This is an e-mail that I rec'd from my Aunt about the name of our women's ministry...Friend of Joy. I ask her if I could post it and she agreed that I could. She doesn't really blog. (Not that I have been blogging regularly...I can't believe my last blog was in September.)


I had to share something that is filling me up to the rim. Back in May at the Women of Joy Conference; God used Fran to bring into our lives a special duck named Joy. At first I thought how silly; but God really spoke through Joy in a lot of ways. She became an outreach for us and a door opener. I would specially like to thank Fran for listening and obeying to God and bringing Joy to us; not just for a cute joke but for a ministry. I thank God for using Fran as a vessel in what our Women’s Ministry at church is all about. This duck has captured the heart of many and has brought Joy to many others outside of the church. Then Heather brought Phish into her life and it really spoke out and brought even more Joy to several more lives outside of our church; even though Phish is ministry somewhere in Virginia now. When the women’s team got together; one of the first things was to come up with us a name for our women’s ministry. We threw names around and nothing hit home; until one night Barb woke up in the middle of the night and came up with the name “Friends of Joy” (that is a God thing when he speaks to you in a dead sleep). Along with the name was also “JOY”; we had to use this tool that God has provided for us. God had a plan back in May when Fran was standing in line and spotted Joy. It all started right there and then; God is so amazing. And that is the story of how the ducks came into the picture. Last night I received a gift from Becca for my birthday; and I am so blessed. She brought me Hope; and Hope has a twin named Faith. A few got to see them last night and I am so excited. When she gave me this white with orange, pink and yellow dotted duck; it truly brought Hope into my heart. She named her Hope (that was a God thing; because He knew). Last night I received “Hope”. On the bottom she wrote her name, birth date and 1 Corinthians 13:13 - “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” With these three you will no doubt have joy beyond imagination. Now I know how Fran felt when she spotted Joy; she received Joy to no end. Not sure but Becca has Faith and I think just by talking with her that her Faith has stepped up a notch. Isn’t it amazing how something so silly and so small be turned into a great tool for our Lord and Savior. Man, I am just bubbling right now.

I know there is a lot of negative going around in the world and even at church and it is easy to fall into that trap. I actually have been there for almost a year until about 1-2 months ago and I more or less fell down before God and pleaded for God’s help and strength to overcome this satan thing that was attaching me; my hope was leaving me and I at the time was not even wanting to go through with a retreat this year and give up everything I was doing for God. But I tell you; when God has something planned – it will happen. God has showed me a tremendous change in my heart and life. And that is one reason that when Becca gave me “Hope” last night; it just poured into me; and now it is up to me to let it out in my everyday life and those I come in contact with. This makes me want to share my hope in Christ even more. I don’t know where God is leading the “Friends of Joy” but I can have hope, faith and joy that He is on the move not just with the women but with the church.

I’m sorry for the long email; but I am flowing over right now. One more thing about the retreat; listen to God and He will bless you more than you can imagine. I would like for each of you to pray, pray and pray for this retreat and each lady that goes.

Love you all,
Susie

Finding Joy

So, I was reading in 1 Thessalonians tonight. Actually, I was looking for a Bible verse that I heard on a TobyMac CD about how we should edify one another. And as a result I ended up reading the whole fifth chapter. The verse I was looking for was 11. Below, I have included verses 10-18. They are really good verse that encourage Christans to uplift, respect, and love one another instead of knocking one another down.

He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5: 10-18

How amazing would this world and our churches be if we all lived by these verses?

Verse Of The Week for Spetember 6-12

I was pushed back and about to fall,
but the LORD helped me.
The LORD is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation.
Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous:
"The LORD's right hand has done mighty things!

Psalm 118:13-15

New Day

So, I've been listening to Avalon this morning. Avalon's songs are great when I need to refocus. The lyrics are so uplifting. I don't know what I would do without my music. LOL! I guess, I would have to read more if that is even possible.

The first song on I listened to was New Day. It talked about how we live our lives and how we all have broken dreams and regrets from each day. But through the grace of God we can awake each morning to a brand new day.

The LORD within her is righteous; he does no wrong.

Morning by morning he dispenses his justice,

and every new day he does not fail.

Zephaniah 3:5

It's such a blessing to serve a God that doesn't care how many times we mess up. He gives us chocies and we may make a mess of them but, that's part of being human. It doesn't excuse the bad chocies we make, but it gives us hope that we can rise above them. He gives us a new hope because through Him we will never be the same. Each new day, He is changing us.

Thank God, It's a brand new day!

What A Day!

Well, Today was my Mom's birthday. What a blessing this day has been.

She was an immaculate Mother. She took us to Sunday School and church. She raised me to believe in my dreams, but to follow God's will. She took care of me when I couldn't take care of me and I did the same for her in return. Taking care of dying parent or grandparent (who is very much like a parent) is never easy. But, being a 18 year old "kid" for lack of better word is earth shattering.

But, I learned so much from her in only 18 years. And I'm still learning from her even though she is not physical here with me on this Earth.

Somethings, I've learned from her are:

• Glass breaks, but she'll forgive me because she loves me more than her china.
• Changing the toilet paper roll will not kill you, it only takes a second.
• Washing dishes is not hazardous to your health.
• The dog can't feed himself.
• You don't have to like me, just remember I love you.
• Whenever you feel the walls closing in on you, remember God is still there with you.
• Always remember to pray, because prayer changes everything.
• Going to church makes a difference in your life, even if you can't see it.
• Take care of your family, they are the only one your going to get.
• Don't leave the rabbit on the couch, he won't be there when you get back.
• Your not invincible, you can't fly...So, don't try, you will hurt yourself.
• Coffee tables are not trampolines.

Well, there you have some of the wisdom of my youth. I'm sure I'll think of some later, but that's all I have for now.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Larkin's Shoes

We have been having Vacation Bible School all week; and three kids were saved on Tuesday night!!

All week long we have been having a competition between the girls and the boys. During VBS we have two buckets that hang on a scale and the kids drop their pennies into the buckets and whoever's bucket (girls or boys) that weighs more wins. We keep track of how many nights the girls win and how many the boys win.

The girls won Sunday and Monday. Yay Girlz!!! But on Tuesday, the tides changed and the boys brought it! I mean brought it!! I'm talking gallon bags full of pennies! So, they took the girls down on Tuesday! And Wednesday, they brought it again!

Looking at the buckets on Wednesday evening, you could just tell the boys had won again. There bucket was almost full, and the girl's bucket only a 1/3 full. Needed something to weigh the girls bucket down, quickly became our goal. So, our VBS Directors, Fran and Melinda, tossed in their shoes (keep in mind this still wasn't going to be enough weight, those boyz brought some serious pennies).




In front of the scale and the offering buckets, sitting on the floor, was our toddlers class. They were watching everything. And when Fran and Melinda took their shoes off and put them in the bucket, our youth minister's daughter took her shoes off and put them in the bucket too! In an attempt to be funny, we learned a life lesson from a 3 year old. No matter how much you have to give, everything you give is important to God!

I'm just going to BE STILL

So, I was trying to decide what I could blog about since it has been a "few days" since my last post. I was thinking about how we all lose focus because we are so busy. So, I thought to myself that would make a pretty good post. But then, I changed my mind and decided to wait, but I continued to think about how I little time I have spent with God over the few weeks. And how I just really need to step back and be still. And then, I changed my mind deciding I didn't know how to word a post like that. So, I logged onto Biblegateway.com in search of the perfect Psalm to post today and guess what the verse of the day was???

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”- Psalm 46:10

So, I guess I found the perfect Psalm! LOL! It's amazing how God shows us things when we least expect them. So, today and throughout the next week, when I feel frustrated and I'm ready to throw my hands up and quit, I'm going to (try to) remember to step back and let God lead me. I'm going to let it be as simple as saying, "OK. God, You are in complete control. I'm stepping back and I'm going to let you lead me."

Dusting off "My Tought Closet"

It's been almost two weeks since I picked up my bible study. I'm really going to have to get back in the habit of reading it every night or every morning. I found this verse this morning and thought it would be a good one to post.

A gentle answer turns away wrath,

but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 15:1

How true is that?? So many times we don't think before we speak. And when we do speak if it hurtful or more harsh than we intend. I think alot of times I speak when I just need to be still and take a deep breath. This is one of the things that I need to pray for because the majority of the time I let my emotions take control without thinking.

Moving Onward...

So, I had meeting a church last night with some of my friends. We were planning events and discussing the future of our women’s ministry and what was expected of each of us. As my Aunt Tootie was talking she made the comment that we needed to be able to “talk the talk as well as walk the walk.” And it made me think of a shirt that I bought when I was at Camp Ba Yo Ca many, many years ago. It had footprints going up the side and said, “Walk the walk and Talk the talk” with a scripture reference to 1 John 2:5-6. And on the back of the shirt the scripture was printed out.

But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:5-6

Man, I haven’t thought about that shirt in many, many years (probably since Mom made me throw it out when it became too ragged). It’s amazing what the mind remembers…Or maybe it’s just me…I remember a lot of random things…LOL!

Anyways, I am really excited to see what God has in store for our women as we grow as individuals and as a team.

Congratulations Class of 2009!!

Matt and Haley's Graduation Party

Sunday night after church was over we had a graduation party for Matt and Haley. After the service was over everyone joined Matt and Haley in the fellowship hall for Pizza, Cake, and Homemade ICE CREAM (and of course to congratulate them).

Andrew's Gaduation Party

After the Gibbs graduation...Uncle Kenny and I went on a balloon run. I thought two dozen balloons...No problem...They'll all fit in my car...Yeah, right. The back set was completely pack with nothing but black and blue balloons. (Dang, I should have took a picture!) When we were unloading the balloons they came untied and we lost one.

Drew and his cake...that he informed us that already has a picture of him on it...But we still took his picture with it...He wasn't get out of it that easily.

Drew and Mamaw...

Graduation Day - FINALLY!!!!

I had a busy week last week...And I'm glad it is over. I spent most of the week working on a graduation scrapbook for my cousin, Drew. I totally procrastinated and was literally working on this the day before graduation (and I still owe Matt a scrapbook). So, I guess I know what I'll be doing this weekend. Good thing I took a vacation day this week...LOL!! I was also making cards for Mamaw at the last second...Thank goodness for Heather and Jessica, they really bailed me out at the last second.

Both graduations were really nice. Saturday morning we went to Andrew's graduation and then to his party.

And then to Matt's graduation.

And Haley's Graduation.
And Natasha's Graduation.It was a long day but I'm glad they all had a good graduations.

My Thought Closet

I started a new bible study on Monday. I went to Lifeway in search of a CD and a new bible study. As I was walking in Lifeway a poster in the window caught my eye. It was one of those that you couldn't miss it even if you tried. It was a big, red poster advertising Jennifer Rothschild's new bible study Me Myself and Lies, a thought closet makeover.

I've only done two days...But I love it so far. It has really made me think about my thoughts and I didn't realize how negative some of them were til she makes you write them down. In the second day, she has you compare the Human Thought Closet with God's Thought Closet. And the difference is astounding, it really made me think about how negative my thoughts were toward myself and what a mess my thought closet is.

I read a verse in her study that I really like. It comes from Isaiah 55:9.

"As the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are my ways higher than your ways,

And my thoughts than your thoughts."

When I was a teenager, my Mom and I use to joke about the power of positive thinking. One of her favorite books was The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale. How ironic that I am reading a book about improving my thought closet...If she were her with me, right now, she would literally LOL...because I would never read The Power of Positive Thinking because I didn't think I needed too. And now I'm doing a bible study about the power of self talk. I'm looking forward to seeing what Day 3 holds for my thought closet...

Verse of the Day

This is one of the many verses I heard at the Women of Joy conference this weekend. It stuck with me all weekend long...maybe because it rained all weekend long...LOL! But we still had a great time worshipping and praising God together. So, with that said my verse of the day is

Let us acknowledge the LORD;

let us press on to acknowledge him.

As surely as the sun rises, he will appear;

he will come to us like the winter rains,

like the spring rains that water the earth.

Hosea 6:3.

The Misadventures of Joy the Duck

During the Women of Joy Conference, we brought along a friend that brought us alot of Joy. We had a good time with Joy the duck; she went everywhere with us.

She went to eat with us...

She went to the lake...She even went to the conference with us...

Women of Joy

This weekend my friends and I attended the Women of Joy conference. This was the first conference we had attended as a group. We had such a great time worshipping God and fellowshiping together. The conference started Friday night with Travis Cottrell as the worship leader for the weekend. Travis led us in blended worship through out the weekend; One of my favorite song from this weekend was In Christ Alone. Who am I kidding, I can't just pick one song for a favorite, I loved all the music...So, I'll just say that all the music was my favorite part!

The second part of the evening our speaker us Kirk Cameron. Kirk Cameron was one of the main reasons I ended up going to the conference. Kirk had an awesome message...Once everyone stopped taking pictures...LOL!! It was like someone called the paparazzi; Their were flashes going off everywhere. Kirk encougared us to witness to others by loving others instead of letting our fear stand in the way.

Throughout the weekend we heard several wonderful speakers including Lisa Harper, Priscilla Shrier, and Carol Kent. On Saturday night, we arrived at the conference center at 5:00 (well, at least some of us did; some of my good friends had trouble getting the door locked at their cabin...LOL) to get in line for Casting Crowns. The doors didn't open until 6:30. So, anyways we waited and we waited and we waited some more. But, it was so worth it...We got seats in about the 10th row. It was the fist time all weekend we hadn't been in the back...At least all of our waiting paid off!!