Friday, June 27, 2008

God's Promises on a Blank Page . . .

Well, it's Friday!! Whew I'm ready to rest. What a busy week it's been, what with all the battling rabbits and flaming sunburns, screaming teens and teens to dinner ~~ I'm pooped!! :)


Last night for supper I fixed homemade pizzas; Canadian bacon and mushroom and Chicken Parmesan pizza ~~ YUM!! We are pizza eating people let me tell ya!! And nothing better than homemade ~~ can I get an Amen?!! :) I had actually planned on having a very simple supper; in fact, Dakota had even said he was going to eat cereal for supper!! (What mother doesn't love that once in a while on a hot summer evening!!) But then a certain young lady came over and so Dakota wanted her to stay and have supper with us, she accepted and I got busy in the kitchen. I wish I'd have taken a pic of that ~~ it looked like a flour bomb went off in there :0) !! But all was well in the end and she LOVED the pizza!!


So what does any of that have to do with my title ~~ well, nothing!! That was free!!


Okay now to the real stuff. Lately I have posted a lot of pics. The reason ~~ God is so good to me and my family. In an earlier post I quoted what our Pastor said on Sunday about the proof of a saved life is fruit not foliage. Well I got to thinking about that in light of our garden this year. This is the first year we have ever put out a "real" garden. And honestly wasn't expecting what we have. But my neighbor is a true green thumb (belongs to the master gardener horticulture thingy-ma-bob) and just loves to share her knowledge with all who are willing to listen. So I have taken careful note of my neighbor's advice and voila ~~ we have a garden!!


But after our Pastor said that on Sunday I got to thinking about our tomatoes. Now let me tell ya these tomatoes are CRAZY BIG!! But if they only had foliage and no fruit they would be worthless. So I got to thinking about that in my own life. As much as I like to look pretty on the outside, if there is nothin' on the inside who cares!! I mean really I am no good to anybody if I am only foliage. So I want God to produce fruit in my life. And we all know in order for that to happen there must be some prunin' going on; cut off the dead so new life can emerge. My fingers are shaking as I type this. I have some experience in this area and I know how very painful this can be. So if this is you right now, and God is cutting off some branches in your life take heart dear one, He does this so that new branches can grow and produce more fruit in keeping with His Word ~~ Hallelujah!!

So for a while I've been in a pruning season. A time when I feel like God is just cutting off some things in my life so new things can grow and fruit and produce a harvest. But it has been painful at times. Obedience is part of the pruning process and sometimes the obedience part really hurts because so often it requires sacrifice and renewing of commitments and dropping off things that were once good, but now are just burdensome, yep obedience is all that sometimes, but so very worth it!! God has so been showing me that lately. Yes He's pruning but yes He's loving me through the process and He's revealing Himself to me through the whole process!! God is so good!!

Well, so what does that have to do with His promises and a blank page? Well, we know His promises are true, and we know that God is faithful. Yet sometimes for me I have to see it on black and white if you will. So I turn to Scripture and see promise after promise fulfilled with a Yes and Amen!! So there's the promises part but what about the blank page and what in the world do the two have to do with each other?

Well, ya'll know that I am a journaler. I have been for a long time; that was not always the case, but has been for a while now. And I am getting ready to fill-up my latest journal. I am not the type of journaler that gets the same kind of journal every time and just dates it and moves on. And you walk into my library and there are volumes of the same type of journal on a shelf. Oh no!! I am the kind of "A-type" personality that must let the journal with all it's blank pages speak to me. So I have various and sundry types of journals, and as I look back and reflect on the different ones I see where I was at that time in my life. Well this is no different. I will be completing my current journal probably in the next few days to a week and the very thought of not having another journal at the ready nearly made me break out in hives!! So off to CPO I went, and . . . .


Voila!! Now who doesn't like a journal with a little bling Huh?!!
So, a couple of things I'd like to point out about this journal. One, of course the aforementioned bling ~~ that is a buckle a real buckle people, like one you could take off and put on a belt if ya wanted ~~ I know too GREAT!!!! And then there is the color: Black and White ~~ I've never had a black and white journal before. But it is very significant to the season I am in right now. God is really speaking to the black and white in my life (no gray area girly no gray ~~ let your yes be yes and your no, no!!) And then a must for every journal ~~ scripture in the pages. Now this one has scripture on one page and then words of wisdom from various authors on the other ~~ GREAT this one will be speakin' to me!! Oh yeah and one more thing, you can't really see it (partially because is etched in the white and partly because these are really bad pics), but it says above the bling, "God's Promises Journal" LOVE THAT!! LOVE IT!! God and I will be doing some serious hanging out in the pages of this journal I can just feel it!! Thank you Jesus for loving me sooooooo much!! I know it's a simple journal, but it is already speaking volumes to me!!

So I thank God for the blank page promises of this journal. I can look back on the journal I just completed and see the season I've been in and the season's I've gone through and you know what I see? The faithfulness of God!! He is good and His love endures forever!!

So let me encourage you today, if you have a journal that has just been lying around and you know you need to pick it up and start; just lay your pen on the paper and let God lead you. It doesn't have to be lengthy or even profound. You don't have to try to think of something to say, just pour out your heart ( and then hide your journal haha !!)

Listen, I know this was lengthy just a lot on my heart today.
I've been getting more comments lately and I LOVE IT!! Thank you so much for all of the encouragement and love I get from you all, and if you've thought about leaving a comment go ahead step out there onto the digital highway and leave me one!! I'd really appreciate it!!

I love you all have a Blessed weekend,
Dawn

5 comments:

  1. Dawm- precious friend! I think this post was for me!!!! I love everything you said! Thank you for your wise words about the pruning- you are so, so right!
    And I have been journaling every day since I've found myself in the "desert" so to speak..and you're right- it's such a great exercise for multiple reasons.
    Thank you SO MUCH for our bloggy friendship! You encourage me so much!
    Love ya!

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  2. Hi Dawn!
    First of all, thank you so much for all your sweet comments on my blog! I love getting comments from you!

    This post is just so great! Unfortunately, I don't journal much anymore because I am so busy, but I have journaled alot in the past. I have stacks of journals, too. They definitely help you go back and see God's faithfulness in your life. I need to start that habit back up!

    I love your cute black and white journal with the bling! I know you are going to fill it with lots of wonderful lessons and insights as you make your way through the pages!

    Have a great day! :)

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  3. Dawn........i needed to read this today. this very moment you words are just all over me and I need to really sit and think about them! Thank you for writing this! I also want to thank you for praying for me! I praise him for answering the words you gave him! I am amazed! I love you dear friend!!!!!!

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  4. Oh, Dawn, I needed to read this too. It is so difficult for me to cut off branches in my life, especially if they once were good. Sometimes I just want to keep adding branches, and I forget that some must be cut off, too. And, I need to start a new journal, too. I have one, but you've motivated me to get going!

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  5. Dawn, I feel the exact same way about a journal - I am a journal freak. I cannot go into a store without checking the ones they have and opening them imagining what the pages will hold. My husband laughs at me trying to choose a journal - hey, it's an extremely important decision! I love this one you picked out. Great choice.

    I love this post about the foliage and the fruit. It really spoke to me this morning!

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