Restoring All Things Girls

Peeped out the window and what  did I see, Sunshine smiling back at  me.   It made me feel good put a  smile on my face.   So I had to say,  thank you Lord for this lovely  day. Dedicated to my friend Roni All Rights Reserved 2014

Deborah was a prophet, a leader (otherwise known as a Judge) in Israel as well as the wife of Lappidoth (Judges 4:4).  Deborah means 'bee'. Bees are responsible for pollination of flowering plants. Pollination is what creates seeds that grow into other plants. One third of the human food supply depends on insect pollination of plants and bees play a major role in this 1 . The biblical Deborah, like a bee, fulfilled an active and vital role in bringing life to the community. Background After the death of Joshua, the man who had led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, God raised up Judges to lead and rule Israel. The first Judges God used were Othniel, Ehud and Shamgar (Judges 3). And then came Deborah. In Deborah's day Israel had no overall leader. Everyone did whatever they pleased and the nation fell into sin and were oppressed by the Canaanites (Judges 21:25). Jabin was the Canaanite king during the era of Deborah. Sisera was the commander of Jabin's...

Kelly Copeland and Lisa Bevere

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:   The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,   And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Ephesians 1:17-19, KJV

I look in the mirror and what do I see, an image of a person staring back at me.  She looks a little plain, not very skinny.   It makes me want to cry, to me she isn’t pretty. I want to be a cheerleader, but I will never try. Safer to go out for the marching band they accept girls my size. I have a beautiful voice, but no one will listen.   Too afraid of being rejected so I stay hidden. My mother says I am beautiful, but that’s what moms are supposed to say.   What boy would want me? I might as well be gay.   I keep hoping and waiting for someone to notice me-there is this cute guy I like, but he will never look at me. Hopefully, one day I will look in the mirror and like what I see, but sometimes I feel there is no hope for me.   What is pretty any way?   Can someone tell me?   I think it’s when you can try out for cheerleading and you know you’ll be picked. Or like any guy you want and you’re not afraid to s...

Found this article on Girls, God & the Good Life...a good read...please check out their blog. In honor of  Frozen  being released on DVD, I thought I’d devote a blog post to some things I took away from it (besides the song, “Let it Go” getting stuck in my head). It has been a long time since I loved a Disney movie as much as I did  Frozen . Besides the incredible music and powerful story, I related to the characters in deep ways. If my sister had frozen our kingdom before running away to hide from the world, I would have blamed myself just like Anna did, arriving at her door shouting, “It’s just me; your sister, who made you freeze summer.” When someone that Anna loved turned out to be a creep and justified his behavior with, “You were so desperate for love that I knew I could get what I wanted” I literally got chills. My heart ached most for Elsa and her legitimate refusal to let anyone in, isolated by the thing that made her different, born with a power she...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New Jersey teenager who drew international attention when she sued her parents for financial support after leaving home in a dispute on Tuesday dropped the case against them, according to court records. Rachel Canning, 18, filed papers to dismiss the lawsuit in New Jersey family court, saying the decision was voluntary. The lawsuit's dismissal ends a public battle between Canning and her parents that raised questions about the obligations of non-divorced parents in New Jersey to continue to financially support adult children after they leave home. Canning returned to her parents' home in Lincoln Park, New Jersey, last week after a four-month estrangement that began when she turned 18, the legal age of adulthood. She had sued her parents, Sean and Elizabeth Canning, for her private high school tuition, living expenses and access to a college fund, arguing that though she did not reside with them, she was not legally emancipated and therefore was ...

You can teach your children their ABC’s and 123’s – to look both ways before crossing the street – and not to interrupt when you speak. And you can teach your children about the birds and the bees, far away planets and distant seas.  Enroll them in dance and little league, attend all school activities. And you can council them on safe driving and dating – Prom, Graduation and all the traditional things. And you can send them to the finest learning institution in hope that they would be a prominent member of the community.  This is all well and good.  But if you neglect to teach them the word of God which is to make them wise unto salvation, you have educated them well, but their soul will end up in hell – Selah                                                                 ...

Joshua 7, a sobering chapter deals with sin in the Israelite camp. It begins with a sin committed by Achan, one member of the tribe of Judah. When the Israelites took the city of Jericho as recorded in chapter 6, God tells them not to take anything from the siege. But, Achan disobeys and takes some of the “accursed” things and then lies about it. Not only does he lie, but his entire family goes along with the lie. When Achan is confronted, he continues to lie, then eventually confesses. The cover up was because of clothing and money he coveted. Coveting is covered in the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses. Achan’s sin was coveting, but that also lead to deception. Achan saw, coveted and took. Then he lied. As a consequence, Achan and his entire family were stoned to death, burned and made into a rock memorial to remind people to obey God’s commandments. In Joshua 7, the nature of sin is clearly spelled out. Sin is deceptive, it hurts others whether we think it does or not, it s...

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.    Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.    And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:12-14, NIV

Take control of your destiny. Believe in yourself. Ignore those who try to discourage you. Avoid negative sources, people, places, things and habits. Don't give up and don't give in. Your life isn't behind you; your memories are behind you. Your life is always right here, right now. Seize it! Choose to let each of your experiences today be a gateway to an even brighter tomorrow. By: Pastor Tommy Barnett-Dream Center

“ As the years pass, I am coming more and more to understand that it is the common, everyday blessings of our common everyday lives for which we should be particularly grateful. They are the things that fill our lives with comfort and our hearts with gladness -- just the pure air to breathe and the strength to breath it; just warmth and shelter and home folks; just plain food that gives us strength; the bright sunshine on a cold day; and a cool breeze when the day is warm.”  ―   Laura Ingalls Wilder ,  Writings to Young Women from Laura Ingalls Wilder - Volume One: On Wisdom and Virtues