"Dearly Loved"

A few nights ago, I had the opportunity to hang out with my room mates cousins...They are so cute, three girls-all under 10! The middle child is 4 going on 24 and cute as can be. Every time that I see her, she tries to act like she does not like me...So we end up playing this "cat and mouse" game back and forth-honestly quite comical! On this particular night, I begged her (with a huge smile on my face) to "show me some love," so when she resisted-I gave her a big kiss. Without skipping a beat, she looked at me with a sly grin and said "I am gonna wipe your love off!" I joked back and said "oh no, don't do that!" But in an effort to "wipe my love off" she began "dusting off." Ironically after all of the laughter and tickling, she ended up giving me a kiss and we went on to something else.

Later that night, while I was by myself, I could not help but think, "how many times have I tried to wipe Christ's love off of me." It might not have been in a literal sense, but let's face it-There have been times when I have discredited his sacrifice and thought in the midst of chaos, "well I need to fix this!" When really at the end of the day I cannot fix a thing without him! Denying his presence in a matter is like denying his LOVE for me. And as stupid and idiotic as my decision making can be at times, I can never wipe off the love of Christ, and neither can you! So I guess we better stop trying!

Allow yourself to be embraced by his LOVE!

Romans 8:38-39

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the LOVE of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Dearly loved,

Rendered Heart

Never alone in a storm!

I think that personal testimonies are one of my favorite things to hear. No story ever sounds the same, nor does any life ever look the same. This journey we call "life" is filled with one adventure after another, we just have to hold on tight. There are days when my life feels like a fading photograph and other days that feel like I am in a contest to see how many times I can ride the roller coaster at the theme park-before I cry "mercy." I sit awestruck by the wonder of the Lord and all that He does day to day in all of our lives...

One exciting place to hear someone's story is in the bible..It always amazes me that there are hidden messages everywhere...For instance, let's take the story from Matthew 14:22-33, known as the story of Jesus walking on the water. What seems like a simple story, actually has some really neat teachings intertwined within it. Please read below:

Matthew 14:22-33

22Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
25During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear.

27But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."

28"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."

29"Come," he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.30But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"

31Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"

32And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God."

Do you see that the passage tells us that Peter was scared, that he had doubt? The writer did not come right out and say it, but Peter questioned Jesus: "Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water." See that "if it is you?" I almost laugh to myself-sadly because I can think of plenty of times when I knew that Jesus was trying to get my attention in the midst of a storm, but instead of just doing what I knew I was supposed to do, I would "test" him with other useless questioning.

Then it goes on to say that: "when he SAW the wind, he was afraid, and as he began to sink, Peter cried out, "Lord, save me!" Implying that he took his eyes off Jesus! Instead of focusing on the Lord, he became distracted by the clamor around him...Then it says that: "IMMEDIATELY Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" Why do we doubt the Lord? He has the whole world in His hands, yet we think that our problems and issues are so big that we should handle them ourselves-our own way. But thankfully it says that after Peter cried out to the Lord-"SAVE ME," Jesus IMMEDIATELY reached out His hand and caught him. Even when we begin to loose faith and question how in the world we are going to get through, all we have to do is ask the Lord for his hand, and he will give it IMMEDIATELY. After all, we are not expected to walk on water, but rather just to have faith in the one that can!

This story is uplifting to me personally, because I can easily loose focus and forget who I am walking towards in the midst of a storm. I am so thankful that even when I do fail, Jesus is still willing to reach out of the holies into my heart to help me!

You may personally be in the midst of the storm, remember where your "help" comes from, so that you do not begin to sink!

I encourage you, take any story in the bible and ask the Lord to expose ALL that He has for you in it. And when you do, please share it with me!



Watching and Waiting,

"Rendered Heart"

Act like a child

There is something extraordinary about the heart of a child. Something pure, something tender, something genuine. Think about it. You never have to wonder about what they are thinking, because they will tell you. If you ask them if they like your outfit, they will respond honestly, because they have nothing to loose. We as adults are so afraid sometimes of upsetting people that we would rather sugarcoat things, rather than expressing how we really feel.

In Bible times, Jesus references numerous times how he wants the children to come to him (Matthew 19:13-14), and how he longs for us to have a childlike faith (Matthew 18:2-6). Back then, children were actually looked down upon as being a lower class, almost like the poor (Mark 9:36-37). That is why it comes as such a surprise that Jesus desired to spend time with children, much less tell us to emulate them!

Anyone that has spent more than four hours, or maybe even four minutes with a two-year-old knows that his/her outlook on life is totally different from ours (as adults). Two-year-olds are not worried about their 401K or that beautiful bracelet in the "Tiffany's" window, but rather about eating, sleeping, and feeling loved-to put it simply.

I recently had the opportunity to hang out with a two-year-old for a day at the mall. He and I were holding hands, making our way to the exit, when he abruptly stopped me and said: "Tina, look at the mountain! What a beautiful mountain!" I naturally started to try to figure out what he was talking about, until something caught my eye. It was an escalator! In his mind the escalator was an amazing sighting, and being that the "play area" was closed that afternoon, that sighting appeared to be the highlight of his day.

Last night I watched a total of six kids-four of which were between the ages of five and twelve. Right after they all brushed their teeth, we all started discussing "saying our prayers." I then asked, "Who wants to go first?" The oldest being "full of wisdom" then suggested that I go first, because it was my idea (for us to pray aloud). I have to admit that I felt like that was pretty logical, so I did. Then, one right after the other, they said their prayers. Surprisingly, none of them borrowed each other's words or mimicked me-they each prayed their own prayers. You could tell they were not reciting anything or trying to impress anyone with their spiritual jargon, but rather earnestly pondering what to say to Jesus.

When it came time for the little boy to pray, he prayed for "all the people that did not know Jesus, that they would know Him." But he did not stop there. He then prayed for "all the people that did know Jesus, that they might know Him better!" As the words left his lips and soared into the holy of holies, you could tell that he truly had a heart of compassion for people.

So I believe these children leave us adults with a challenge. How can we act more like a child? Obviously it is important for us to be mature and responsible. However, what if we reverted back to a childlike heart? How could we love people better? Think about how effortless it is for a child to speak to a stranger, and some of us would not even dare to do so. Uniquely that child just sees that person as a "friend they have not met yet." And that person was created in the image of Christ, just like you and me; therefore, we are called to love them that way.

With this childlike mindset, would anything change? Would we act differently? Would we pray differently? Would we see escalators or beautiful mountains? You decide!

-Rendered Heart

Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me,
and do not forbid them;
for of such is the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 19:13-14 New King James Version

And Jesus called a little child to Him,
set him in the midst of them, and said,
"Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and
become as little children, you will by no means
enter the kingdom of heaven.
Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child
is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one little child
like this in My name receives Me.

But whoever causes one of these little ones
who believe in Me to sin,
it would be better for him
if a millstone were hung around his neck,
and he were drowned in the depth of the sea."
Matthew 18:2-6 New King James Version

Taking a child, He set him before them, and taking him in His arms, He said to them,
"Whoever receives one child like this in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me does not receive Me, but Him who sent Me."
Mark 9:36-37 New American Standard

Seashells by the seashore....

Last week, I had the opportunity to spend the weekend with my family and a friend at our condo in Siesta Key....I've always loved walking along the beach especially at sunset. There are normally families walking together, laughing, talking, and making memories-I love taking this all in. As I was there kicking the sand with my feet and picking up shells, I was reminded of something interesting. Those of you that know me, know that I love "marine biology," I am so fascinated with the wonders of this world, but especially those that involve the ocean. One of those wonders to me is the "sea shell," or better yet, the animal that takes shelter in that sea shell. It is so interesting to me that a whole world for one animal can exist in something smaller than a quarter. It is because of their size and frankly "the circle of life" that predators present a high risk to them, even those of "their own kind!" Did you know:

"Many mollusks prey on other species of shells by means of drilling. This means that they use specialized mouth parts and enzymes to excavate a circular hole through the shell and then insert their proboscis to eat the soft body parts of the clam or other shell. Sometimes octopi also drill holes in shells to get to the tasty animal inside."

-"San Diego natural history museum"

What that means in "layman's terms" is that over a period of time, the predator slowly works it's way into that shells world and takes over, by complete consumption. This drilling does not happen fast, but slowly-over time.

Does that sound familier. Isn't easy especially in high school , to allow someone to talk us into doing something that it totally against our moral code? And yet we go along with it and before you know it, we are completely taken over by sin..and it seems like all of a sudden-we are an empty shell. What once housed a flourishing individual, now houses an empty spirit..Drained of ambition, drained of life itself!

Please take a second to read these lyrics by "Casting Crowns:"

Be careful little eyes what you see
It's the second glance that ties your hands as darkness pulls the strings
Be careful little feet where you go
For it's the little feet behind you that are sure to follow

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade

Be careful little ears what you hear
When flattery leads to compromise, the end is always near
Be careful little lips what you say
For empty words and promises lead broken hearts astray

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day

The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
Daddies never crumble in a day
Families never crumble in a day

Oh be careful little eyes what see
Oh be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
Oh be careful little eyes what you see

Do you see all of the parallels? Distractions do not normally affect our decision making right away, but rather over time. Even our own friends can have an affect on our downfall. Remember that saying "You are who your friends are?" Well it is true, the people we spend the majority of our time with should reflect what we want to emulate!

When that same shell is alerted and knows that it is being threatened, it will bury into the sand immediately! Using that example, when the holy spirit alerts us inside that something is "not right," may we too bury ourselves in the Lord- Using His Word for guidance and refuge!

So ask yourselves this question: "Who am I allowing to influence me, is this good or bad?"

Big Mess!

I remember being in a drama group in Middle School that volunteered to serve for a dinner at church. I was so excited, I thought that it would be so cool and "official." After we served everyone their food, it was time for their coffee and dessert! I had never carried coffee without a top before so I thought the best thing to do was to watch the coffee very closely, just in case it decided to spill I could somehow tell the cup to "stop that!" HAHA right? I was later told, after intense concentration, that I should not look at the coffee but rather look ahead at the person I was bringing it to. For some reason this actually steadies your hand and causes you to spill less. Who would have thought?

I know that it is so easy for me/us to have something happen in life, where we end up staying so focused on the issue rather then the ONE that we are taking it to. If you were to look directly into that coffee, you would not see your reflection-Your problems do not define you, but rather the way that you handle them. Everyday we are faced with different obstacles that we can either allow to consume our attention or forge us ahead to focus on the Lord. I want to remind you that no one ever said (or should ever say) that "the christian life is easy," but we choose what we make of it. It is important that we keep our eyes fixed ahead so that we do not make a BIG MESS!

"Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you." Proverbs 4:25

"The Last Supper"

The night before the "Master Cleanse"....Ok, so I know that you all must be thinking "Why is she publicizing this?" Well because I need accountability! 

So tonight, I decided to eat "Steak and Shake!" I had a cheeseburger with fries and a chocolate shake, and then when I got home and I ate some "famous amos" chocolate cookies..Did I mention that I have not had a burger slash anything (Steak and Shake) like that for at least two years? Oh man but it was good! And there was "no gym" today, talk about a blow out, or maybe I took my "last supper" a little too far! Yeah but I will not be eating solid food for another 2 weeks!!!! If you are interested in doing this too, get the book "Master Cleanse." But to give you a snip-it of my life for the next couple of weeks....(Just FYI, they tell you to ease into it, which as you can see is not my approach!)

To make the Lemonade you will need the following ingredients:

lemons/or limes

water

maple syrup

cayenne pepper

I also have to drink herbal tea (which I did tonight) and do a "salt bathing" in the AM (google that, fun times)

Wish me luck and do not invite me to dinner...please!

I'll be back tomorrow...Night!

"Throw it OVERBOARD!"

Anyone that has ever seen "The Little Mermaid," or "Titanic" knows that if a ship gets too full in a storm, something has got to give. In each of these movies you see the crew trying to figure out what has the most importance (needs vs. wants), in order to know what is to be thrown over first. Amidst this observation, I/we can assume that there have been instances where the items thrown overboard, were deeply cared about, or had extreme monetary value-resulting in a great loss. How many times in life, do we see God strip us of something, that we thought we could never live without? We look around and question how we will ever survive without that job, or that car, or that house, or that guy, or that girl? Sadly, because we are human, it is easy for our identities to get wrapped up in these things and we all know that as soon as that happens, God has to help us re prioritize, and if we don't-we will SINK! Think about it, once the storm is cleared, as much as those people thought that they would miss those things, all that they can reflect on is the fact that they are alive! Nothing else matters! What if we embraced God's "pruning" of our "vessel" that way-as, "it is sooo good to be alive in Christ?" Would we view life differently? I can't help but think about the different times in my life where God insisted that certain people and or things that were important to me, be thrown "overboard," and how devastated I was-but now reflecting, since the storm has passed, I am thankful to be alive, thankful that I did not sink to the bottom. I want to be a "vessel" that flows on all cylinders, with nothing holding me back and well, sometimes that means some things just have to go "overboard!"

So I challenge you as I challenge myself, What are the things in your life that are holding you back from being the greatest vessel (in/for Christ) you can be-A vessel that is pressing on towards it's final destination-called HOME?

Take refuge in your storms...

Pslam 34:22

"The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him."