Be joyful always. ~ I Thessalonians 5:16
Walk with the King, 
When the Bottom Falls Out
March 19, 2012 by 42 Comments
Last summer, my husband was walking down our deck stairs holding my daughters hand… they stepped on one stair (these are higher up than they appear in the picture) and it gave out – then they stepped to the next stair and it gave out too! Thankfully my husband had my daughter by the hand and she did not fall through. He strong armed her onto the 3rd step down but he got injured from gripping the railing – the wood punctured his hand and later developed an infection - it was just a mess!
The bottom fell out literally for him that day.
But I think of so many blessings in that moment. I am thankful he was holding her hand…if he had not been holding it – she would have fallen through! I am thankful that he has a strong hand that was able to get her to the next step safely. I am thankful that he took the injury in place of her being injured…and it makes me think of Jesus and his strong hand and how he has endured the pain of the cross for us..
In Hebrews 13:5 he says “Never will I leave you, Never will I forsake you.”
God is always with us – he has a strong hand that upholds us when the bottom falls out. He has taken the pain of our sin upon him and covered it over at the foot of the cross…he loves us, protects us, comforts us and never will leave us.
So the bottom fell out for me today…
I had a rough week last week with a cold that turned into Laryngitis and then my washing machine broke with a load in it and more loads to go… and really I was just feeling whiny last week! I thought surely this week would be better…
But today my son tied our wagon to his bike and my daughter got in and he pulled her along – until she flew out! She knocked out her two front teeth (which thankfully were baby teeth) but really scraped up her face. Her lips are swollen and right now she can’t close her mouth to drink or eat…I’m pouring water into her mouth 
Waaaaaaaaaaaah!
Sitting in the emergency room – I put on a smile for the kids…but inside I wanted to just throw up! The blood was a little more than I could bare! And the butterflies came as I worried about all the worse case scenarios. After X-rays, some reassurance from the Dr. that her mouth will eventually close again when the swelling goes down (lol! I needed that reassurance!), and some comfort from facebook friends :) I am feeling a little better.
(I took a picture of my daughter’s face but I could see at the Dr.’s office she was embarrassed of it – she complained that she looked like a clown – so I thought it best not to share it with you all right now…but on Saturday we are having her 7th birthday party – so I’ll be taking pictures then – you’ll get to see her toothless smile next week when I post pictures.)
But as we drove to the ER, I prayed with the kids and I told them - even though this took us by surprise, this did not take God by surprise. When we woke up this morning – God knew this accident would happen today. His strong hand was with us – and he carried my little girl to the 3rd step down.
And in hard times like tonight – when the tears seem to flow easy…I’m reminded of John Piper’s words:
It is crucial that in our darkness we affirm the wise, strong hand of God to hold us, even when we have no strength to hold him. This is the way Paul thought in Phil. 3:12 “Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.” ESV
The key thing to see in this verse is that all Paul’s efforts to grasp the fullness of joy in Christ are secured by Christ’s grasp of him. Never forget that your security rests on Christ’s faithfulness first.
Christ is faithful first! It is HIS mercies that are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23). HE gave me just enough mercy to make it through last week’s inconveniences. HE gave me the mercy I needed for today – when this frazzled mama just wanted to cry her eyes out in the waiting room and I am counting on HIS mercies for tomorrow’s trials! I can testify - HE is faithful first!
Some days we have to fight for joy. We have to fight to see God in the hard things of life. It is crucial that in our dark moments we remember that though our grasp on God may feel weak – He has a strong hold on us.
Walk with the King,
Sometimes I’m a Critical & Cranky Wife
March 5, 2012 by 38 Comments
Sometimes I can be cranky…especially when my husband parents differently than I do. For example, I like an early bedtime and lately my husband has been allowing the children to stay up late…too late for mommy’s patience! lol! And when I get cranky…I get critical…
It’s easy for me to slip into the role of teacher and judge to my poor husband. I think as wives, we see our husbands faults and point them out – but does taking that role ever bring a woman marital bliss? Nope!
We know that when our husbands fell in love with us it was NOT because we were wonderful teachers and judges…
They married us because they loved the sparkle in our eye when we smiled at them.
They loved how we made them feel.
They loved how we respected their thoughts and wanted to hear and understand them.
They loved how we embraced their dreams of the future and were so trusting and loyal and how we overlooked their short comings.
Then they married us – and well – Proverbs 19:13 says “a quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping.”
Do you catch yourself maybe not criticizing your husband out loud but thinking critical thoughts in your heart – maybe he comes home late from work one night and your annoyed that dinner is cold. Then he does it again. Then he does it again and suddenly you boil over with anger and an abundance of bitterness comes out. Yea – I’ve been there!
Luke 6:45 says “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.“
What if in the dinner situation, we thought how blessed we are to have such a hard working husband who brings a pay check home so we can have a warm home, food on the table and a bright future for the children? There are women who are all alone at dinner time with no husband to be expected. They are living pay check to pay check and worried about their children’s future. If we thought this way – when our husband walked through the door he’d be greeted with a warm hug (and maybe a big ol’ wet kiss) rather than the cold shoulder.
Who we are at home, behind closed doors, is who we really are.
Do our husbands come home to a quarrelsome wife or a wife who has a sparkle in her smile when she looks at him?
Do our husbands feel judged by us or do they love the way we make them feel?
Now you may say – “but Courtney – you don’t know the awful things my husband does“!
I don’t – you are correct – but I do know that God’s word says to not be quarrelsome and to store up good things in our hearts – it’s important we follow God’s principles in marriage.
Sometimes, we need to have a talk with our husbands to air or resolve issues . But other times we need to choose to overlook their flaws and look at our own. The reality is – I can be a critical and cranky wife at times and that is not okay. We need to resolve our own heart issues and choose to have joy because joy does not come from our husbands but from God.
Walk with the King!
Courtney
My Reflections on the Academy Awards
February 20, 2012 by 28 Comments
The Academy Awards are this weekend.
It’s the famous ones who walk the red carpet.
It’s the honored ones who walk the red carpet.
It’s the beautiful ones who walk the red carpet.
It’s the talented ones who walk the red carpet.
It’s the wealthy ones who walk the red carpet.
It’s the gifted ones who walk the red carpet.
And I…I am about to walk the red carpet!
Every morning, I walk the red carpet right up to my sink where I rinse the morning dishes.
I am honored to have a husband and children to take care of.
I am beautiful in the eyes of the Lord, living out his will for my life as a wife and mother.
I am wealthy on the red carpet, for many in the world do not have a sink with running water in their kitchen.
I am gifted on the red carpet – gifted with the riches of God’s grace that come through my faith in Christ Jesus his son.
There is no greater honor than the red carpet walk I do every morning in my kitchen.
Join me, as you step up to your kitchen sink – in welcoming a joy that the world cannot understand.
My red carpet is…
A GIFT.
Thank you sweet Jesus for delighting me with this gift!
Walk with the King!
