A Dream and A Prayer

A couple of nights ago, I had a dream about a girl I graduated high school with. I was never close to this girl at all, really. I was in the band (band geek) and she was the "feature twirler." Pretty and popular. We were worlds apart. I've seen her from a distance around town here and there, but haven't spoken a word to her since high school. Even then, I can't recall a single conversation I ever had with her.

Point is, this dream came right out of the blue. I've seen her face pop up on my Facebook friend suggestion page, but, since I recently decided not to add anymore people I don't normally associate with to my list of friends, I chose not to send her a request.

Then, night before last, I dreamed about her. She was crying. I didn't know what the circumstances were, but she was worried about her two boys. She would cry and then she would smile, like she was trying to be strong and not show her pain. I woke the following morning thinking that I really needed to send her that friend request, just to connect with her and to tell her that I was praying for her.

I did that this morning. I looked on her profile tonight (which was private until she added me as a friend) and was surprised to find out that she does have two boys and from the posts I read, she is sick and undergoing some kind of treatment. The details were sketchy, but she did mention that she had recently purchased a wig, but her hair hasn't fallen out yet. I can only assume it's cancer.

That just goes to show how anytime someone from our past comes to mind, it may very well be God's way of nudging us into prayer for that person. I will continue to pray for my "friend" even though we remain practically strangers. I feel honored that God chose me to lift her up in prayer.

Crowned

This past Friday night, I went with several girls from our youth group at church to an event called "Crowned."  A young man named Matt Pitt spoke to the girls about purity and conducting themselves as the princesses they are - as daughters of the King of Kings.  He stressed, in his own energetic and comical way, how valuable we are in God's eyes. Something we all need to hear from time to time, no matter how old or young we are. It was a powerful service. I don't think there was a dry eye in the house.

Here are our girls as we were waiting to get into the auditorium. Aren't they beautiful? 

The photo above was taken during a drama they were performing during the service (sorry for the poor photo quality). I wish I had a video to show you.  It was awesome!

And here are the girls with Matt after the service.

Oops, we left out Kyla....

See why the kids love him! 

What amazes me is the tremendous gift Matt Pitt has been given to reach our youth.  He went through a period of his young life with drug and alcohol problems.  His parents found out he had a problem when they visited him in college. They promptly took him home to get help.  Then, one night in their basement, after his parents had come to the conclusion that there wasn't much more they could do to help him, his dad sat him down and gave him an ultimatum.  That very night, in the basement, Matt was led to the Lord by his father.

After that night, Matt began inviting friends to his house, to the basement, so they, too, could experience God the way he had. What began with about four people gathering in his basement worshiping together turned into a huge gathering of hundreds, if not thousands, of youth, moving from church to church to accommodate the growing numbers.

Now, this group meets at The Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Alabama. The event is known simply as "The Basement." 

Lives are being changed. Droves of kids are being led to Christ and it's all because God has used the life of this one young man. God led Matt from a life of hopeless addiction to a life of ministry. Truly amazing.
 
We should never under estimate our trials because who knows what wonderful things God has planned as a result.

For more information on this wonderful ministry, you can visit their website here.  I've not been to a regular service before, but I plan to go with my kids over the summer. Maybe I'll see you there!

Blessings,

Mirror Makeover

My in-laws recently cleaned out their old house and we had a huge yard sale together at my sister-in-law's house. Sadly, in the five hours I helped work the yard sale, I only made $20 (but, hey, that's $20, right?). My sister-in-law raked in over $200, though, so it wasn't a total waste. Plus, I brought home several of her cast-offs, so I can definitely say that it was worth it and you'll see why.

I have several projects in the works, but I recently completed one. Yay!! This mirror was included in the junk that I brought home from the yard sale.

It was originally a gold-ish color (I think), but she decided she wanted it to be a pewter color, so she got hold of it with some spray paint and, lucky for me, didn't like the result.  I, too, had big plans for this mirror.

It was a little rough to the touch, sort of like the paint that was previously used had a texture to it, kind of like sand.  So, I used some 180 grit sand paper and lightly sanded away the rough spots. (Sorry, I didn't think to take close-up before pictures).

I placed newspaper over the mirror and then taped it in place with painter's tape all the way around. Now for the fun part. Two or three good coats of Heirloom White spray paint.

I'm kind of new to this blogging thing and didn't think about how my "during" pictures would look. You can see how sophisticated my work area is.  I didn't have enough newspaper to go all the way around, so I kept sliding it over to get the spots that I needed to paint. The wind was also blowing a little, so that made it a little more frustrating. See the wood pieces on top of the newspaper? Paper weights. Next time, I'll know better.  Hopefully.

I really like the way it looked painted white. So much so that I almost didn't do the final step - glazing.  I decided to go for it because I could always re-paint it white if it turned out horrible.  Because there are so many little crevices in the details, I used a small artist's brush to be sure I got every little nook and cranny. Then, after a couple of minutes, wiped it off with a damp paper towel. I used q-tips and a clean paint brush to wipe out the crevices to my liking.

I really like the way it turned out! I haven't decided where, exactly, I want to hang it, so I leaned it against the wall on my buffet to see if it grows on me. It may end up in my bedroom (another work in progress).

Here's the before again...

and after...

So, I'm ready to start my next project. Here's a peek...

Another freebie from the yard sale.  Stay tuned.

Blessings,

Christa

I'm linking up here:

A Gentle Reminder

Sometimes, I get really interested in something to the point I lose perspective and get all wrapped up in the not-so-important things in life. Fortunately for me, God often takes those opportunities to remind me of what is most important. 

I've recently taken up photography as a hobby.  My husband bought me a new camera as an early Christmas present last fall, and since then, I've been snapping pictures everywhere. LOTS of pictures.  On Easter Sunday alone, I took over 260 pictures.  That may not seem like a lot for some folks, but for me, it really is. I've been so immersed in learning this new hobby of mine that I tend to focus more on taking pictures of my family than on actually enjoying my family.  These two pictures are among my favorites that I took that day. Something about them just speaks to me.

I'm a little biased, I know.  What mother doesn't feel that way about pictures of her kids? 

A friend of mine told me that one day, I'd look at that bottom photo and just cry a river. I'm sure I will. I sort of already do. Even with all the teenage drama at my house, I wouldn't trade being their mom for anything in the world.

(I could use a little less drama, but you gotta take the good with the bad, right?)

I had these enlarged and will be framing them soon. More photos to come.

Blessings,
Christa

It's On Now...

Yesterday, I was reminded of how important it is to start early in teaching our children modesty. The older my kids get, the more I see the fight for their purity is imminent. I see it everywhere…at the mall, at school, even at church, which is particularly troublesome.

I was reading here yesterday and this part really caught my attention: “Women go to church wearing short skirts with slits up the back, and worship God without a care in the world. Meanwhile, the guy behind them is struggling to focus on God, instead of her body.”

I immediately thought of the youth at my church who sit in the first two or three rows during our church services. They're great kids, but I have noticed many times that some of them dress as though they're more suited for street-walking than for worship. (maybe I exaggerated just a hair, but you get my drift)

How does Lucy Teen-ager’s low cut, curve-hugging blue jeans and tight fitting shirt affect Mr. Smith who is standing behind her trying desperately to focus on worship? Or, how does that scenario affect the teenage boy who is a veritable landmine of raging hormones? How can they possibly not notice a woman dressed like that?

They do notice. And that’s a problem.

Church services have become more contemporary these days and, as such, are moving towards a “come as you are” philosophy to encourage church attendance. I think this must have started with some congregation trying to encourage church attendance by denouncing the unspoken rule that one must arrive at church donning “Sunday” clothes, else be ostracized and forever pegged a heathen.

I think it worked, to some degree. After all, everyone doesn’t have “Sunday” clothes. And I’ve known people whose past experience in church left them feeling inferior and self-conscious because they didn’t have clothes as nice as everyone else. Of course, we all know that going to church isn’t about what you wear. But for some people, the dress code could potentially make or break their decision to stay in church.

The problem I see with the “come as you are” philosophy where church is concerned is this – it needs some boundaries. This isn’t so much an issue with the older generations who are still somewhat accustomed to breaking out their Sunday best every week, but for our youth, it has become a way of life. They think nothing of it. Telling a teenager to “come as you are,” is basically saying “wear whatever you want, no matter how sleazy it looks.”

Not sure exactly how to attack this issue, but it’s one that I feel is important. It's one I intend to fight. Church, of all places, should be a safe place where the struggles of everyday life are surrendered and abandoned at the cross. It shouldn’t be the setting of yet another moral obstacle to hurdle.

There has to be a gentle way to ask the kids to leave the hoochy clothes at home.

We just need to teach our kids modesty. We need to set the example and teach them how to protect their purity and how to protect the purity of others by dressing appropriately…everywhere they go.

Blessings,

Christa