shabby blog

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Your Choice

I feel like recently I have been constantly aware of people around me who are struggling with different hard life circumstances,
I think part of it is just getting older, 
the more life experience I have the more pain I see.
life can be so hard,
I see it in all ages.
And I know that some struggles are huge, 
and some can be seemingly small,
but a struggle is a struggle and it's hard,
we are always left with a choice,
we can choose how we respond to what life brings us,
the big things and the small things,
everyday we have a choice,
we can have an attitude of self pity,
or an attitude that is steadfast on Jesus,
one that says I am made for something greater than this world can offer,
I feel like I have been really wrestling with this daily,
unfortunately I often choose on attitude of self pity when things aren't going my way,
I let the inconvenient little things get me all fired up, (a messy toddler, a puppy the chews, traffic, miscommunication, clothes that don't fit, a toddler tantrum, people who aren't like me..........etc) just ask my husband,
As our family approaches a new season of life adding another person to our world,
I know amidst the great joy, things will also get more complicated,
more stressful,
more exhausting,
more inconvenient,
but in those tough moments I want to choose an attitude of thankfulness and peace.

In scripture when Paul is writing letters under extreme stress from prison and while he is trying to plant churches under the roman empire he reminds us " don't be anxious about anything but in every situation by prayer and THANKSGIVING present your request to God"
You see the key here is beginning to approach God with a thankful heart,
when you are thankful,
you look to the things that you DO have,
you don't focus on things that you don't have,
We can't always change what life brings us,
God promises there will be struggle, big and small,
and I believe we should always feel that we can cry out to our God,
But I hope through the help of the Holy Spirit in me that I will have the strength to choose an attitude that is steadfast on Jesus.
For our present anxiety will always lose to the power in light of Gods future grace.
This Thanksgiving I will remember that a thankful heart is the first step in calming my anxiety and preventing the struggles from this world from chipping away at my heart.



Thursday, November 8, 2012

Boo 2012

This year was Brooks first year trick or treating,
and boy was it cute!
We went out with the Stanfill's and had a great time!
Brooks really got the hang of it after a few houses,
he got upset though when he couldn't eat his candy after every house.
He started biting into the candy with the wrapper still on.

Daye sure is funny!

They're just the cutest!



I love our little Sheriff!


On another note,
We went through the car wash last weekend and then came home and Brooks had his own car wash,
he LOVED it!


And we took Brooks to see his first real fire truck,
fortunately one of Trip's Young Life clubs meets in a fire station
the firemen were so sweet and let brooks ride in the truck,
he was in awe of it all! (excuse the bad iphone pics)