Blast from the past series- 3

God Knows YOUR Address
Posted 8/22/10

Did you know that God knows your address? He even knows the city and zip code. Even if you’ve moved a million times, He knows how to find you. You can’t hide from God.

I got a new address book at the first of the year. I put it on my project list to transfer all of the old addresses over to the new address book. For one thing, it was outdated and another it was marked all over. My book was filled with usually the same people who moved several times and filled up a whole page of my address book with their various locations. For some reason I always put it in pen and assumed I wouldn’t ever have to change it. That left a mess in my book as I scratched each old entry out and listed the new one. I’m so glad that no matter where we move and no matter how many times we change locations, that God knows where to find us. He is always up to date in His system with all the details of our lives.

Sometimes life can be challenging, difficult, and even a little overwhelming. It may be so much so that you want to go hide from the world to recover… to go where nobody can find you. It feels like at times we are facing this life alone and it is winning, but that is not true. God is near. He knows where you are and what you are going through. If you invite Him to, He wants to walk through it all with you. He will even carry you when you don’t have the strength to go on.

As many of you know, I have struggled with my health off and on for the past four years however the past year or so has been VERY difficult for me. I had a relapse in my condition and my health went into a downward spiral. It seemed like nothing was helping turn it around and day by day I was getting worse. It is a scary place to be… having no control over what happens to your life. There were times in the last year when I wondered what the outcome would be… Nothing was working. My energy was drained, I dropped weight drastically and couldn’t keep it on, and I was physically exhausted. I remember telling Al one night that “I was done… I give up.” I didn’t have anything in and of myself left to give.

My husband reminded me at one of the lowest points in my life that God will give me the strength I need to carry on. My theme verse for this season of my life has been…

Philippians 4:13
”For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”

It is God who gives me the strength I need for each day. It’s a strength that is given one day at a time. As I focused on that fact and a few other things I will mention below, it helped carry me through one of the darkest seasons of my life. God knew my address and He knows yours. Be blessed and challenged as you read on.

When facing difficult seasons in your life…

1. Think about the Past

It’s easy to focus on the present thinking about how difficult your situation is, how bad you feel, and maybe even how it feels God seems to be no where to be found. You may not feel like you hear Him or feel Him, but He is there. It is at these moments that you need to take time to remember how God provided for you in the past. What victories have you and He had together? What has He done in you previously? What battles have you won? What issues have you conquered? He hasn’t forgotten you… He is there. He didn’t forget you in the past and He won’t forget you now. Choose to Remember.

When I was sick laying in a bed 12 hours plus a day, it was difficult for me to remember the good. “Stinkin thinkin” always tried to take over and consume me, but I tried to push past it to think on positive things. God had been faithful to me in the past and I trusted Him to come through for me now. I clung to that! Take time to remember all the good God has done in and through your life. He has been there working all along whether you realize it or not.

When facing difficult seasons in your life…

2. Celebrate the Present

Focus on the positive things of each day. Negative thinking doesn’t help anything. There is always going to be something bad to focus on, but that doesn’t help or lift your spirit. In most cases negative talk is the vocabulary of fear. It is voicing out all those things that are feared instead of believing and speaking in faith for what God can do. There is a battle daily within us. We can choose to have faith and trust God with the outcome or be filled with fear and worry which eventually will consume us. I choose faith.

When I was sick the only way I could keep from being consumed by fear and “stinkin thinking” was to focus on daily wins. I was looking for the good things in my day… what positive things could I be thankful for today? Today I can… eat more, my voice is stronger, I have more energy etc... These were “daily wins” for me. I celebrated them knowing these were positive moves forward for me. The victory over the battle you are struggling with is made up of a life time of “daily wins”. Don’t miss out on the journey because you are so caught up in the destination. God is there and has been faithful… take time to look around and see HOW He has been taking care of you.

When facing difficult seasons in your life…

3. Focus on the Future

When your head is down because you’ve been focusing on all of the negative things surrounding your circumstances, it’s hard to see beyond today to the future. But God does have a future for you and me. He has a plan. We need to look toward the future with hope and expectancy of what God may do in and through our lives.

When I was sick the only things that truly helped me press forward when I was wavering in my focus, energy, and overall health was my family. Every time I saw my boys it lifted my spirits. I had to push on and get well for them… they needed me, my husband needed me… God had plans for me. I didn’t know or understand what He was doing, but I knew He could always turn things around. A scripture comes to mind that says that…

Romans 8:28
”And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

I started setting little goals for myself to push toward and attain. These helped me to have something to look forward to and celebrate as I reached each one. One of the goals I had was to be able to go to one of my boy’s baseball games. When I first got sick I couldn’t go to any games or practices. The ball park where they played was a long ways from the parking area which meant a lot of walking. When you struggle with energy and have muscle weakness, walking can be difficult. My goal was to make it to at least one game and walk myself there with no assistance. By the end of the season, I reached my goal.

It is important to have something to shoot for and look forward to… set some goals (small goals) to help you keep your focus on what is most important. What could God be up to? What could He be planning for your life? Take some time to dream about it and imagine how creative God could be with the canvas of your life. He is a great artist… trust Him with the details.

When facing difficult seasons in your life… remember God knows your address. One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is Psalm 139. It speaks of how God knows us inside and out. He is interested in what is going on in our lives and is concerned with the details. Trust Him, He is trustworthy.

I heard a song years ago that has stuck with me. It reminds me that God’s presence is with us through all seasons of life…

“The Lord knows the way through the wilderness and all I have to do is follow…”

God knows where we live, where we’ve come from, and where we are moving to… as long as you are following Him, you have nothing to fear.

Living to leave a legacy!
Julie

Blast from the past series - 2

"If You Ever Wonder Letter..."
(Posted 12/13/10)

Did anyone ever ask you as a child who you wanted to be when you grew up? I wanted to be a teacher or a nurse. What did you want to be? I also wanted to have a pink jeep like Barbie when I was younger, but I think I changed my mind now that I’m older. The dreams of a child are so innocent and filled with wonder. A life filled with hope for the future.

Those childhood dreams can sometimes be crushed by the pressures of reality. Have you ever felt… unnoticed, unloved, hurt, rejected, or alone? Sometimes life can be painful… and sometimes that pain can be inflicted upon us by those that are closest to us. People can be cruel and hurtful. Words and actions can make heavy imprints on our hearts. They can shape who we become if we let them.

Our words and actions are powerful. They can build others up or tear them down. They can speak life or death. What is inside of us comes out… and words can not be taken back once they are spoken. That is why it is so important that we are careful what we say especially to those closest to us. Not only is, what we say important, but also how we say it.

Children are very impressionable. They are trying to discover who they are and many of them do that by listening to what others think about them. “What a great job on your test!” – I’m smart. “Why don’t you pick your things up… this house is a mess!” – I’m a horrible person. “I can’t believe you forgot that again!” – I’m dumb.“Your hair is sticking up, brush it!” – I’m ugly. “I can’t believe you did that!” – I’m unlovable.

We need to be especially sensitive with the words we speak to our children. Not only do we need to keep from speaking the negative to them, we need to purposely speak the positive. Speak the obvious to them… after awhile they will start to believe it. “You are beautiful!” “I love your handwriting.” “Thank you for helping me. You are so good at helping others.” Look for the positive… you are building your child’s self-esteem daily with your words. It is at times overwhelming to know that “my words” are molding my kids daily. Wow… what a responsibility.

Each child has a self-esteem bank. It is active daily. There are deposits and withdrawals made. Life in general at times can drain their accounts. As a child, most of their time is spent at school. School can be a very negative environment. They are cut down, discouraged, and most days come home defeated. We need to be the ones as parents who actively make deposits daily into their bank. If nobody else encourages and lifts their spirits up, we need to be their biggest cheerleaders.

I am constantly trying to watch my words with my boys. Not only do I need to be purposeful about what I say, but I also need to watch my careless words. If I fail and something comes out that I didn’t want to say, I need to fix it immediately. By fixing it I mean… say you are sorry to your child for your tone, bad attitude or ugly words, and ask them to forgive you… and WAIT for them to say they will. This shows them that you fail just as they do and how to move forward afterwards.

Self-esteem is important. It defines us. It is our opinion of ourselves reflected for the world to see. I had a low-self esteem as a child. I didn’t think other people liked me. I thought I was ugly, unlovable, insignificant, and unnoticed. As a child we decide who we are based on everyone else’s opinions of us. What do they like about us? What do they dislike? We look for imperfections in ourselves and wait for someone else to confirm it to us.

I’ve decided this Christmas that I am going to give my children the gift of an “If you ever wonder letter.” I want to give them a constant reminder of my never ending love for them. I’m going to write them a letter sharing “my opinion” of them in case they ever wonder. I am going to speak life-giving words to them to make impressions on their hearts for the future. No matter what age they are if they ever wonder about my love for them… this will be a spoken and visible reminder.

As we grow into adults, we can face moments of discouragement and may have doubts along the way. Am I loved? Does anyone care about me? Why am I here? Does my life make a difference? In those moments of doubt, I want to be the steady determining factor of my boys moving forward with a healthy self-esteem.What would your life have been like had you been given a letter like this? In your moments of doubting, would this have made the difference?

It wasn’t until I was older that I discovered who I really was through a relationship with God. I was seeking for others to tell me who I was instead of seeing myself through God’s eyes… after all, He made me. I realized that it was God’s opinion that mattered most and He was the only one I needed to seek to please. My favorite chapter of all in the Bible is Psalm 139… it speaks of how well God knows me.

13 -16 Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
you formed me in my mother's womb.
I thank you, High God—you're breathtaking!
Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
before I'd even lived one day.

God knows us better than anyone else. It’s good to know that not only does God know me, but He loves me too. In case YOU ever wonder…

YOU are an amazing, intelligent, gifted, giving, compassionate, loving, kind, sensitive, tender-hearted individual whom God loves, made on purpose, and has a purpose for your life.

This Christmas season choose to seek God’s opinion over man’s. It will change your whole perspective and YOU in the process.

Living to leave a legacy,
Julie

Blast from the past series- 1

This month I will be posting some of my favorite posts from the past 4 years. 
I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Yucky Talk=Yucky Taste

(posted 8/8/10)

Have you ever looked at your tongue before? It’s definitely not the prettiest part of our bodies. Our tongue is the organ of taste and speech. James 3 talks about how hard it is to control our tongues… one minute we are speaking good and the next evil. One minute we are encouraging others and the next minute we are tearing them down. It’s a mystery.  I learned when my boys were young that they struggled with this immensely. I immediately set out on a mission to “fix” their ugly talk and teach them to speak words of life.

I decided the best way to teach my boys how to control their tongues was with a visual reminder of it’s ugliness. I chose to use vinegar. I told them every time they chose to speak ugly or yucky to others that yucky stuff was going to be put in their mouths. Yucky talk = Yucky taste. It seemed to work to some degree. I threatened vinegar and they would “try” to do better. The taste lingered in their mouths as a reminder of their bad choice of words. To this day, we sill use the vinegar reminder to help them control their speech especially with each other.

The boys really don’t like vinegar. Once I was at the grocery store and needed vinegar for a cooking project and asked one of them to get me some from the shelf and they said, “no, mommy we don’t need anymore vinegar… PLEASE. We promise to talk nice.” I was cooking in the kitchen recently and had a bottle of white vinegar set out on the counter. It was turned so you couldn’t see the label. I didn’t realize it looked like a water bottle until my boys came in hot and thirsty and one went to grab it to guzzle down. I guess the bottles do look similar, but they taste very differently. I stopped him just in time.

Vinegar… a visual reminder that Yucky Talk = Yucky Taste. I wonder what God would choose to use with us. What if every time we spoke negative, harsh, or ugly words God gave us vinegar? It doesn’t taste very good by itself… just ask my boys. I surely wouldn’t want to have it all the time. Sometimes I think we need a visual reminder of some sort to help us with our speech. There are some things that I have noticed that can make all the difference as we speak to others: how we say things, the tone, the attitude behind the words, the words chosen, and the timing. I don’t know if you have noticed this, but all the ugliness seems to come out most with our family. If we are spouting out ugliness to strangers, there must be a lot of ugliness in our hearts.

Hmm… think about it. If your speech had a taste, what would yours taste like? Sour, bitter, sweet…

Psalm 119:103 says
“How sweet are your words to my taste, they are sweeter than honey.”

Lord, please help us speak sweet words like you. It seems like our families see us at our best, worst, and know just how to push our buttons to make us explode. If we can control our tongues at home, we should be able to control them anywhere. What a great place to practice making your speech sweeter. They may think you are up to something, but with God and His help all things are possible!

I’ve noticed that words and habits are transferable to our children. Some families are yellers and they produce children that yell back. Others are quiet and the children have never even heard their parents argue in front of them. Negative parents produce negative kids and positive parents produce positive kids. With God’s help, you can stop the transfer of negative qualities and pass on a fresh, healthy, and godly heritage for your family.

With that in mind, I am choosing to work on my speech daily and strive to speak words of life to my family. I want to be their biggest cheerleader. It doesn’t come naturally to me, but I strive every day to do it. I have posted a note on my mirror as a reminder to me that says, “Choose to be a Life Giver today.” I catch myself in the middle of sentences realizing… maybe the tone, attitude, or timing is off on this encounter with my family member. When I change my words to make them sweeter, I have noticed that I get a better response from everyone in the house. I have not arrived. I’m on a journey of trying to become more like Christ in this area of my life. Here are some things that may be helpful to you as you endeavor to gain control of your tongue:

Bite your tongue! (Prov. 21:23)
You’ll never be sorry for the hurtful words never spoken. Sometimes the best thing to do is to say nothing and pray. Let God guide your tongue.

Be positive! (Phil. 4:8-9)
Being positive is a part of having faith. Faith is believing God for what seems impossible. The Christian walk is a walk of faith. We need to believe God for the things we can’t see. If we are constantly looking at things through a negative, critical lense, our Christian walk will become a defeated one. If you have been raised in a negative home, this is something that will take time, but with God’s help you can do it! Positive people rub off on to others. Make friends with some positive people or marry one like me and it helps make the difference!

Be purposeful! (I Thes. 5:11)
Look for opportunities to build others up (especially your family). A lot of people have low self-esteems because they are torn down so much that they can’t lift their heads. The world is an ugly place. I want my home to be a safe, refreshing, and encouraging place for my family to be. Don’t withhold speaking words of life daily to others. Say, “I love you” often. Use words like please, thank you, and I’m sorry. Live a life of no regrets when it comes to your words.
Be purposeful and intentional about building others up!

Luke 6:45 says…
“Whatever is in your heart determines what you say.”

Fill your heart and life with more of God and you will have words of life to give to others. Remember it’s a journey. It’s not easy, but with God’s help and lots of practice we can tame this ugly tongue.

Choose to speak words of life today… give someone else the gift of a kind word, build self-esteem, and learn to sweeten your words. You have the ability to change your world, one word at a time. Be intentional!

Living to leave a legacy!

Julie

It's Jan"YOU"ary!

It’s a new year… officially 2014.  Wow!  Time flies.  For many this month is a time of reflection and goal setting.  It’s a time for YOU to determine what you want to focus on or accomplish this year.  It’s Jan“YOU”ary.  I challenge you to take this month to focus on YOU.   Come up with some simple goals to shoot for throughout the year. Make a list and keep it simple.  If you never set a goal, you will hit it every time!  Step out and try something new. 

A goal is simply… a dream with a deadline.  Who do you want to be in 2014?  What do you want that person to look like?  Start there…  Here are some inspiring quotes I read on the subject of setting goals:

"All our dreams can come true --if we have the courage to pursue them."  - Walt Disney

"Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal." - Henry Ford

"Fear melts when you take action towards a goal you really want."   - Robert Allen

"Living without an aim is like sailing without a compass."   -John Ruskin

Think through the past year and specifically the past three months. Jot down what you want to maintain, improve, and change.  It might be to begin eating right & exercising, taking a class of interest, starting a new hobby, saving for a vacation, focusing on getting debt-free, mending a broken relationship, or being more purposeful with your time.  What are your personal goals?  How could setting goals and shooting to meet those goals change your year?  I dare you to try it and see for yourself.

I am working on this process.  I usually have things figured out by the first week of January, but I’ve been sick a lot this month which has been frustrating.  It’s really hard to focus on things when you don’t feel well.  My plan is to have all of my goals for the year written out by the end of this month.  My list will include several areas of goals:  spiritual, physical, mental, family, financial, ministry, writing, etc…   Each person is different.  You need to list out the areas that are important to you.  I haven’t gotten everything figured out yet, but here are some of the ideas I am fleshing out…

MENTAL GOALS:

I want to read several books this year.  I made a list of specific books to read, so I actually do it.  Some are ones I heard about and others were recommended.  I am going to start small and add more if I finish this list.  Here it is so far…

~Not a Fan by Kyle Idleman

~Developing the Leader With in You by Maxwell

~Circle Maker by Mark Batterson

~Unglued by Lysa Terkeurst

~Balancing it all by Candace Cameron Bure

~God of the Underdogs by Matt Keller

~God Meant it for Good by R.T. Kendall

~You’ll Get Through This by Max Lucado

I also want to read some e-books on my phone while I wait to pick my kids up from school or in waiting rooms at doctor’s offices.  I want my waiting to be productive, since I do A LOT of it!  I don’t want to waste a minute.

Two specific books on my list have peaked my curiosity.  The ladies that suggested these had no idea that I am in the process of writing a book on the very subject of their recommendation.  It’s a Bible study that draws parallels from my own life while studying the life of Joseph.  Needless to say I am very excited about reading them.  Perfect timing!

WRITING GOALS:

This year I want to become an official writer… not just a part-time blogger.  I want to finish my book and get it published.  I also want to set specific writing goals for my blog, writing e-books, discipleship resources, and the like.  I’m still working out the details on this one.

FAMILY GOALS:

I want to have family nights, more sit down meals, date nights with my kids & husband (all separate), and read specific books together to help us grow more in God. 

PROJECT: 31

I don’t know about you, but my family gets all caught up in their boxes…  TV, Computer, Laptop, Phone, IPod, Video Games, etc…  It seems like at times it takes away rather than adds to our family.  It sucks them in and it’s hard to bring them back to reality.  My thought is that each month that has 31 days, on the 31^st day of that month we take a MEDIA BREAK (Project: 31). We UNPLUG for that particular day. That’s about 6 times a year!!!   I know we may need access to our phones somewhat, but I would like to see us unplug from as much as we can.  It’s in my ideas for goals.  Maybe we could plan a special family night with NO media or go somewhere fun together.  I think we need to do MORE than this to UNPLUG from media, but this may be a good start for our family.

There are other goals I am working on, but they aren’t all fleshed out to put on paper.  Physical goals:  I want to get down to the size I was when I got married by my anniversary in July so we can re-do our wedding pictures (rent a dress & tux).  Spiritual goals:  I want to grow closer to God this year.  I am taking the 14/14 challenge this year… spending at least 14 minutes a day with God.  

My boys:  I want to set goals to help prepare them for the future.  My husband and I are making a list and calling it…“Mentoring to Manhood” goals.  We want to make sure they are adequately prepared for the real world.  I’m still working on this list, but some things you might find on it are… learn how to change a tire, iron clothes, and balance a check book.  We also want them to cook with us more often so they can learn and become comfortable.  This list is full of practical every day stuff and is ever growing…

These are some of MY goals.  I encourage you to write some of your own.  Choose the areas you may want to focus on and make a list of things you want to shoot for.  Put it somewhere you will see often so you can work on them.  Something new I am going to do (so I follow through) is to make a Checkpoint time to re-evaluate my goals to see how I am doing.  I may do a 3 month, 6 month, and 9 month check-up.  I am serious about being intentional and disciplined this year so I THRIVE in every area of my life.

I hope all my random ideas for goal setting has some how inspired you to become more purposeful and intentional this year with YOUR LIFE.   Take it one day at a time, one goal at a time, and adjust them as you go if they seem too overwhelming for you.  When you enlist God’s help in accomplishing your goals, nothing is impossible.

Philippians 4:13 says…“For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”

Nothing is holding you back now, but YOU.  It’s time to start thinking, praying, writing, and believing God for an amazing year.  Your life may never be the same!

Living to leave a legacy,

Julie

A Year of THANKS!

Wow!  It’s hard to believe it is a new year.  2013 was a year full of thanks for my family.  At the beginning of the year we determined to watch for, write down, and thank God for all of the awesome things He did through out the year.  When we prayed for things and our prayers were answered… it went in the “Thanks Jar”.  When we received unexpected checks in the mail or we accomplished something we had been working hard for... it went in too.  It was fun watching for things to be thankful for.  I’m not saying everything went WELL in 2013, but we did find a lot to be thankful for. 

We were SO surprised New Years Day to find piles of papers we had collected over the year to read.  A new tradition for us had begun… collecting thanks through out the year and then reading our “thanks” on New Years Day.  It was awesome and overwhelming all in one breath to see how very present God was in our year.

Our year was filled with lots of ups and downs…. After 4 months of pain, various tests, procedures, and doctor visits, I had my gall bladder removed.  I finished my last class (American Lit.) online to complete my degree after 18 years of waiting.  I celebrated 20 years of marriage to an amazing man.  The incredible house we were blessed to rent, sold and we had to move.  My doctors all agreed after special treatments in the fall of 2012 that I was officially in remission with my autoimmune disease.  This list went on… the boys got almost all A’s on their report cards, they BOTH made the basketball team, they made new friends, etc… God opened doors for us in many ways.

It was emotional to read each piece of paper and see the piles we still had yet to read full of thanks.  God is good.  This is a new tradition we are keeping.  A Year of Thanks!  I challenge you to become treasure hunters looking for all of the good things God is doing in YOUR life.  Take it a step further and write it down.  Save it up all year round and read your thanks on New Years Day just like us.  What an awesome concept!  Below you will find my original post and how I found the idea.  I pray your year will be amazing and full of thanks!

Living to leave a legacy,

Julie



A THANKFUL HEART
(12/31/12)

My husband has a new name for me… he calls me the “Pinterest Queen.”  I finally gave in to join the Pinterest craze in the fall.  I kept seeing posts on Facebook of creative ways to do things, fix things, clean things, or make things and I couldn’t take it any longer and gave in to join.  Since then I have made SO many awesome creations.  Some have gone well while others have ended terribly.

 One of my projects could have ended disastrously, but luckily didn’t.  My goal was to do something creative with a mason jar.  I had seen pictures on Pinterest of candles placed in a mass of coffee beans which peaked my interest.  I decided to attempt it one night.  I poured the vanilla cream beans into the jar to fill it half full and then added the votive candle.  I pushed it down into the mixture of beans just like the picture.  It was perfect and smelled awesome.  I lit the candle and walked away to allow the aroma to fill the kitchen.

Later my husband exclaimed, “Why does the kitchen smell so strongly of coffee?”   He is a coffee drinker unlike me, but hadn’t made any.  He knew I had the candle burning, but it was EXTREMELY strong smelling.  He rushed into the kitchen to find my jar of coffee beans… ON FIRE!  It didn’t smell like smoke, or anything burning, the smoke detectors didn’t even go off… it just smelled like strong coffee.  We snuffed the “small” fire out with the lid and went on with the night.  My husband looked at me with a smile and said, “I think you need to chill a little with the Pinterest thing.  I don’t know if I can leave you unsupervised in the house again. Who knows what might happen.”

 I have steered away from candle projects for now and have moved on to new things.  I saw something awesome on Pinterest that I am definitely doing this year.  It’s a “blessing bottle” of sorts.  It’s a way to collect and record all of the ways God has blessed us over the year.  God has done some amazing things in 2012 and I don’t want to ever take His blessings for granted.

The boys and I have a morning routine we started over the past year.  Before they leave for school each day we read a devotional book together and pray for needs.  I ask each boy what they would like to pray for and then we all take a turn praying.  Some things we have prayed for over the past year were needs, some were wants, some were healing for the sick, new jobs, and more.  The boys have been persistent in their prayers each day.

They were shocked when God started answering their prayers.  The blessings started to pour in… free camper, free flat screen TV, larger house, new job, money given anonymously when we needed it most, the sick getting well, people we prayed for who didn’t know God giving their lives to Him and more…  They were so excited!

Philippians 4:6 says…

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” (NLT)

That is what we are going to do this year!  We are going to plan ahead to have thankful hearts.  My “blessing bottle” is made now it’s time to start collecting.  This is what the excerpt from the Pinterest post I read about this whole idea said…

 “Start the year with an empty jar and fill it with notes about good things that happen. Then, on New Year's Eve, empty it and re-read all of the amazing things You have done in your life that year...I love this!!!”

I challenge you to find a way in 2013 to be thankful for all that God does in your life.  I don’t want to miss one blessing.  Happy New Year friend.  The best is yet to come!

Living to leave a legacy,
Julie