Chasing Wisdom 3: 5-8

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.^[a]

⁷ Do not be wise in your own eyes;
    fear the Lord and shun evil.
⁸ This will bring health to your body
    and nourishment to your bones.

Remember we are keeping up with all of the Promises in Proverbs on a journal page:! 

Promise: This will bring health to your body
    and nourishment to your bones.

These are some of my favorite scriptures, because I need the constant reminder to not to and do things my way, and force things to happen.  Confession: I am impatient. The Lord graces me with so many chances to practice patience each day!! Lord have mercy!!!  The person driving slow in front of me, am I lovin’ ‘em like Jesus?

A slow cashier – Lord have mercy, thank you Jesus for the chance to practice my patience skill, rather than jumping back there and helping them out!!!! 

I am not that bad, most days---but truth be told, I am busy.  We all are. And when I am so busy that I forget to trust Him in all things.], for instance,  the cashier- do they need a smile and an ear for the minutes that I stand before them?   Can I pray for my waitress? Do I trust Him with my day and my moments?  Do I believe that each moment is a moment to reflect His Son – or myself?  Truth be told- I need to slow down more often and look for His divine appointments. To live my life that aware and that in His moments- that is what my heart strives after.  If every moment is planned by a God who loves us, am I actively finding Him in all of my moments?  In ALL my ways I am to submit to Him, moment by moment, aware of what He is doing in and around me.  This is what I strive towards, a conscious that is embedded in the character and nature of God.

To trust Him with all of my heart is to trust Him with His timing.  In my impatience, I often try to push things out of the gate in my own timing.  Whenever I do this, it is a struggle to keep afloat It is exhausting, because I am keeping it afloat in my own will.  When I release into Him and His plans for my moments, my day, my year, my future – it is exciting because the winds of the Spirit keep it alive and refresh my soul.  For me, if I am exhausted and irritated, most times I have slipped out of His will and have taken things in my own hands and my own timing.

To Trust Him is the core of today…to trust Him with everything.  How can we practice this aspect of relationship?  I believe trust is found through the constant channels of communication that are the cornerstone of relationship. Meet with Him all day.  Acknowledge His presence and blessings in all you do. Pray without ceasing – that means talk to Him all day- about everything and LISTEN and give thanks in ALL things…not just the good things, but ALL things!!!

First Steps in Altered Playing Cards!

Join us as we salt 5,000 women at the Encouragement Cafe conference.  These events will be held throughout the Southeast this year - come on out and join us!!

We are believing in "multiplication" this year and that the Lord intends to salt each participant with a handmade piece of art....we need help!!
Resources a problem?  Check out this video that uses cardboard boxes and old playing cards ....

Step onealtering playing cards.....

Step two coming shortly!!!

Encouragement Cafe Daily Devotionals!

Join us, over in our Creative Community at http://praiseheart.ning.com/?xgi=rdb6cYVxWjFrtr  and use Encouragement Cafe's Daily Devotionals, written by fabulously talented writers across the globe,  as your creative prompt for the day.
Share your artwork with others that are on the same journey.
Make friends and get tips, pointers and videos.

Listen, all the cool kids are heading over there!  Just sayin'........

Updated Flyer

This is our updated flyer - please share with your church groups ---see you in Ad-vance!!!

Artwork with eternal impact!!!

What would you say if I told you that your artwork can have eternal impact for the Kingdom? There is a ministry called saltysidewalks.com where the Lord's creative army intentionally spreads the Gospel through the arts.
This little grassroots ministry has grown by leaps and bounds, so that it is a world-wide ministry now.
This year, we have the chance to provide 5,000+ women a salt leak (a piece of artwork that contains the Gospel) at the Encouragement Cafe (Joy FM) Conferences.  FIVE THOUSAND women that we can pray over and into.  How cool is it that Jesus fed 5000 with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. WE have a need for 5000 salt leaks- with a lot more willing hearts than 5 fish and 2 loaves of bread. The number is big, the need is great-----but, will you join me in believing that Jesus wants to feed His women this year on the salt of His word and the gift of His truth and salvation? Believe with me- this year - in the miracle of the loaves and fishes.
WE have an encouraging group on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1482221002022097/
and a website: saltysidewalks.com

This is the year of multiplication- we need your creative energy and your passion for the Gospel- join us for the miracle of loaves and fishes!!!

Salt Leak made for abandonment

Salt Leak made for abandonment

Daddy's Feet

He looks down at his princess,  His beloved.  Lost in this moment, wanting it to last forever, He stretches His arms around her, seeking a tighter grip.  Right here, right now, His beloved little girl dances with Him, and seeks him out.  This moment is a sliver of time that will pass all too quickly.  His love is reflected in His eyes as He laughs with her.  As He holds her tight, He holds onto the little girl who will grow into a woman before His very eyes.  His love surrounds her as He takes the next step that has been prepared for her.  He leads her into new places, places she has never been before.  In the safety of His arms he leads her into the matters of the heart.  How to love.  How to trust.  How to give and how to take. How to dance the dance we call “life”.  He holds her and takes another step. She wobbles and almost falls, but His arms catch her.   She will fall sometimes.  She will get bruised sometimes and, He knows that.  He knows that He has to let her grow up.  But right here and right now. He can protect her and He can hold her and He can keep the whole wide world away while He dances with His princess. 

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 If you close your eyes, you can hear the ripples of laughter that follow their dance steps.  You can imagine the arms that are holding, protecting, comforting.  Her head is thrown back and she laughs, out loud, with reckless abandon .  Her world is safe and carefree; her steps have been  prepared for her.  She dances with her Father.  He is always leading, allowing, holding and protecting.   The world slips  further away with each step.  With each step the profound love that He has for her seeps into her, like water on desert sand.  With each step she grows more aware of her inheritance of love.    In His arms she is a beloved princess and her worldly rags fall away.  In her Father’s loving arms  the bruises that the world has dealt her are soothed away with the balm of laughter, acceptance and love.

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She has captured His heart  with their dance, with her laughter, with her eyes and with her very nature.  This dance will last forever, as she dances out different relationships in her life.  As she takes this purity and trust out into the world, she will dance some dances with some partners that will knock her over.  Some dances will leave her wounded and hurt.  Some dances will bring great joy for a season, and great pain in the morning.  

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She will always have the security and the safety of Daddy’s feet to fall back on.  When the world licks at her and it is too hard to navigate the next step, she can release into the relationship of her heart.  She can step back up on Daddy’s feet and let His arms surround her and protect her.  She can rest her weary head on His chest and she can allow Him to lead her out of the circumstances and out of the pain.  Daddy’s feet can be trusted to guide you onto solid ground again.  Daddy’s feet can be trusted to prepare the way for a new day.  Right here and right now, He has you.  He knows you will dance away into the world again.  He knows you have to dance in the world.  But for right now, He holds on a little tighter and He loves a little stronger, because His princess has been hurt, and that hurts Him.  Drawing together you dance out of the circumstances that have bound you, on the safety of Daddy’s feet.  He waits for the day that you will come to Him, take His hand, and dance with your own feet.  He waits for the day that you will be His partner and you will dance in a symphony of grace, movement and love.  But for now, He just holds on a little tighter and He protects His beloved.

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Shores of His Grace

Until the day breaks and the shadows flee away, return hastily, O my beloved,  and be like a gazelle or a young hart as you cover the mountains which seperate us"

Song Of Sol

Imagine that you have just committed a sin, and you are standing at the edge of the ocean. You cast that sin out into the ocean and watch it bob out to sea.....satan would have you believe that you are casting that sin out into the eternal wretchedness of all of your past sins, that it is just one more in the pile. Imagine that sin being a soda can...in this reality...it never breaks down and never goes away. It is bobbing along, with all of your other sins. Sometimes, it will wash back up on the shores of your heart, and it will stab you with guilt and remorse, as you remember the sin. Once the damage is inflicted, it floats back out to the sea of wretchedness. The tides bring in other sins that awaken the sense of guilt and dread. Satan would have you NEVER forget the past sins, He is the accuser of the brethren...he will remind you and pull those sins out of the sea of wretchedness, to torment you, if you let him.

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But, here is the reality. You stand on the shores of God's grace, mercy and love. You see the sin, recognize it and repent from it, and cast it off into the ocean of God's love...it is erased for all eternity, through His blood. Our God takes those sins and they disappear into the great expanse of His grace! The only thing that is lapping onto the shores of your heart is God's love, forgiveness and mercy.

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If satan is beating you up with the day you have had, with things you have done in the past, with old junk....stand on the shores of God's love today, apologize, and cast the sins into His grace. Change your ways at the shoreline and choose to make different choices. If you have already cast that sin into the waves of God's grace....satan is just beating you up...because God doesn't even remember that sin...if you are clean before the Father - then you are clean. Silence the attack of the enemy...get yourself back to the shoreline of His grace - and see the expanse of the crystal blue waters...see the expanse of God's love for you and His forgiveness. It is FINISHED, when you cast it into His expanse.....silence the enemy with truth!!

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1John 1:9

If we confess our sins,He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness

Ephesians 1:7

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.

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If you find yourself being beat up, recite the truth- the scriptures above, out loud------ and silence the voice of the enemy!  He holds His hand out to YOU and asks that you would enter into a Symphony of His grace today....