Is it time to renew your wedding vows with the Lord? Or is it time to finally make that commitment to the Savior? What are God’s wedding vows?
The Lord beckons us to relationship with Him. He’s always wooing us to become His own. Since before you were born, He has loved you. He is continually seeking to get your attention. When you awaken in the night, He is in the middle of a thought about you. Doesn’t that knowledge make you want to dig into His Word (the Holy Bible)…the place where He shows you (over and over) the stories of how He relates to His people. To you. You are “His people”. Love Him back. It’s that easy. His Word (The Bible) will tell you how to do that.
If you have loved Him in the past and now your love has grown cold, renew your “wedding vows” with the lover of your soul. He longs for His “called out ones”… His Bride…to intentionally maintain the relationship with Him.
You’ve heard the song, “I have decided to follow Jesus”? Yes, it is a decision. One you will never regret. Will your life be easy after that decision? Most likely, no! But why would we expect our life to be easier than the One (Jesus) who gave His ALL for us. The New Testament books will explain that in ways that will draw you to Him.
I heard a song on the radio and don’t know the title/artist or the exact words, but it goes something like this: God loves you and made you for the pleasure of knowing you. God made you for the pleasure of loving you.
How can we resist an offer like that? Even with all your warts and even with all the baggage of your past the Creator God thinks that knowing you  is a pleasure. And…that loving you is a pleasure. No strings attached. All He wants is your heart.
Would you like to have God in the center of all of your life? Would you like to talk about ways to make that happen? I know where you can find a good Christian Life Coach to help you with the process of discovering who you can be in Christ. 🙂

To learn more about God’s wedding vows what that can mean to you personally, contact me at  loavesandfishescoaching.com

I have a serious question for you. Do you have hope-so faith or know-so faith? Do you “hope” that you will go to Heaven? Or do you “know” that you will go to Heaven?

Let’s go back to basics. We all become like those we spend time with.  So, get a piece of paper and let’s take time to:
**Review your relationships (including TV/computer/cell). Are they drawing you closer to the Savior or away from Him?
**Review how you spend your discretionary time. Are you feeding your mind/spirit/soul with trash or with a banquet?
**Review the priority you give to spending time in the Word of God (The Holy Bible).  Remember that we become like those we spend time with.

A good way to begin to get that “know-so” faith  is to practice the presence of God. Be aware of His presence. Everywhere. All the time. In all circumstances. He is a gentleman. He won’t push Himself on you. It’s your choice to: Seek–with a vengeance–a relationship with Him. As though your eternal life depends on it. Because it does! Literally. Eternally.

It’s that time of year when we start new schedules. It’s time to: Schedule in the Lord.  Purposefully make time with Him and His Word a priority in your schedule. Highlight it in your day-planner or calendar. Then keep that appointment as though it is a “date” with the coolest person in the world. Because it is! (And the best part is, the relationship also carries over to the next world as well. It doesn’t get any better than that!)

Be honest with Him. He knows it all anyway. He loves you. He created you, so He knows why your life is “stuck” or not working as you had hoped it would. He knows you’re hurting over betrayal or disappointment or because you made a decision that has turned your world upside down. He knows what is tempting you. He can provide that way out. But the only way to get the power to be the best you can be is through an intentional relationship with Him and His Word. He promises to meet you there.

If you need help working it through, that’s my favorite thing to do…to walk alongside “imperfect” people like me…imperfect people that want to be all the Lord wants us to be. It is so much easier when you have a trusted ally to walk the path with you. Don’t worry. Nothing you say will surprise me. We all struggle. Me, too. That is the nature of this world. It is not our home. We are only passing through. We’re “getting ready for” the next…the so-much-better-world. The first call is my gift to you. Just email me to arrange it. It is that easy. Let’s get started with this new schedule determined to get back to basics…whatever it takes! Onward! loavesandfishescoaching.com

Psalm 23 reminds us that “The Lord is My Shepherd. I shall not want”. (Meaning: I have all I need.) That’s what The Lord God wants us to know.

With Him as our Shepherd/Lord, we lack nothing that we need. He is enough to meet our every need. Key word = need. He is Faithful and True. He longs to hear us say, “I trust You, Lord, to give me everything I need.” If it’s a new thought, keep saying it until you believe it. It may take time, but believing it brings freedom from the enslavement of continually striving for more! If you have questions, contact me at loavesandfishescoaching.com  If I don’t know the answer, I’ll find someone who does!

“I shall not want“. The pain of life comes from wanting more than we have. Wanting to the point of distraction and discontent and sometimes even anger or bending the rules. It sometimes gets us into a lot of unnecessary debt, because…after all…we deserve it, right? It is a hard habit to break away from thinking that if we don’t take care of ourselves, who will?

How do we conquer the wanting more demon? It takes a mindset change. A Christian life coach can help. But, it also takes spending time regularly in His Word (The Bible) to keep remembering that He is sufficient. All things are possible with the Lord.

It is a statement of confidence in the Lord when we conquer that wanting more demon. Discover contentment. I’d love to help you as you move toward that truly good life of trusting God as the Good Shepherd. He truly wants what’s best for you!

Most couples have expectations that after the engagement, there comes the blissful and effortless planning of a wedding celebration. However, sometimes, the wedding plans become a challenge when one or more Alpha Moms vye against the Alpha Bride for the power to plan.

Let’s be fair. Seldom does the Alpha person see the relational fractures they are causing. What could be some of the possible reasons this is happening?

Alpha Manifestations:
 The money rules. Whoever pays the most thinks (and rightly so) that they should have a greater input … but unfortunately that often translates into the “Right to Rule” all things attitude.
 Power struggles. “Where, what, who, when” decisions become nightmares as formerly sane people try to be heard. It appears that they feel that their way is the only reasonable (translated: correct) decision.
 Focus on tasks/decisions. It is easy to forget to be kind when so many tasks and decisions are piling up.
 Past experiences. Perhaps their own Mom was a Wedding Alpha Mom and they don’t know there is another option.

Is there an alternative? Is this all inevitable? Does the best Alpha win?

Advantages in the Christian Wedding:
 We can choose to keep God in the center…to pray first, pray during, and pray after each decision, each meeting, and each event.
 The wisdom of the Word of God is the Rock to stand on. Reading the New Testament book of Philippians is a good place to start each day. It helps to keep our focus on the Joy in the Lord…to keep our thoughts of Him front and center.
 It helps to keep reminding ourselves that God is on our side. He wants us to ask for His help. He desires the wedding plans to be as blissful as the joy of the engagement was. Jesus’ first recorded miracle was at a wedding feast with his mother. He understands.
 A priority must be in keeping our guard up against the evil one that desires to destroy the good testimony that can come from a Christian wedding done well.
 We can choose to have an “accountability partner” to help us keep focused on what is eternal.

It is also important to remember that just because we are Christians, we are not immune to the temptations brought on by wanting everything to be just right. With all the busyness, it is easy to forget we are sinners needing God’s mercy, guidance, wisdom, and grace.

In Luke 18:9-14, the Alpha church leader – the one that knew and taught the Scriptures – the one that spent most of his days in a religious lifestyle (and should have known better) tried to convince God of his “Alpha-ness” (translated: worthiness).

In the story, we also see the lowly, despised man – feeling his sinfulness (translated: UNworthiness). He is begging God for mercy.

The question is – in any of life’s circumstances – do we want to be the Alpha person or the one asking for the Lord’s mercy and guidance…and receiving it because God sees our heart. Being an Alpha person is a hard habit to break. But the first step is awareness that it’s not worth the ultimate price – being out of God’s favor.

It helps to keep the perspective that it is truly only one day. Future relationships can be strained when we insist that the Alpha way is the right way…controlling things with either attitude, tears, or outbursts of anger. Whether you are the bride, the groom, the mother, the father, a relative, or friend, it simply is not worth it in the long run. How much better to seek to be a blessing in the planning of a wedding.

Yes, decisions have to be made and deadlines have to be met. And yielding is difficult, but done with eyes wide open and on the Lord, it can be the difference between being a Kingdom Person rather than a Church Person. Our ways are earthly. His ways are Heavenly.

Luke 18:14 “I tell you that this man {the UNworthy one…the one who knew that he was a sinner}, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled; and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

May God bless your wedding plans, your wedding, and all the rest of your days on earth. For His glory!

When I was pre-teen, my Mother died after a long illness. Unable to bear to see her suffer any longer, I had cried out to God to either heal her or take her. She died that very day. Loss.

A year later, my boyfriend died following a boating accident. Normally, we would have been spending the day together; but he had gone water skiing because we were arguing.  Loss.

That very summer–just days after the accident, and a year after my Mother’s death—my best friend and confidant went on vacation out of state for the entire summer. Loss.

Continually coming to dead ends, for years I searched for the GOD of my Mother.  She had something that helped her through that time of suffering; and I wanted that something. (What was her “secret”?).  I was lonely, bored, and confused. Loss.

Still desperately looking for answers in the wrong places–when I was not yet 20, I married a man I barely knew. For twelve years we were barren. Loss.

My salesman husband traveled and there were breeches to our marriage covenant to love and honor. Loss.

Still searching for answers, I finally found what I was looking for in a church. I still didn’t know what to call it, but I knew they had something very important.  I was in a safe place–loved by people that knew the “secret” my Mom knew. And now I knew the “secret” too. They loved me to the Word of God and to the God of the Word. Gain.

I devoured the “secret”…the Glorious Word of God…and I found HIM (the LORD) there…in the Bible. He was waiting there for me all the time. I just had to be willing to receive what He had to offer. I found Jesus and God and the Holy Spirit and lots of examples of how God relates to His imperfect creation: people…you and me. And I found the joy of discovering the unconditional love of our Creator. He loves us exactly as we are…but…He also loves us too much to let us stay there. He teaches us how to see loss as gain. Loss truly is gain when it drives us seeking until we come to Him and to His Word. He wants us to experience the abundant life—not of money and things—but of the realization of our Father’s Love. Gain. Great Gain.

“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! …For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:33-36 New International Version)

Turning losses into great gain…
That’s my favorite topic! Arrange a FREE call. Contact me at loavesandfishescoaching.com.

I can’t wait to talk to you.  🙂

“Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”

A simple little children’s song? Not at all! It is a deep and profound fact!

I could write pages of text to try to convince you of that–but why not let HIM convince you. Just sit back, close your eyes and say that phrase over and over a few times: “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”

Let it sink in.

Amazing! How often do we take the time to do something as simple as that?
Now what? How do you know it’s true that Jesus loves you…YOU…personally.

“The Bible tells me so.” Really?? Really!!

The Bible is full of stories of how God relates to people–all kinds of people in all kinds of circumstances. And EVERYTHING He does is from the motive of love. The more you’re alone with Him in His Word, the more real that fact will become. Guaranteed!

Don’t believe me? Let’s talk about it. I’ve tried it and tested it and proved it to be true! Want to stay on track? I’d love to walk the path with you. Just let me know. You can find me here:    loavesandfishescoaching.com