Sunday Notes

It's freezing cold today and Kaleb got called in to work. Which is great for the pocketbook and for upcoming giving times. BUT it means I didn't want to brave the freezing cold with Elijah by myself. So we stayed home from church.

It's a 30 minute drive. We have been enjoying quiet time at home. I have been bible studying and I listened to my favorite pastor- Mark Driscoll. He just finished up a series on the Ten Commandments! So good! So inspiring! 

his advice about honoring our mother and father was very good. I also see that I do tend to covet. And it's easy to do in a culture where we can see everyone's lives so easily. With twitter, Facebook, blogs and Instagram. But I am determined to fill my desires with the things of Christ. 

Here are my thoughts and notes and what I learned from listening to Pastor Mark Driscoll preach on 

DO NOT COVET 

Not accepting a gift is robbing the giver of a blessing. 

Rejoice with others in their prosperity and blessings. 

Giving blesses everyone involved. 

BLESSING = GIVING 

Acts 20:35 

We are more blessed when we have a giver's heart. 

The happiest most joy filled moments in life come when we are cheerfully giving. 

Coveting = I "need" and I will be blessed when I get all that I want and "need". 

Giving is an apportioning to love. 

Generosity is an opportunity to bless. 

Philippians 4:11-13 

G I V E 

it's a matter of the heart 

>--->--->--->--->

We need to CrUsH coveting with contentment!!

•Coveting- I want what I want. 

•Contentment- I want what God wants. 

L I F E

It's a battle between the coveting & the content. 

IT'S A HEART ISSUE. 

Crushing our earthly desires doesn't solve coveting. 

Change your desires to be God's desires. 

Seek after God. 

You can't ever be too obsessed with Him. 

Feed and nourish your Holy | God desires. 

Learning about the 

TEN COMMANDMENTS 

Has showed me :: 

1. God is an amazing father. His instruction stands the test of time and generations. And is and will always be relevant. 

2. Jesus is incredible. He didn't break any commandments internally or externally. 

Jesus is God, perfect and pure of heart. 

We are ao unlike Him. 

That's why we need Him. 

3. God sent us the Holy Spirit. He causes us to have a new heart and a new nature.  The Holy Spirit changes our desires to match the father heart if God. 

God's heart is big enough for all of mankind. 

Yield to your desires and become more like Jesus. 

And you will have greater 

J O Y

SIDE NOTE

Advice >--->--->

Ask your kids every Sunday after church

>>---->>

What is your take away? What did God teach you today?

More November Thankfullness

November Challenge || Day 1 || I am thankful for Jesus. He set me free. He redeemed me. He reminds me what sacrifice truly looks like. He is love. 

Day 3 // I am thankful for our son, Elijah. While I was pregnant there were so many hopes and dreams about who this little life would be. What he/she would look like, act like, smell like and just who the little person would be. It's amazing that my ideas and thoughts were nothing in comparison to who this child has turned out to be. God knows best and He has given us exactly what our family needed. I am speechless and in awe of this little boy. He's more amazing than I could've imagined. Without a doubt, God's creative ways surpass anything I could've pictured in my mind. Every single day, I love our bugsy more and more. 

Day 4 \\ I am thankful for Yvonne Kay Zupke. If you knew all that she deals with, I know you'd all be blown away by her. When times get rough, she allows The Lord to sustain her and keep her afloat. She finds joy in the little things. She chooses to put her children first. She prays and forgives. She is a great cook. She does not complain, when believe me there is plenty to complain about. She doesn't doubt who God is and chooses to include Him in her everyday life. She is my mother and I love her!

Day 5 // I am thankful Kiah (@kiahzupke) and Gina <@ginazupke>. They are kind and thoughtful. They make me better. They are good listeners. They are strong. They have many similar qualities but they are also very different. We enjoy our time together. We laugh and joke and sometimes cry. It is exciting to look forward to the future. There may be age differences but our hearts are linked forever. I feel blessed and honored to know them. I need both of these women more than words can express. God was looking out for me when he created them. They are my sisters, my friends. I love you, both!

 // Day 6 // Today, I am thankful to be American. We are free. And I take that for granted far too often. Most of my days are worry free. And our fears are small and I thank God for that. — 

❄️Day 7 || Today, I am thankful for our health. I have not been sick since February and neither has Elijah. And Kaleb has been healthy also. We have traveled the country and God has kept us well. 

Day 8 /// Today I am thankful for my car. Soni has been so reliable and I love her. I am enjoying every day I get to drive this car. It is apparent that whenever we have a 2nd child we will need to get a bigger vehicle. But for now, she's still my baby. 

Day 9 || Today, I am thankful for two people. 1. Stephanie Lynn Pierce for introducing me to (the 2nd person) Amanda. An old friend gave me a new friend! And it's been a wonderful year! So thanks, Steph! And thanks, Amanda, for having us over today. And for being such a light in a dark place and an irreplaceable friend. You truly are an answer to my prayers! 

Day 10 \\ Today, I am thankful to have two wonderful churches to attend. Each one uplifts my soul in a different & beautiful way. I feel blessed to have been raised to know the truth about this life. I may struggle but I am free to do that. And I always know, my God is for me.

Day 11 // Today, and every day, I am so thankful for the men and women in the military. My dad is retired Navy. He went to nuclear power school and did several tours on submarines. Patriotism is something that has been instilled in us since birth. We enjoy our freedom because others dedicated and/or gave their lives to protect this nation. As I see our culture become more and more selfish, I always think of the military personnel because they are the ultimate vision of sacrificial humans.
Jesus said, There is no greater sacrifice than laying down your life for another.
God Bless America! 

️11/12/13 || Today, I am thankful for a warm house; as we all should be. Every year all I hear is complaints about the cold. Then summer comes and it's complaints about the warmth. I don't want to waste my time complaining anymore. I know it's crazy cold but we live in Minnesota. It isn't a shock, it's how the weather is every year, like clockwork. I'm going to do my very best this year & not complain. I have re-taken up crocheting and sewing. I will fill my free time with indoor hobbies. I will photograph the beauty outside when I can. And I will remain grateful every day that I'm not frozen. 

Day 13 // Today, I am thankful for digital photography; plain and simple

Day 14 // Today, I am thankful for my washer and dryer.

November // Day 2

Day 2 // I am thankful for Kaleb! He provides. He comforts. He laughs and makes me laugh. He says, I love you every chance he gets. He takes time to be a great daddy to Elijah. He enjoys learning what God has to teach him. He leads our family faithfully and prayerfully. He pays attention to the wants and likes of others. He loves guns. He is selfless. He is our household handyman. He is my husband, whom I love dearly. 🔫🔨🔧

kaleb moved here from Wyoming when we had known each other 8 months. He changed his whole life for ME! 

He proposed ontop of a waterfall 10 months after we had been seeing eachother! 

He worked so I could finish LPN school. He works now so I can raise Elijah and any future children God brings us! 

He helps me when I ask. 

He takes out the garbage. 

Every day is an adventure. 

He takes me out of my bad moods or lightens up a sad day. 

Besides my Jesus, he is my other rock and my other firm foundation. 

I am so grateful! 

I cannot say enough about him! 

I love you, Kaleb! 

Muah! 💋💘💍💕💎💗👫💓👪💖💑

November

FINALLY! 

HALLOWEEN is over! 

Every year I brace myself for all the gross stuff in stores and the annoying commercials. And I pray for all the poor kids, whose clueless parents watch horror movies. 

I say that because I actually personally know some children whose

parents watch these terrible movies and let the kids watch too! Then they wonder why their child has behavioral issues- pretty simple. A scared child appears crazy! 

But that's a whole 'nother topic. 

I'm writing this because November is my favorite month of fall. My absolute favorite month of them all is June. Perfect weather! But November is wonderful! It is full of crisp days and pretty leaves (when the Minnesota wind hasn't blown them all away). And this year the wind hasn't taken them all down! 

I love that this month reminds us to be thankful. --And treasure what is most important. 

🍁Day 1 | I am thankful for Jesus. He set me free. He redeemed me. He reminds me what sacrifice really looks like. He is love. 

So many things could be written about Jesus and about my faith. 

It connects believers across the globe. 

Friends are friends forever if they both have Jesus. 

Prayer moves mountains and draws us nearer to God. Over the last week, I have experienced God's mighty hand guiding my prayer life. I heard God clearly telling me to intercede for some people and their circumstances. 

For myself, there are few things that come close to this feeling. I was praying for people that haven't been that great to me. Frankly, they have hurt me to my core. They have walked away from me and treated me with disdain. When I had done nothing to warrant such treatment. These individuals, are loved by their creator. That much I know for sure. And they are loved by me. So I pray. I pray even though my feelings for these people Are raw and negative. That is irrelevant. 

Did Jesus want to die on the cross? 

NO!

He pleaded with God to "take this cup" but if it's Your will I will do it. 

He died in our place anyways. The least I could do is pray for those who have done wrong to me. 

I am not bragging or trying to make myself appear more Holy. Because that is far from accurate. I am no more holy than the next person. 

I am choosing to live by God's grace.---And show love and be kind and merciful. 

This year has been the first time I have experienced loss. My grandpa (Popop) passed away in February. It was explained to me that God allows us to feel loss. He allows that loss to occur so that we can fully understand something. That something is this:::

When we are apart from God, he longs for us in a deep and sorrowful way. He wants us to draw near to him. God loves us so furociously that he hates being apart from us. These are all of the same feelings we feel when we are grieving. We want that person back. We want to talk to them one last time. And huge them and sit by them. But we can't. By feelings grief and loss, we are that much closer to God. We are closer to understanding His heart for his children. 

I have not personally experienced the loss of a child, but I now see that it falls under a similar lesson. We readily accept Jesus' sacrifice without fully understanding it. Jesus is God's son and Gid sent Jesus to take our place (my place, your place) on the cross. Jesus felt the weight of the world's sins that night as He died. And when He said, "it is finished", He meant it. We can choose life with Jesus or life apart from Christ. 

We choose. 

Loss makes all of this so much more real to me. There are so many lessons to take away from these tough situations. 

Without Jesus, my life doesn't have the same purpose. 

I also see that God will chasten us and buffet us as He sees fit. Each person has their own path to take. 

For some, they choose Jesus and live free to struggle. They keep trudging in even if it's lonely,  Even when people make fun and judge them. These people realize life separate of Christ is not life. It is a death sentence. These people readily give their sin to Jesus. They work daily at repentance and move forward. They GET what it's all about. They have amazing Testimonies. Each testimony is individual and beautiful. The testimonies are their life story and how God changed them. 

Others say they choose Jesus but in their heart of hearts that's not really true. They like the way forgiveness feels but they don't want to walk the narrow road. They want the best of both worlds. They do not want to give up their sin. They want their feet in either side of the fence. Always compromising. These people may have a rough road ahead. God will bring what he sees fit into their path to bring them to their knees. Only God knows what will make a person turn back to Him. He doesn't care how long it will take. 

I don't want to be forced to now and I don't want tragedy to be what I need to turn my heart to God. I want to choose Him now and every day that comes. 

And there are the people who refuse Jesus. I know some individuals who fall in this category. And it makes me sad. They are beautiful people who blame the universe or God for the pain in their lives. Or in some cases they are people who have been mistreated by other people who say they are Christians. I pray for them because words from my lips don't always suffice. 

My November 1st thoughts. 

I hope to write at least 10 November thoughts, posts. 

I am setting that goal. 

I am thankful for the freedom we have in Christ. 

We don't have to struggle to be free. 

We are free to struggle. 

No more chains. 

That is beautiful.