Urgent Prayer Request

I just found out that one of my dearest friends has spent all day in the hospital with her babygirl. Her baby is less than two months old, and has a respiratory virus, and pneumonia. Pray for this dear friend. On top of being a young mom with an infant, her husband left two weeks ago for Iraq, and will be there for a year to fifteen months. I have already been upholding this dear girl in prayer, but now I am asking all of you to cry out to God. This precious baby needs to get better, and this dear friend needs strength, courage, and peace. Please pray for Amber, Allison (the baby), and Chris. As their family is separated and going through this trial they need our prayers and support. “Dear Lord I ask you to please give Amber your peace and hope. Touch little Alli with your healing. Help the doctors to be filled with wisdom. Please just wrap your arms around this precious family, and make your love and care known to them in this time. Thank you father that you never leave us or forsake us.” Please join with me in praying for these dear ones.

1 John 5:14-16 ” And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.”  

 

Blogging with a Purpose

I am amazed to learn that Alabaster Box has awarded me the ”Blogging with Purpose” award! I am so humbled to receive this gift, my blog less than two weeks old! This just confirms that the Lord is definitely moving in this ministry. God truly has a sense of humor because He knows writing is not my passion, but He has given me many many ways to serve Him in that capacity. I am in awe of what He is continuing to do in my life, and I pray that I can live up to this “Blogging with a Purpose” award. As is the custom I must pass this award on to five others who truly deserve this award.

1) www.veritas83.blogspot.com

~ Veritas is a very special blog belonging to a very special person. My brother dives right into tough topics, meaningful messages, and funny life updates.

2) www.shawnaherring.blogspot.com

~ Shawna is a very special person, and uses her blog for her photography business, and also to write about many different topics when she has the free time. Hers is an unusual blog because you see Christ’s light shining through her, not just through her words, but mainly in her pictures.

3) www.ylcf.org

~Young Ladies Christian Fellowship.  YLCF’s main team members, Natalie Klein, Gretchen Acheson, and Lanier Ivester continually share God’s word as it applies to young ladies today.

4) www.ModesTeen.com

~ ModesTeen is a new find of mine. I am already a devoted reader! They share different aspects of the modesty issue, and frequently share helpful advice and resources.

5) www.randyalcorn.blogspot.com

~ Randy Alcorn has been one of my favorite writers ever since I first picked up one of his novels. My brother gave me a copy of “The Grace and Truth Paradox” for graduation, and it has been an invaluable resource.

Once again, I’m grateful to Kaysie ~ www.alabasterboxblog.wordpress.com ~ for this award, and I am very humbled. May you see not me, but Christ’s light shining through me.

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”  ~ Galatians 2:20

Random Life Happenings…

I’m sorry I haven’t kept up with the blogging these past two days. I’m not exactly sure if I’ll be posting everyday for sure, but I would definitely like too. I’ve been so busy this week, and when I did try to blog I could never figure out what I was trying to do! I’ve been trying to figure out how to post videos and stuff on here, but just have been completely out of time this week. Sunday night was the big tryout for the NLS….who knows what will happen with that? We were all going crazy tonight wondering if we would find out who made it, and then we didn’t find out. Oh well, God is definitely teaching me patience, something I need in great supply!!! Tonight was also our skit in S.O.W.ers (Students of the Word), our children’s program on Wednesday nights. I’m in charge of directing the skits, so this week has been full of last minute script printings, coordinating schedules, gathering music for the intros, and calling to make sure everyone was ready. I’m very happy with how it went tonight, everyone did a fantastic job, and the kids seemed to really understand it! That’s always the best part! Tomorrow will be filled with making copies of my dad’s sermon series on cd, to take to our meeting in a church on Sunday. I am playing at least three songs, and maybe five if I end up playing for offertories. YIKES!!!! Even though I have played the piano for twelve years I never am able to calm those butterflies. That’s when I can only think of my favorite verse that says ” My grace is sufficient for thee…” I cannot do things in my strength, I must do in God’s grace. Friday I also hope to enter a photo contest, so I will most likely be waiting up until 12:20 to enter it after the first of the month. (joy of joys!) February 9th is my first on my own photoshoot…an awesome friend is being brave and giving me full control! WOOHOO!!! Time for much experiment! Well, I’m sorry for this rather rambling post. I have been praying about what to write about, and today God helped me start on one article, so I am excited about that! It might have to wait until Monday though… I hope everyone has an awesome week!

 Rebekah 

“And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.” – Isaiah 45:13

Wait

Wait
by Russell Kelfer

Desperately, helplessly, longingly, I cried;
Quietly, patiently, lovingly, God replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate…
and the Master so gently said,”Wait.”

“Wait? you say wait?” my indignant reply.
“Lord, I need answers, I need to know why!
Is your hand shortened? Or have you not heard?
By faith I have asked, and I’m claiming your Word.

My future and all to which I relate
hangs in the balance and you tell me to Wait?
I’m needing a ‘yes’, a go-ahead sign.
Or even a ‘no,’ to which I’ll resign.

You promised, dear Lord, that if we believe,
We need but to ask, and we shall receive.
Lord, I’ve been asking, and this is my cry:
I’m weary of asking! I need a reply.”

Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate
as my Master replied again, “Wait.”
So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut,
and grumbled to God, “So, I’m waiting…for what?”

He seemed then to kneel, and His eyes met with mine…
and He tenderly said, “I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead and cause mountains to run.

I could give all you seek and pleased you would be.
You’d have what you want, but you wouldn’t know Me.
You’d not know the depth of My love for each saint.
You’d not know the power that I give to the faint.

You’d not learn to see through clouds of despair;
you’d not learn to trust just by knowing I’m there.
You’d not know the joy of resting in Me
when darkness and silence are all you can see.

You’d never experience the fullness of love
when the peace of My spirit descends like a dove.
You would know that I give, and I save, for a start,
But you’d not know the depth of the beat of My heart.

The glow of My comfort late into the night,
the faith that I give when you walk without sight.
The depth that’s beyond getting just what you ask
From an infinite God who makes what you have last.

You’d never know should your pain quickly flee,
what it means that My grace is sufficient for thee.
Yes, your dearest dreams overnight would come true,
but oh, the loss if I lost what I’m doing in you.

So, be silent, my child, and in time you will see
that the greatest of gifts is to truly know me.
And though oft My answers seem terribly late,
My most precious answer of all is still “Wait“.

Recipes

I finally gave into my brother’s urging that I post recipes. I’m not sure I’ll make it a frequent occurrence, but I decided it would do for a Saturday post. This is a new recipe that I tried for our family Christmas dinner. Everyone seemed to love it, and I think we have made a new tradition!

Tuscan Panzanella

Ingredients:
8 oz. very dry unsalted Italian bread
Warm water for soaking bread (about a cup)
3-4 large ripe tomatoes, seeded and cut into cubes or wedges
3-4 fresh garlic cloves, chopped
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1/3 to 1/2 c. fresh basil, coarsely chopped
1/3 c. Extra Virgin olive oil
2 T. red wine vinegar
salt and pepper

To prepare:
Break the bread into pieces and put into a bowl. Cover with the warm water. Soak the bread for a few minutes until softened, then squeeze dry with your hands, and crumble into a serving bowl or onto a deep platter.

Arrange the tomatoes, onions, garlic, and basil over the top of the bread. In a separate small bowl, combine olive oil, vinegar, and salt. Whisk and pour over the salad. Season with additional salt and pepper if desired, and serve.

Note: For a perfect Tuscan Panzanella, the bread must be unsalted and very dry. This recipe can be savored within minutes of being dressed, unlike the American toasted crouton version which has to marinade for an hour.

PS- Make sure you do not wet the bread too much, or leave it too soggy. Our family all agreed it could have been a tad less ‘mushy.’

To check out more vegetarian recipes, mainly Italian style, check out

www.delicioustv.com

One Girl’s Dreams

 

One Girl’s Dreams

“Hello, this is God. I will be handling all of your problems today. I won’t need your help. So have a good day.” This little saying is posted on my wall at work, and helps me face each day. Now I know God’s words are so much holier than these words penned by an anonymous person, but they have truth none the less. God wants us to give Him our lives, both in the present, and our plans for the future.

One of the richest treasures a young Christian, especially a girl, can have is peace. When we become a Christian, the Holy Spirit brings a peace that can last through the strongest storm, or the darkest night. As young ladies, we face many challenges, and Satan can play on our emotions, freezing us with fear. But this is where God’s peace comes in, for when we reject Satan’s attacks, and accept God’s words, we can have an overwhelming peace. Many times I know my stubborn nature doesn’t want to accept God’s ways, and I want to try to work things out on my own. But then God simply says “Be still and know that I am God.” It is up to us to accept the peace that He offers.

A dream many girls have is to find a Prince. In and of itself, that dream is not wrong. God has given us our emotions, He has made us the way we are and allowed us to dream dreams. But if we abuse those dreams, then that dream becomes wrong. So many girls I know have built this extreme idea of what their Prince should be like. Some even pick out guys they know and try to fit them into their ideas. It’s ok to dream, but we have to give ourselves boundaries, so that we do not go too far. Sometimes this is very hard, especially when all our friends are dating, or courting, seem so happy, and we are there alone. But we must guard our hearts, no matter what. My heart is the most precious treasure I can give to my husband someday, and I would like to be able to give it all to him, fully and completely. And God can give us the power to set those boundaries, to guards our hearts, and to protect our purity. He is also the author of romance. He has written every love story, thru every century. He can bring along just the right guy, so there is no need to fret and try to mold some poor guy into your idea of a Prince. Jesus is the Prince of Peace, and for now, he’s all I need.The biggest dream a girl can dream is that God could use her to change the world. Each one of us touches lives each day, and we have so many opportunities to make a difference. As women, we have some special purposes that guys can’t have. We can give life to a child, teach them, and watch them grow up into young men and women of God. We can stand along side our husbands, and help them through each storm of life. If you’re in the ministry, you can walk with your husband, lifting them up in prayer, and see many lives touched through him. Each of us has a great purpose, if we will only let God use us. For many young girls this is an uncertain time. There are those who want to wait for a husband, and God has chosen to give this gift to them later. Then there are also those rush around, never stopping for once to hear God’s voice of direction, of purpose.

“Be still and know that I am God.” To be still doesn’t mean just to sit and wait for some vague idea. If you do that you will sit on the sidelines and watch the rest of the world moving on with their lives, while you miss out on some of the greatest things God could ever do with your life. To be still means to be still while serving. Or as one of my friends once told me “Be a WAITress. Wait on God while serving Him.” So whatever situation you are in today, if are simply stressed and need a calming peace, you are feeling restless waiting for your Prince, or you feel hopeless, and without a purpose, understand this one thing. Don’t waste your life on useless daydreams. If you are a Christian then you have a purpose, a future, and you can have His overwhelming peace. God loves you. You are His precious little girl.

3,000 Words

It’s been said that every picture is worth a thousand words. So here’s three thousand now, and ten billion or so to come in the future. I’ve been working a lot on studying and trying different techniques. Enjoy my pictures from today when I was working on underlighting. The bottom picture is a self-portrait I took when it was snowing galore last weekend! Until I figure out how to put a permanent picture of myself up that will have to suffice.  ”A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.” – Proverbs 25:11

Only One Life

Welcome to Only One Life! I’m so excited about starting this blog. I hope it will be an encouragement to you and encourage your walk with the Lord. Be sure to check out the About Me section in the upper-righthand corner. That way you can get to know me!

Only One Life

Only one life to offer, Jesus my Lord and King; Only one tongue to praise Thee, And of thy mercy sing. Only one heart’s devotion, Savior O may it be; Consecrated alone to thy matchless glory, Yielded fully to Thee.

Only this hour is mine Lord, May it be used for Thee; May every passing moment, Count for eternity. Souls all about are dying, Dying in sin and shame; Help me bring them the message of Calvary’s redemption, In thy glorious name.

Only one life to offer, Take it dear Lord I pray; Nothing from Thee withholding, Thy will I now obey. Thou who hast freely given, Thine all in all for me. Claim this life for Thine own to be used, my savior, Every moment for thee.

                                                         ~ by Avis Christiansen & Merrill Dunlop

I first heard this song when I was about 13 years old. Ever since that day it has become my heartcry. I love the way it sums up our life’s purpose in each verse. 1) To praise Him with a life of devotion, 2) To use every moment for His purpose, telling others of His precious gift, and 3) To give every part of our life to Him.

“Every moment for thee.”

Hello world!

Welcome to onlyonelife4jesus.wordpress.com Feel free to leave a comment and please pardon the dust as I figure everything out!