsel and mighty indeed
Nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing,
Nothing is too difficult for Thee

I can still sing it and it brings back so many memories. Even silly ones of my sisters and me singing it in an opera voice, or in our Pilipino-Engles voice. It brings a smile to my face.

In my time with the Lord this morning, I read the verse out of Jeremiah that this song was taken from: "Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you." Jeremiah 32:17.

Life is hard. We have divorce or suffering marriages, unemployment, abused children, cancer, death, and so much more. Maybe it's not something so tragic, but just the day-in-day-out mundane things in our life like washing the dishes, or bathing a child, or doing the laundry, or grocery shopping; some days these may feel like a huge mountain to overcome. It is so easy to feel overwhelmed or helpless or defeated with our burdens. But our God is never overwhelmed. He's never helpless or defeated. He tells us to cast all our cares upon Him (1 Peter 5:7). He loves us. That's what He's there for because nothing is too difficult for Him. He is the Lord God, mighty to save, who made the heavens and earth with His arm. His arm! Just really think about that. He is so great and mighty that if he can make this earth and all the creatures and us, as intricate as our bodies are, He can most certainly handle your problem or your overwhelming situation. He will carry you when you feel helpless or defeated. He is willing and waiting for you to call on Him.

So, I want to encourage you today, that whatever it is that stands in your way today, that you would surrender to Him. Nothing is too difficult for Him. Nothing. He will gladly take your hand and help you today. Would you look to Him today for your problems, no matter how big or small they are?

I love you and am praying for you today.

God and Johnny Appleseed

Tonight, during our family Bible story, we read about when God created the Earth. At the end of the story, there was a question asking what lived on the Earth before the first day. Both of the kids said nothing. Then the girl goes, "Only God. And Johnny Appleseed." Ha! Jim and I both cracked up! It was hilarious! I guess she's learing about Johnny Appleseed at school! It was funny.

Now, on to a serious note, I have a prayer request. Would you please pray for my friend Elizabeth? She is undergoing her 3rd surgery this month tomorrow due to complications from the first one. She's also had several procedures done, including a feeding tube put in directly to her stomach because she cannot eat from her surgery she had done. She had what's called fundoplication surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease where they wrap the upper part of the stomach around the esophagus to try to decrease reflux. However, in her case, it has closed up and she cannot even swallow her saliva, hence the feeding tube. Tomorrow they are going to undo everything. There is a risk of the esophagus tearing, but she is trusting God that He will protect her esophagus and things will go as planned and no complications. The Lord has strengthened her in this time and she has been a witness to the people in the hospital (she's a OBGYN here). Please, please pray for her. I know she would really appreciate it. And if you would like, please leave a comment for her and I'll print them off and take them to her before her surgery. She would be so encouraged. Would you? Even if you don't know her? Thank you.

09/09/09

Did you know that the date today is "last set of repeating, single-digit dates that we'll see for almost a century (until January 1, 2101), or a millennium (mark your calendars for January 1, 3001), depending on how you want to count it"? I read this article yesterday on FOX News and it was pretty interesting. History in the making today...

First Day of Preschool

The boy started preschool this morning! He was very excited! He is going Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:45 to 12:00. He has lots of friends that are in his class that he already knew, so that's always a plus!

I just love his teacher!

4 Years Ago Today...

at 6:15 am, my water broke. Three and a half weeks early, I might add. After being induced with my first child, I was very surprised needless to say. It was Monday, Septemeber 5th. Labor Day. What a coincidence. The girl had spent the night with Lola and Pawpaw (my parents). The Lord knew ahead of time and took care of that for us!

The night before, we were are my parents' house and I felt huge. I could barely sit down and even my nose felt swollen. I was on the floor at one point and was trying to get up and nearly fell over! Then, Monday morning, I was awoken to a 'pop'! Like I could almost hear it. I got up to go to the restroom and then came back to back. Then I had to go again. So I got up again, but this time, when I thought I was finished, I stood up, and quickly sat back down! I hollered at Jim, and the germaphobe that he is, sat up very quickly and asked, "In the bed?!"

We got up and got dressed. I called my mom and she and my sister Anna met us up at the hospital. The girl was still asleep, so she stayed with Pawpaw. When I got to the hospital, my own doctor was on-call (since it was Labor Day, afterall), thank goodness! They got me all set up and I went in for a c-section. And this sweet boy was born at 10:03 am, weighing in at a whopping 5lbs. 8 oz., 17 1/2 inches long. He was the tiniest thing I'd ever seen!

He is so special to us and brings us so much joy and laughter. The first thing he said to me this morning was, "Mama, I'm four now. Try to pick me up." It was so sweet. He grew up overnight! And he thought he gained a little and grew a little taller overnight, too! We love him to pieces.

Surprise! Sea World!

We surprised the kids with a day trip to Sea World this past Saturday. The girl knew as soon as we got in the car that we were going to Sea World. That was her guess and I'm not sure how she guessed it, but she did! The boy thought we were going to Ft. Worth! Ha! :) They were very excited when we pulled into San Antonion and started seeing Sea World signs. It was a quick trip there and back in a day, but it was fun. My sister, Anna and her hubby went with us! We got there right as the park opened and watched the sea lion show, dolphin & beluga show, and SHAMU and then headed over to the Lost Lagoon water park for the rest of the afternoon.

On the way down.

The headphones for the DVD player are huge on his little head!

SEA WORLD! They've already got pumpkins out!

Watching a roller coaster. Jim and I are not roller coaster people, but somehow, Stephen and Anna talked us into riding the Steel Eel and Jim even rode the Great White Shark with them. I screamed the entire ride on the Steel Eel. Even going up the hill. It's a 12-story drop! Ugh! It was so scary.

At the sea lion show

Dolphins!

SHAMU!!!

We stopped at Bass Pro Shop on the way out of town and ate at the restaurant there. The food was great! Then Jim and Stephen drove own while the kids, Anna, and I crashed! It was a fun day!

Now on a completely different subject: I have a question about uploading pictures and arranging them on a post...blogger is giving me such a hard time. I can't move the pictures around like I used to be able to. It took me forever to get these in the right order. Do you have any tricks? I'd appreciate any advice!

What Makes Mom-ing Easier?

•Get a nanny
•Hire a housekeeper
•Wear a caffeine patch
•Hire an accountant
•Get a chauffeur
•Hire a private tutor
•Enjoy a weekly spa treatment
•Hire a personal chef
•Win the lottery so you can pay for all these great services
•Wake up because the daydream is over. The kids are screaming, hungry, and naked, and the baby need a new diaper ASAP.

Being a mom is incredibly difficult.

Acknowledging that fact makes mom-ing just a little bit easier.

(Taken from Today's Christian Woman magazine and written by Diane Bright.)

Just what I needed to end the day! It's been a rough one and my house is a wreck. Still. Somedays, I wish I didn't have any responsibilities...

Ashley Honea

Listen

"A wise man will listen and increase his learning, and a discerning man will obtain guidance."
Proverbs 1:5

One of the reasons I quit blogging for a while was that I felt convicted to just be there for my children. And to just listen to them. When I'm too busy sucked into the computer, I can't. I'm not "all there" if you know what I mean. I want my kids to open up with me and I want to be a good listener. If I'm not listening, they not likely to open up. And the first step in keeping the lines of communication open is to be a good listener.

This morning in my quiet time, this was the verse. The Lord just reminded me to continue to be a good listener. I feel like when the girl comes home from school, it's like playing "20 questions" to get her to tell me about her day. But I've noticed that if I just let her talk and make myself shut up, she's more likely to just talk and tell me things. And usually, it's not all at once. She tells me something, then a little while later, she tells me something else, and so on. And that's fine. As long as she's communicating and she knows that I'm going to listen.

So, are you a good listener? What are your tricks to get your children to open up?