Stamp Out Social Awkwardness With Grapes

Raise your hand if you believe social awkwardness is very awkward and should be stamped out. Now put your hand down. I feel your support and I'm ready to stamp. First on my list of social offenders: chocolate covered strawberries.

When I go to a party where chocolate covered strawberries are served, I am faced with decisions. That's not cool. I don't want to have to think so hard about party treats.

How do I eat this thing? Chocolate covered strawberry makers consistently choose the most over-grown strawberries for their chocolate dipping. They give no thought to the comfort of the consumer.

Do I risk shoving the entire fruit in my mouth? The moment I do, someone is sure to ask me about my kids or my take on footy pajamas for adults. Naturally, my reply will be, "Hahdslk sihhsl shsoh wiehrl. Dwoi yeigh?"

Awkward.

So, what about just eating it in bites? Maybe that works for you, but I will have strawberry juice dribbling down my chin, and pieces of chocolate flaking off and landing on my really cute white blouse.
Awkward.

So, it comes down to eating the beast with a knife and fork. But who does that? It's a finger food!

Sadly, it is a finger food that I have forever sworn off eating, except in the privacy of my own home, which I really never do.

Enter the chocolate covered grape, which I discovered one afternoon when grapes and chocolate chips were sitting on my counter in random fashion. They were begging to be joined together in perfect harmony. The taste is surprising. And they are wonderfully easy to eat in excess and with great ease and social gracefulness. Problem solved. So let's make them. Now, this is not a food blog, so let's not call this a food recipe. Let's call it a recipe for success in life. Or at least at weddings and baby showers.

Choose and wash your grapes. I am using green here, but I personally prefer red grapes for this concoction.

Make sure your grapes are thoroughly dry. Not a drop of water, now. A drop of water can ruin melted chocolate.

Melt some chocolate chips in the microwave on low power.

Lay down some waxed paper and have toothpicks on hand.

Drop some grapes into your sea of molten chocolate, and ever so gently fold them in.

Now, with your toothpick, pluck out your victims one by one,

and lay them on your waxed paper. Look at them and sigh, because they are not even close to matching the beauty of a chocolate covered strawberry. Then realize you really don't care about that. You care about social graces.

Stop a minute and consider how you might turn this one into a mouse. Then tell yourself you have more important things to do. Now, suddenly recall that you have white chocolate! Beauty is just around the corner!

Melt the chocolate, put some on a spoon, and FLING! Put your wrist into it! Fling it, baby! Make a mess, and have fun doing it.

What is this?

This is a disgrace to chocolate covered grapes. Eat this one. Immediately.

And this one. Put it out of its misery, stat! Let the rest sit and harden, preparing for their public debut.

Now you are ready for a classy shindig.

Or Valentine's Day, if you celebrate that sort of mushy holiday.

Ladies, are you with me? We must unite to see change. We must be proactive! We must prevent others who do not know better from falling into the strawberry trap. Just remember, when you RSVP to any social event, gather your courage and boldly say, "Thank you kindly for the invitation. I'll be there...and I'll bring the chocolate covered grapes!"

The End.

P.S. Thank you so much for your comments on my last post. It's always nice to know I'm not alone.

Cranky Days and Frozen Mouth Syndrome

My dear little valentines, in an effort to remain real and honest with you, I'm going to be real honest right now. I realize that real honest is grammatically incorrect, but to be real honest, I really, honestly don't care. I always try to be real honest with you. This girl, however, is I'm sorry to say, really, honestly not being real honest about her hair color. I put four commas in that sentence! Just being real. And honest. And comma happy.

So here's the real honest truth: I have an idea how powerful speaking the Word is by the amount of resistance I get to it. I have discovered that resistance comes from every direction. For one thing, it comes from me! I don't know about everyone else, but there is at times, an awkwardness about it. The sound of my own voice in the quiet of the morning or anytime for that matter, is not my favorite auditory delight. 

Resistance comes also, and of course, from my enemy, that devil. 

He's forever trying to convince me that I'm just a fool talking out loud to myself. And you know, sometimes I do feel that way. There are times I feel like my words are empty, powerless little spit wads that fall short of their mark. HOWEVER, the farther I go with Jesus, the more I learn not to rely on my feelings. My feelings are unreliable, changeable little butterflies, unworthy of my confidence. My feelings are not to be trusted! They will, in fact, lie to my face. I must trust what I know to be true. I am walking by faith, and I know, despite my feelings, that God's Word is ALIVE and it works!

Resistance will even come in the form of three-year-old boys. Just the other day, while in the midst of my confession time, my own little tri-fold said, "Mommy, can you please stop saying dat? It's giving me du hiccups." Nice try, buddy. Sometimes he will join me, but it usually means listening to his personal interpretations, which always include some form of the word poop.

And this leads very nicely into probably my biggest resistance: life. Yes, life and all its poop. Pardon me. I have days when the kids drive me nuts and the house is a disaster and I can't seem to do anything right. I have days when I want to run away to anywhere else and never come back. I get really cranky! It's usually toward the end of this kind of day, when tears are welling up in my blood-shot eyes, that I ask myself, "What's the matter with me?"

I have come to realize that this is a crucial moment. My knee-jerk reaction is to reply (to myself), "I know what's the matter with you. You just need some time to yourself to do whatever your little heart desires. You need to wrap yourself up in your favorite blanket, chill out on the couch, read a good book, watch a good movie, have a good cry, eat a whole pan of brownies, and do a little sewing. That's what you need." Now, I'm not saying that doing this is wrong! It's just that I've done it (many times). And while it is fun, it usually leaves me feeling empty. Except of course, for the pan of brownies, which leaves me feeling full and sick and disgusted with myself. So yeah, lots of fun! But really not the best remedy for my crankiness.

So, back to my crucial moment. I am learning to hear that other voice, too. The first one is loud and sometimes obnoxious, trying to grab all my attention. But this other one comes from deeper inside me, and knows me better than I do. It says, "I know what you need. You need Jesus. You need to let Him give you every little thing your heart desires. Wrap up in His arms and hang out with Him for awhile." I have listened to both voices, and I am here to say that doing what this one suggests has never once left me feeling empty or disgusted with myself. Why do I ever choose the first one?

Sometimes, I'm in such bad shape, that I'm almost angry about my need for Jesus. I have bypassed the couch, the pan of brownies, the good book, the good movie, the box of tissue, and my sewing machine. And there I sit, Bible open, motionless, with a bad case of frozen mouth syndrome. I know what I need. I need to, like that old David Ingels song says, "Put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, lift up your voice to God..." But there is a war within me. I do not want to lift up my voice. I do not want to praise or pray or speak the Word. And so I sit, staring, mouth frozen shut.

And then comes the voice again: "Push through it. PUSH! I am here. You can do this." I open my mouth and close it again, playing the stubborn child a little longer. "PUSH!" I sigh, open my mouth, and say...something. Anything. "Help me." "I need you." "I'm sorry." "I'm listening." "I love you." "Thank you." And then I hear something breaking. It's the ice. I open to a Psalm and read it out loud, making it my own, which is easy, because it was written in the first person. And then I find that my praise becomes spontaneous again, and I am ready to offer it freely. I can lift up my voice to God once again! 

Pushing through is sweet. It is rewarding in a way that no pan of brownies could ever be. He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (see Hebrews 11:6.) Some of my very worst moments have ended in some of my best times with Jesus. He just has a way of soothing my crankiness and smoothing my ruffled feathers. I love Him more than words can say. And I pray that as time goes by, He will become my knee-jerk reaction, that my desire for Him will far outweigh the attraction of earthly things.

   

Three Winners

Roses are red,

What's for dinner?

If your name is Emily, Betsy, or Jill,

Then you are a winner!

Congratulations, Emily! I will have that Beth Moore card set shipped right to your house from Amazon. Isn't this fun? And thank you so much for who you are! You are a surprise blessing in our family, and it just wouldn't be the same without you now. God sure knew what He was doing when He put us all together.

And congratulations to you, Betsy! I know we don't know each other very well, but your love and enthusiasm for the Lord shines through in your comments and your blog. I'm so happy for you to have the card set, too, and I pray you are blessed by it. Send me a message on facebook with your address, and I'll have it sent to you right away.

And my dear, Jilly, it's about time you won a contest! Too bad it's not a purse this time.

Jill, you KNOW me as only an old college roommate and lifelong friend can, and yet you love me. And for that, I am forever thankful and blessed and humbled. I love you very much. (P.S. Give me a ring and tell me which prize you want!)

And to the other seven who entered, I love you, too! I hope that you are inspired and encouraged to develop your own personal speak out notebook or some other way that works for you to confess the Word for yourself and your loved ones.

 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Psalm 19:14

Speak Out! (And a Giveaway)

*Author's note: I think this is the longest post I've ever written. The giveaway is at the end. Now, don't be a skimmer! There is something in all these words just for you, but you'll have to read to discover it. Have fun!

Hello, my little chickadees. Are you ready to get down to the nitty-gritty of Word power? Let's first understand what happens when we speak God's Word, and then let's stand up and shout it out! But if you haven't read my first post on this subject, go hurry and get caught up!

A.  What's Going On?

1. When we speak God's Word out loud, we increase our own faith.

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

Romans 10:17

I don't want to wait around for Sundays to hear the Word! I want to build my faith every single day. And the only way I'm going to hear it at home (other than listening to the Bible on CD) is to speak it out myself!

2. When we speak God's Word, we overcome the enemy. That's what I'm talkin' about! We're on a mission of overcoming, right?

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony...

Revelation 12:10-11 

The accuser is Satan. The "they" is us! We open our mouths and declare the Word of God over ourselves, and our accuser is overcome! I love that. We are not overcome. No. We overcome him.

3. When we speak God's Word, we put angels to work. I am no angel expert, but I do know this:

Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Hebrews 1:14

And I also know that angels are not always free and clear to help us at any given moment. Sometimes they have to battle the enemy before they do their assignments for us! (See Daniel 10:12-13.) What can we do to release the angels to do their jobs?

Bless the Lord you his angels, mighty in strength, who perform His word, obeying the voice of His word!

Psalm 103:20, NAS version

Great! What the angels actually do is perform the Word of God. They obey the VOICE of His Word. I love knowing that when I speak the Word, the angels are listening and making sure that Word is performed. That makes me feel like I'm actually getting some stuff done around here. This is good news for moms who feel like their work is constantly being undone and messed up!

4. When we speak God's Word in faith, we are agreeing with Him, which releases His promises to us.

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God.

I Corinthians 1:20

Okay, this is good stuff. We've got a partnership going on with God here. It's a team effort. If I just sit around twiddling my thumbs, I really can't expect the promises of God to be fulfilled in my life. My faith must be alive and active. I look at one of the many promises in the Bible and I know that God's part is "yes." He will keep the promise. My part is "amen" or "I agree with this!" Notice the amen is "spoken." This out loud business is important! Remember, angels are listening. (And so are demons.)

5. When we pray by speaking God's Word, we can know that our prayer is effective. It isn't hitting a brick wall and sliding down to the ground all limp and dead.

As the rain and snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is the 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 55:10-11

6. When we receive the Word that we are speaking, we are filled with superhuman power!

And we also [especially] thank God continually for this, that when you received the message of God [which you heard] from us, you welcomed it not as the word of [mere] men, but as it truly is, the Word of God, which is effectually at work in you who believe [exercising its superhuman power in those who adhere to and trust in and rely on it].

1 Thess. 2:13 (AMP version)

Fun! I'll take that. I need that.

B.  Everyday How-Tos

I feel the need to emphasize that confessing the Word is not magical, mindless chanting. It is not a secret formula for getting everything in life to go your way. I desire in my own life for it to be intentional, not ritual. I do not ever want this to become an empty, religious practice. I consider it a discipline, but one that is a living, breathing exchange between me and my Father. I pray it is that for you, too.

The most basic way to start speaking out is to allow your Bible reading time to become a verbal dialogue. I am verbal when I eat. "These are really good potatoes!" "This spam sandwich really hits the spot. I need the recipe for that." I know that when I read my Bible, I am feeding my spirit, so why not be verbal about that, too? "Oh, this is a good verse, Lord! What does it mean for me? How do I live this out?"

As I read, I am learning to recognize that the "jump-outs" are the Holy Spirit initiating a dialogue with me. When a verse jumps out at me, it's kind of like getting an instant message when you're online. Someone knows you are online and wants to chat with you. You can either respond or ignore it. So when I get a jump-out, I sense the Holy Spirit is saying, "Look at this. What do you think of it?" Or, "Pay attention. You need this right now." Or, "I wrote this just for you at this moment." I've learned that when I respond, this dialogue will continue. There's nothing better than having an instant message chat with the Lord!

Now, for me, this kind of interactive Bible-reading naturally progresses into a prayerful confession of the Word. If the Lord and I have been talking about a specific verse or passage, then I want to add my "Amen", tell Him I agree, and make it my own. For example, if we have been talking about Hebrews 10:23--

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful -- 

Then my verbal response is something like, "Yes, Lord! I will hold unswervingly to this hope I profess, for You are faithful! You keep your promises!"

I like to take this practice a step further and have times not only of interactive Bible reading, but of specific and intentional confession.

So, I have my Speak Out Notebook. I want to join with Paul, who spoke what he believed. I believe, therefore I speak!

My notebook is filled with what I believe. I typed out bunches of my favorite verses, and added in "me" and "I" to make it personal.

I like that I have something different to confess each day.

And I love that by doing this, I'm also memorizing these verses without even realizing it.

Of course, there are published resources for just this kind of Bible confessing. This one right here has been my friend for many a year.

It was given to me when I graduated from high school. Thanks, Gayle! This is one of the best gifts I've ever received.

This baby has been used! I know the personal confession pages by heart.

The majority of the book consists of written prayers, based on Scripture, for specific needs or areas of concern. These are helpful if I am unsure of how to pray about something, or unsure of what the Bible has to say about a subject. This one was a favorite during all my pregnancies.

Always a good one!

I think this is my favorite prayer in the whole book. It goes through the many names of God, and is just all about blessing Him for who He is. I've prayed this one so many times, and I tear up every single time. What a great way to get my eyes off myself and on Him!

Here's another one that was a great gift. Thanks, Jill!

This one is also topical in nature, but each Scripture confession or prayer is written out individually on cards.

This works well if I am running short on time, but still need to grab a bite of Word.

It comes with a handy card holder, so I can actually see my chosen verse all day. This is helpful for meditating one by one on the many jewels to be found in the Bible.

I think this would be a nice one for someone who works in an office. You could sit this little baby right on your desk and whisper your prayer throughout your work day.

This is one I really enjoyed while I had it. It has Scripture confessions for just about every topic you could think of. Sadly, it somehow fell out of my van on a trip. Hopefully it made it into the hands of someone who needed it. I miss you, little purple book!

This one is hard-core, people. It covers all manner of topics, including ones not mentioned in the others. This one is great for people who need to break free of things like pornography, alcoholism, the effects of sexual abuse, a history of occult practices, and a host of many others.

But my favorite part is the section on physical healing.

The wording of the prayers is just the kind of dialogue I like to have with Jesus.

C.  The Giveaway

So, we've come to the giveaway! Congratulations for making it down here. There was much to weed through. I still feel like I'm not finished sharing on this subject, but for now, I really want to give you one of these resources that have helped me so much. Leave me a comment and tell me what you would choose if you won. We've got the little gray prayer book, the Beth Moore card set, the purple Joyce Meyer book, and the John Eckhardt book. Just to clarify, I'm not giving away my own copies. These are all available on Amazon. I think I'm going to choose more than one winner. I just haven't decided how many yet. So, get to it! Leave a comment. And in the meantime, let's all speak out! 



Do Not Be Overcome! The Power of the Spoken Word

I heart the Word. It's my fave! I am super-passionate about weapon number five: the spoken Word! Okay, seriously, as I sit here typing, my heart rate has picked up. That's how excited I get about this subject. I'm like a hard-core fan club president of the Word of God. I swoon. And here is why: it works. Every time. And it always satisfies. Every time. Nothing can compete with that. 

Today, I want to specifically reflect on the power of the SPOKEN WORD OF GOD. I'm talking about the kind that comes out of your mouth. Out loud. Verbally. 

Now, let's stop right here and address the subject of "Name it and Claim it." I know that sometimes when people hear talk of confessing the Word over themselves or their situations, they automatically shut down. Perhaps they have had a bad experience with a television evangelist and subsequently lump all verbal confessions into the dirty category of "Name it and Claim it." I do not watch television evangelists, so I do not know what they are saying these days, but I do know that no amount of criticism in this area can change the power of the Word of God. It's impossible. This is yet another example of how Satan will take a spiritual truth, twist it, warp it, chop it up, and put it back together into something that is no longer pure or truthful-- just to get people off track. It really ticks me off, I tell you. 

So, rather than just avoid the topic for fear of being labeled one of "those people", I'd like to start fresh and take a healthy look at what the Bible has to say about it all. Oh, I'm getting excited again! My wrists are sweating.

Let's go way back to when the earth was dark and formless and empty. How did everything get here?

And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

Genesis 1:3

God SAID! He created with His words. Genesis chapter one is full of God saids. And although I am no theologian, I do believe that God is demonstrating an important spiritual principle here. Words have power.

His words made birds of paradise, Mars, the rain forest, lightning bugs, Venus fly traps, sandy beaches, and human beings. Those are some mighty powerful words. Notice God did not just think the words. He said them. 

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness..."
Genesis 1:26

Hmm...interesting. We were made in God's image, in His likeness. What does this mean? He actually made us to be like Him, with His characteristics, perfect in every way, including speaking powerful words. In fact, the first recorded job that God gave Adam was to speak out names for the animals!

Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.
Genesis 2:19-20

This is a side note, but I really like the way this passage hints at God's curiosity. He brought all the animals to see what Adam would name them. I'm guessing that God must have been pretty excited about all the things He'd just created. He knew He had done well, and now He couldn't wait to see what Adam would think of His work. What he named them would reflect what Adam thought of each creature. And I love that God respected Adam enough to trust him with this very significant task.

Of course, things got all messed up when sin entered the picture, but God's spiritual laws and principles have remained constant. Somehow, we modern folks have lost sight of the power of our words, but people in the Old Testament understood how much words really matter. 

When Jacob stole the birthright from his brother, Esau, what exactly was it that he stole? Was it the deed to his father's property? A box containing his father's life savings? The title to his herd of camels? No. It was words! He stole the spoken words of blessing intended for his slightly older brother. Words, my friend, were worth more than gold and property. I feel so sorry for poor Esau every time I read this story. When he discovered that his father had already spoken the blessing over Jacob,

...he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, "Bless me--me too, my father!" But he said, "Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing."...Esau said to his father, "Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!" Then Esau wept aloud.
Genesis 27:34-35, 38

Some might say, "Oh, for Pete's sake. Why is he bawling over some words? Does it really matter that his dad said some nice things to Jacob?" But Esau's bitterness was legitimate. Isaac's words spoken over Jacob changed Jacob's future. Those words spoken in faith released God's blessings into Jacob's life. This is only one example of many Old Testament stories that reveal the importance of words.

God placed a choice before the nation of Israel of life or death, and revealed to them that the choice of life was in the Word of God that was in their mouths and hearts.

Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, "Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, "Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
Deuteronomy 30:11-15

The wisest king, Solomon,understood this principle too.

From the fruit of his mouth a man's stomach is filled; with the harvest from his lips he is satisfied. The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Proverbs 18:20-21

Pay attention and listen to the sayings of the wise; apply your heart to what I teach, for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart and have all of them ready on your lips.
Proverbs 22:17-18

David also understood the value of God's words.

And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.
Psalm 12:6

Of course our best example of this principle in action is Jesus. How did the spoken word play a part in His ministry here on earth? Well, a study of the gospels will reveal that Jesus used words to overcome the power of the enemy! When he was tempted by Satan in the desert, he spoke the Word of God. He spoke with authority to demons when he healed people. He spoke to a fig tree, a storm, and several dead people. His teachings also included instructions in the area of the spoken word.

You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgement for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.
Matthew 12:34-37

"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
Mark 11:22-24

Now let's take a look at what the apostle Paul has to say about our words. In Romans he actually refers back to the passage we just read in Deuteronomy.

But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is the word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
Romans 10:8-10

And in 2 Corinthians, Paul writes of that natural marriage between believing and speaking.

It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak...
2 Corinthians 4:13

Hopefully, it is becoming clear how important our words are! Confessing the Word is not a fad or a new religion. It is not super-freaky or something to be afraid of either. It is a wonderful gift, a tool, a weapon! And I have so much more to say about it. How do we practically apply this principle to our daily lives? What is actually happening when we confess God's Word and how do we do it? I want to share my personal, practical applications with you in my next post. I would also love to share some of the helpful resources that I personally use and love. And I'm so passionate about this subject, I'm going to host a giveaway and share some of these things with you, my overcoming friends!