The Father of All Lies

Originally posted March 21, 2014

Good afternoon!

This has been a crazy crazy week.

To make a long story short, my “Spring Break” from school consisted of Nathan and I both having to go to the Emergency Room for health issues, him being admitted for 4 days, and his grandmother having problems related to Congestive Heart Failure smack dab in the middle of everything else.  I spent much of my time running between the hospital, our home to check on the pets, and his grandma's house, all the while trying to take care of myself as I went though a horrible allergic reaction which left me with huge hives.  It was super stressful, and I found myself breaking down into tears on more than one occasion.

Times like these are really when I truly despise the devil the most.  The devil really looks for cracks, and tries so hard to weasel himself in.

It’s important to remember one thing always – the devil is a liar. A verse from John says it pretty eloquently: “He [the devil] was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  John 8:44

I just want to send out this blog reminding everyone that the truth in the Word is all we need to thrive in this world – don’t let the devil turn the promises that God gives us into questions, or tests of God – the Lord will always provide in the end, and we only need to worry about today, for he will take care of all of our tomorrows.  When this world tries to bring you down, just remind yourself of that and let the devil know that his LIES will never supersede the Lord’s TRUTH.  (Can I get an Amen?!? :-)  )

And for y’all wondering, we are all doing okay – Nathan is out of the hospital and back to work, my allergic reaction has gone down and I have an allergist appointment on Tuesday, and we are getting Momo better every day.  And, on top of all of that, I got word on Wednesday that I have been offered an amazing job doing what I love and what I know is completely from the Lord. Even though things looked bleak last week, the Lord will always make the end equation positive, as long as we continue to put our faith and our hearts in his amazing grace.

Love y’all,

Britt

P.S.  Here’s a peace visual for today:

Frustration (& Faith)

Originally posted March 12, 2014

Good morning all!

This verse from Psalms made me stop in my tracks this morning - my night/day has been a looong one so far.  I was feeling overwhelmed last night - Nathan was at work, and our sink became impossibly clogged - I tried to fix it on my own and ended up spending 3 hours sitting on the floor trying to figure out how to use a monkey wrench and calling Nathan endless times only to turn the water back on and have FOUR (yes, FOUR) separate leaks!

Then, about an hour after I had fallen asleep on the couch, I got a call from Nathan telling me he was sick and was on his way to the ER.  We spent a few tense hours there, and his doctor made our already stressful morning even more unpleasant - he lacked sensitivity and compassion and treated Nathan more as a number on a list than as a person.  It was so frustrating to see him both angry and in pain, and I felt tired and helpless.  After four hours there, I had to rush over to catch a meeting at work.  I felt exasperated, exhausted, and worried - not the best way to start a fresh new day.

When I finally got settled in, I put in my headphones and turned on some worship music - the first song that came on was "I Surrender" by Hillsong.  The lyrics really began to speak to me through this verse:

"With arms stretched wide,
I know You hear my cry.
Speak to me now.
Speak to me now.

I surrender.
I surrender."

I could physically feel the Lord's hand lifting the stress, anger, and worries from my shoulders.  I quickly realized that through the morning, I had failed to get guidance and a helping hand from the one person who was standing quietly beside me the entire time.  I was desperate for the strength in his quietness, and all I needed to do was simply open the door.

Above all, we have to keep in our minds that God is our place of safety. When this world seems too stressful, whether it be something small or something large, we have to remember that God has amazing and specific timing and plans, and to rest on that truth rather than let the problems of this world weigh us down.  God wants nothing more than for us to succeed in this life, and He makes it so clear that when you trust His word and lean on His presence, he will never fail you.

Here is a longer version of Psalm 62 (1-2 & 5-8):

"[1] Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. [2] Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken...[5] Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.  [6] Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.  [7] My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.  [8] Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge."

I hope that this helps some of you also going through a tough day, and I pray that reading the scripture above gives you as much peace as it does me.

With love,

-Britt

Hello Blogspot!

Hi there!

My name is Brittney, and I am just transitioning over from Wordpress to Blogspot - I was having some issues getting the compatibility and ease of html changes down on Wordpress, so I started venturing out to other blog sites.  I am loving how simple Blogspot is, and I'm definitely excited to see how this blog works out for me.

My husband Nathan and I just moved from the big city of Austin, TX to a much *much* more rural area in Southeast Missouri. We love it here, and it has definitely brought an amazing sense of peace and serenity to our lives. We have 2 cats and a dog, and we will be adding 4 chickens to the mix come the end of February. :-)  I love to bake, and hope to one day open up my own bakery.  I enjoy cooking meals, DIY crafts, organization, and playing with my pets.

I am a Christian, and I love to talk about how amazing God is - he's my rock and my shield, and I give him thanks in everything I do and everything I will do in life.  This blog is where I will be posting scriptures, inspirational photos, and my own personal thoughts. I truly do believe that God has a plan to prosper me, and to give me hope and a future. I know that His blood covers me, and that no harm can come my way. It's a pretty incredible feeling, to realize that you've beaten death just by giving your heart to someone who loves you unconditionally and in incredible ways. I hope this blog will bring you as much happiness and joy as it brings to my life when I'm creating them.

That's about it for who I am - expect to see a few new-to-you blog posts coming soon as I move over some of my favorite blogs from Wordpress onto here .. talk to y'all soon!

-Brittney