Look, Listen and Feel

Take a moment to close your eyes and listen...........what do you hear?  I hear the water from the fish tank, the whirring of the ceiling fan, the air coming from the air conditioner vent and the dogs occasionally readjusting themselves on their futon.  Now close your eyes...........what do you feel?  I can feel the air from the ceiling fan touching my skin.  I can also feel my heart beating in my chest.  I can feel the movement of my chest as I take a breath in and let it out.  Notice that when you open your eyes, you can look around to find the things that you heard and felt while your eyes were closed.

Sometimes on our journey in life we tend to be in such a rush that we forget to look, listen and feel the things that are going on around us.  It is almost as if we put blinders on our peripheral vision and we just stay focused on what is directly ahead of us.  By doing this, we sometimes miss out on very important people, opportunities and things that come along our way or that God may put across our path.

I know that I have probably missed out on several things because at times I tend to do this very thing.  At times I can be very OCD (Obsessive Compulsive).  I like to plan things out and believe me when I say I get very frustrated if they don't go as planned.  I go so far as to make a list and get all of my coupons sorted and ready before I even go to the grocery store.  I color code my calendar so that at an easy glance I know what is going on just by looking at the colors.  These are just a few things that I do to hold on to some control in my life.  However, even just holding onto control of these few things may allow me to miss out on some of the important things that He may put into my path.

Let's just take a quick look at some of the beauty that our Heavenly Father has created:

• Look:  Notice the flowers, trees and birds.  Notice the wind how it moves the tree branches causing them to almost wave at you.  
• Listen:  Listen to the tree branches as they move in the wind and the rustling of the leaves.  Listen to the sweet song of the birds. 
• Feel:  Feel the slight breeze as it dances across your skin.  Feel the grass beneath your feet or the softness of the flower petals in your hand.  

This is just a tiny bit of what our God has created, but I hope it at least got you thinking of a few things.  Next time you go outside, look, listen and feel to see what else you may notice. 

As far as our "Spiritual" pantry goes we can apply the same principles as we did in the first paragraph:

• Look:  As you read your bible, look for the message that God is trying to relate to you.  I have so many highlighted areas in my bible, especially in Psalms and Proverbs that I can just flip through and read the scriptures that have touched my life.  You don't even have to look very hard.  Just open you eyes, your mind and your heart and He will do the rest.  
• Listen:  When you come across a passage that really touches you, take a moment to close your eyes and listen to what God is trying to tell you.  You will be surprised at what you may hear.  Keep your ears open as you go on with your everyday activities.  You will be surprised how many more times you will hear that same message.  
• Feel:  Trust me when I say this, you will feel it when God is trying to tell you something.  If you have listened and heard a message, you will feel something when you hear it again.  You may get a little fluttering in your belly, or goose bumps or any other number of feelings.  You may even just feel it in your heart that this is something that you know is from Him and that He wants you to know.  

This is another one of those topics that I could go on an on about, but I will just leave you with this little appetizer for now.

 The challenge for today is this:  Stop to think if you feel you have ever missed out on any blessings are opportunities.  Next:  Are you willing to take the time now to Look, Listen and Feel so that you do not miss out on any other blessings or opportunities that He has in store for you?  I am.

Finding the Best Deal

As most of you know, I love to coupon.  I have been couponing since October of last year and let me tell you, I enjoy shopping now.  It is so much fun to see how much money I will save.  Unlike the show "Extreme Couponing",  I simply use coupons for the things that my family will use and what we need for a couple of weeks.  I only stockpile certain things like, toilet paper, Kleenex, toothpaste, shampoo, body wash, deodorant, shaving items, laundry soap, dish soap, cereal and some snacks.  My next project is to start purchasing things that I can get for less than $1.00 or FREE to donate to those in need.

Through my couponing, my family and I have been able to try things that I wouldn't normally purchase, but with a coupon I will give it a try.  Even my son asks if I have coupons for certain things now and he will even try something different if I have a coupon for it.  Needless to say, I often get asked if this is worth it and if I really save that much.  Let me put it this way, if I save $5.00 or $50.00, I am saving and taking care of my family.  I take my time when shopping  to find the best deal that I can.  It may take me a little more organizing and planning, but it sure is worth it in the end.  So far this year I have saved about $750.00 by using coupons.

As we continue on our road with God, I believe that sometimes we try to "Find the Best Deal".  Whether it be finding the right church, the right bible, the right way to pray, the right music to listen to, etc., we are trying to find what works best for us and is still pleasing to God.  We are all unique individuals and none of us are made to think, look or act the same.  God created us all differently and by doing so, He created each of us to be the "Best Deal" in His eyes.

I am so glad to have the relationship with my God that I do.  I can go to Him at anytime with whatever is troubling me.  I can talk to Him as if He is sitting right beside me.  He is a great listener and He does answer prayers, in His time.  He is a great teacher.  He loves me unconditionally.  He is my healer, redeemer and Savior.  When I fall He picks me up and tells me to keep going.  Of course I could go on and on, but I think you get my drift.

In God we have found the "Best Deal" for our lives.  Most importantly, this deal is FREE.  You don't have to wait for a sale or use a coupon, just invite Him in.   I promise you, you will me changed and you will have the "Deal" of a lifetime.    

Patience

This morning I went for my second steroid injection in my neck.  Needless to say, I have pretty much been useless all afternoon.  Before getting my injection they give me a shot to kind of relax me, so I was pretty much loopy the rest of the day.  So I apologize in advance if I say something that doesn't make much sense, I am going to go ahead and blame the medication.  LOL

I don't know about you, but I have a really hard time sometimes being patient.  There have been many times when I have gotten frustrated waiting on something somewhere or for that matter even waiting to get something done around the house. 

There are also times when I have been praying for something and I get impatient with God because I things aren't happening fast enough.  Can anyone else relate?  It is very hard at times to "let go and let God".  Even though we know that when we do let go, He will bless us beyond measure.  I have also had times where I have given things to God, but I sometimes attempt to take them back.  I don't want to take anything back anymore.  I know that God will bless me according to His will and plan for my life. 

Are you willing to "let go and let God"?  I am.  Remember it is done in God's time not our time.  We must learn to accept this and when we do, we wil see a huge difference in our lives.  May you all be blessed today.

Keeping the Pantry Full

Keeping the pantry full is very important.  There is nothing worse than having your mind set on something in particular and when you go to the pantry, it is not there.  So then you have to decide, do I really want that because it will involve a trip to the store, or can we just do without it this time and use something else?

Now, let's think about our spiritual pantry.  There are many items that can go into our spiritual pantry but I would like to look at what I believe is the most important.  First, we must pray.  Prayer is a simple way to spend time with God.  It doesn't have to be anything formal, just spend some time with Him.  The other morning I was watching TBN and Creflo Dollar came on.  He was talking about being in the presence of the Lord.  He said something that really stuck with me, "talk to God like you would talk to a friend."  I had never really thought about this, but it made perfect sense.  God just wants us to be real with Him.  He doesn't want us putting on an act, He just wants us to talk to Him.  So I drove to work the other day, talking out loud to my God, and you know what?  It felt great.  Don't worry about what anyone else may think, God loves to hear from us.

Secondly, we must read His word.  There are so many things that the bible can teach us.  Proverbs and Psalms are my favorite to read.  I will admit to you that I am very bad sometimes about reading my bible everyday, but I am going to change that.  I read in Seven Secrets Women Want to Know that Proverbs is a wonderful book of the Bible to read to gain wisdom.  They recommended reading, everyday every month.  There are 31 Proverbs, so you should read the chapter that corresponds with the day.  (ex.  Chap 1 for 1st day of the month.)  I have done this for the last several months and I love it.  I will admit again that I am very bad at times, but I try really hard to do it everyday.

Thirdly, we must Praise and Worship Him every time we have a chance.  I am so grateful that my windows are tinted in my car, because I turn my radio up, sing my head off and lift my hands(ok one hand)  to God as I am driving.  If my windows weren't tinted I am sure that people would call 911 and say there was some crazy lady driving down the interstate.  It feels so good to give Praise to our God.

Lastly, going to church is a great way to share all of the above with others who feel the same.  I know that church is not for everyone and there was a time when I did not attend , but I always did the first three most of the time.  I am blessed to have found a wonderful church that I love.  Life Tabernacle in Mustang, is so awesome.  I love my church family and all of the wonderful people I have met there.

I want my "spiritual" pantry to always be full.  Although I fall at times by not keeping up with some of my core items, I make up for it when I can.  I challenge you today to inventory your "spiritual" pantry.  What changes are you going to make, to assure that you don't run out of those core items?

Here is what I am going to do:  I am going to read Proverbs everyday and be more discipline with my Bible studies.  I am going to pray and have a conversation with God and I will give Him all the praise and I will worship Him with my voice.

(I would love to hear what your plans are.  Please feel free to join my blog and leave comments with your thoughts.)

About The Pantry

I am so excited about this venture.  I enjoy writing and have enjoyed posting on Facebook, but I decided that I wanted to branch out a little.  My prayer is that this blog will bring you words of encouragement that will strengthen your faith, help you when you are having a bad day or simply just bring you joy by reading it. 

I would like to start of by explaining the name "The Pantry".  I was trying to think of a name and nothing was coming to me.  I decided to just ask the Lord what He thought would be a good name.  My mind was running in circles and I just felt like I could not think clearly.  I decided that I would go outside and water the lawn.  Within a couple of minutes the words, "The Pantry", entered my mind and I knew right away that this was what He wanted me to title this Blog.  So then I began trying to figure out why this was the chosen name. 

We always hear that the kitchen is the heart of the home and I agree with that statement.  In my opinion the Pantry is the heart of the kitchen.  Why, you may ask?  That is where we store the majority of the groceries that we purchase to feed our families.  The pantry holds our cereal, canned goods, prepared foods, spices, baking products, prepared dinners, etc.  It can also hold the cooking utensils that we use to cook for our families.  The pantry is also the place that holds the special treats that we may purchase for our families like granola bars, cookies, candy and other snackie foods.  The pantry gets lots of use and there are many different uses for the pantry. 

When you think about using the word "Pantry" when referring to God, what do you think of?  Well here is what came to me while watering the lawn.  God is our pantry and we are the items in that pantry.  We are all different with different talents, ideas, personalities, etc.  For example, just like there are different kinds of canned goods, we are all different, but the main purpose is to nourish the body.  God put us all together in this earthly "Pantry" with a unique purpose and plan.  We may not know what that purpose and plan is, but He uses different ways to teach us and lead us in the way that we should go.  Just like using items out of our food pantry to make a meal for our families; God uses items from His pantry and uses them to do His work.  As each item in our food pantry is important, so are we in God's pantry.  We may need to be mixed or blended with someone else to get the desired result and He will do that if you will trust Him and let Him.    

I want to fit into His pantry and allow Him to use me where He needs to.  I want to be able to be mixed into whatever He chooses to put me into.  I want to bring all of the honor and glory to Him. I want to be the item that He chooses to always have on His shelf. 

What are your thoughts of "The Pantry". 

I truly am not sure where this will lead, but the one thing I know for sure is that it belongs to Him.