"Hello Cupcakes" strikes again with Larry the Turkey

Okay so I already made Tyler's preschool class some pumpkin cupcakes for Halloween but I just happened to sign myself up to make desserts for their Thanksgiving Feast as well! It totally wasn't my fault - you see I resisted the sign in sheet for days thinking the blanks will fill in eventually with willing mommies. But it was one week away and the ONLY blank left was desserts and I would feel horrible if poor lil 4 year old's didn't have a ton of sugar to finish off their meal so they could torture poor Ms. Lisa for the nest 3 hours!! So I just ASKED if the desserts was for the kids or adults (because there was a sign-up to bring side dishes for the teachers too) and of course it just so happened to be for the kids.....so I may have...written my name down and mentioned there was yet another cupcake adventure that looked like it may be fun (sheepish grin).

And I must say for anyone who looks at these creations and thinks "I could SO not do that" I highly recommend the book, "Hello Cupcake". It takes what looks like extremely difficult creations of cupcakes and breaks it down in easy steps so even I can understand how to do it! And they are the CUTEST things ever!

So back to the turkeys...I did my own rendition of "Larry the Turkey" although I had to change a couple ingredients or should I say COLOR of ingredient because I just could not find caramel everything! lol...non-the-less here were my results:

My first one:

Just ONE mess that covered my kitchen AND spilled over into my living room believe it or not!

A close-up

Here are all 12 of my turkeys awaiting annihilation the next day by Ms. Lisa's preschool class!

Autumn Festivities have begun...(recipe included)

Even though we live in Texas the weather HAS finally turned cool and it has been rushed in with a LOT of rain! But I am grateful for the rain after such a dry summer. Anyways Autumn is officially here and between reading my Better Home and Garden magazines, wearing sweaters and jackets, watching the trees turn colors, AND looking at my neighbor's cute Fall wreaths all hanging on their doors I have gotten my inspiration back!!

So here are some of the things I have done to welcome the new season:

1. Put out all my Autumn house decorations (my theme is scarecrow)

2. Changed my counter "grab" bowls to Almonds (for me) and Candy Corn (for the kiddos)

3. Went through the kids closets and bagged up all the "summer" clothes that were getting to small or WAS too small and accidentally stood hanging in their closet anyways!

4. Spent all week going store to store to find all the ingredients to make these adorable Pumpkin Patch cupcakes for Tyler's class party today at school! (Recipe and pictures below)

5. Looked through tons of pumpkin carving pics with my kids on the Internet until Tyler saw a "bats" one that he exclaimed "It's BATMAN!" So I cut the pumpkin open and let the kids help me separate out the seeds (to bake later) and we carved a wonderful "Bats in flight" pumpkin for our porch.

6. And oh yea I bought some Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer (even though I seriously hardly EVER drink coffee it just seemed right to do, haha)

So what have you done to welcome in the cooler weather? Maybe it already feels like winter where you are but none-the-less share what you have done!

PUMPKIN SPICE CUPCAKES

(makes 12 regular and 24 mini)

1 box French Vanilla Cake Mix

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

3/4 cup buttermilk (in place of the water called for on the box)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs (in place of the number called for on the box)

After adjusting ingredients, make as directed on box. (Beating the batter is very important - your batter will be very lumpy if you just stir)

Place half the dough in a Ziploc bag (turn inside out and push down on one corner into your palm to scoop batter into the corner specifically then continue to fill) and cut 1/4 in. hole at corner of bag and fill the paper liners 2/3's full.
- Use orange paper liners for regular size cupcakes

- Use white paper liners for mini size cupcakes

DECORATING (to make PUMPKIN PATCH CUPCAKES)

4 green licorice twists (Twizzlers Rainbow Twists)

1 can plus 1 cup vanilla frosting

Orange Food coloring
1 cup orange decorating sugar

Green Licorice Laces (Watermelon Madness Fruit Streamers)

1. Cut the licorice twists into thirty-six 3/4-inch pieces for the pumpkin stems. Tint the vanilla frosting orange with the food coloring. Tint 1/2 cup of the orange frosting a darker shade of orange with more food coloring, and spoon into a Ziploc bag. Press out the excess air, seal the bag, and set aside.

2. Place the orange decorating sugar in a shallow bowl. Spread the lighter orange frosting on top of the cupcakes, mounding it slightly. Starting on the edge, roll the cupcake tops in the sugar to cover completely.

3. Use a wooden skewer to mark ridges in the top of each cupcake. Starting in the center or slightly off center, lightly press the skewer down toward the top of the paper liner to create 5 or 6 indentations. Snip a 1/16-inch corner from the bag with the darker orange frosting and pipe a line in each indentation to make the ribs. Insert a cut green twist for the stem. Arrange the cupcakes on a serving platter or a cutting board and add green licorice laces, trimmed to various lengths, for the tendrils.

LSCC Scrapbook Crop

Last night I went to our church's monthly scrapbook crop! A wonderful lady in our group has recently taken over "Director" of the scrapbook group and she is already doing a fabulous job. I wanted to show you what you will now get for FREE every time you attend the LSCC Crop:

A Scrapbook Page Kit

(already all cut out and ready for you to just glue it all down!!)

And don't worry it comes with step by step instructions! Look at this GORGEOUS page that would usually take you forever - Anna does everything for you but glue it down so that you can have this beautiful page in your personal family albums to cherish those cute pumpkin pictures forever!

Now seriously why would you want to miss this?

So come join us! We meet every first Friday of the month from 5-10 p.m. in the room adjoining the toddler nursery. And YES nursery is available! The entire crop is only $10!! Can't wait to see you next month!

Sunsets and Stars

I used to frequently do "Silent Sundays" which was posting pictures instead of writing, so you keep your focus and energy on worshipping God on Sundays, and NOT on worrying about getting your post in for the day. I still like to do it but the blogger that ran it no longer does. So instead I want to post some pics but also tell you shortly about my wonderful evening!

This was the beautiful sunset - and I just took these a couple hours ago so no they have not been digitally altered in any way - that is the real color! lol...this was also taken right from my driveway looking through the neighbors tree looking in the direction of the lake.

I know this next picture LOOKS like water but it actually the pavement of our neighborhood road, hehe! I got down close to the pavement for the shot and my husband as soon as he saw it said, "That LOOKS like it is water!"

These next few pics were of us hanging out on the blanket I layed out in our front yard so we could wait for the stars to appear. I got to lay next to my daughter and explain to her that God made those stars and I asked her, "Wasn't that nice of God to make those stars so pretty and put them in the sky for us?" To which a smiling girl replied in a high pitched excited voice, "Yea".

It was a beautiful evening and I'm so glad I enjoyed it with my family, in the peace and quiet so I could truly enjoy the moment. What have you done to slow down and just "enjoy" recently???

Food for Thought

I had the great privilege to attend an incredible Leadership Summit this past week! God gave me a special blessing because it was by far the BEST leadership anything I have ever been to - and I've been to quite a few (for my age at least)! During lunch the last day, a church had gathered their group together to allow any of them to share about their experience or what they had gotten out of this summit. A particular man stood up to comment on what had especially resonated in his heart and in the midst of speaking he said the following statement: "I think to be a good leader you MUST be a good person as well, you would have to be." Immediately my curious brain posed the question: "What about Hitler?"

I even leaned over and whispered my question to my new found friend from the conference, who raised her eyebrows at my question and with a friendly nudge to my arm said "Ha, good question!" I just couldn't quite nod my head and say oh yes, preach on brother, because I kindly begged to differ. There have been several great leaders that were greatly evil and had no good intentions yet thousands followed them reverentially! So what is your opinion? Do you think that in order to be considered a TRUE good leader you must have also been a good person, or do you think that a person can in fact be a good leader and just be good at being bad? And for that matter what then do you define as a leader? (That was the first question I wanted to ask this stranger - and almost did except someone grabbed his attention to talk afterwards...of course to be followed with - What about Hitler?) haha...so what are your thoughts? I would love to hear them.

Silent Sundays - Princess Day at the Library

At one of our local libraries they hosted a "Princess Tea Party" with Belle as the storyteller! They read about 5 cute Princess books including Gracie's favorite - "Fancy Nancy" and then had jewelry and snacks, crafts, and photo op time with Belle. My daughter had the best time and we have recently gone back for their DINOSAUR themed Family Story Time as well. If your local library has anything like this I strongly encourage you to check it out with your kids. Mine love it and we have already brought home a TON of books to read and enjoy - and then return for new ones!

My latest readings...

I know I haven't updated my blog in awhile and that the last few have been pretty political so I thought I would do a laid back post today with simply my latest reading! I am an avid reader and wish I could sit for about 4 hours every day to just cuddle up with a good book, although most days do not afford me that pleasure. Any who here is what has graced my book shelf and worn out my bookmarks lately:

1. "The Healer" by Dee Henderson

The 5th book in the O'Malley Series and takes you through the emotions of dealing with a sister that is fighting cancer and believing God for a miracle every day of her fight.

2. "The Rescuer" by Dee Henderson

The 6th and final book the the O'Malley Series. This one finds a young man who's instinct is to run from death and things that just seem overwhelming in life. Will he ever come back? Will he find the peace he is searching for? This one has an end that will leave any mother in tears and laughter at the same time!

3. "Me, Myself, and Lies" by Jennifer Rothschild

This is actually a bible study that Beth Moore is sort of leading through her online blog, LPM blog. It is the "Summer Siesta Bible Study" and yes she knows that "siesta" is the Spanish word for nap! Check out her blog - it's a hoot! Anyways about the study -it takes an up close and personal look at your own "thought closet". It makes you realize what you are speaking to your soul on a daily basis. GREAT study to align your thoughts with God's truths over your life!

4. "The Laws of Prosperity" by Kenneth Copeland

From the back of the book: "True prosperity is the ability to apply the power of God to meet any need - spiritual, mental, and physical. In this book Kenneth Copeland shares the revelation of spiritual laws that govern prosperity. The Laws of Prosperity is written to teach you how to apply these laws in your own life so that you can begin to enjoy the great abundant life that only God can provide."

So what have you been digesting in your memory bank this summer?

Please sign the petition

I receive a daily alert from the American Family Association and I happened to be updating my blog tonight too and thought I should put this one on here to try and help get as many signatures as possible for this important petition! Please read the following and decide for yourself:


(copied straight from AFA Email):
Anti-Christian bigotry, like that which took prayer out of schools, is behind an effort to remove National Motto and Pledge of Allegiance
July 15, 2009

Dear Ivy,
According to the Associated Press, the nation's largest group of atheists and agnostics filed a lawsuit seeking to block an architect from engraving our national motto "In God We Trust," and the Pledge of Allegiance at the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) in Washington.
Freedom From Religion Foundation's (FFRF) lawsuit claims the taxpayer-funded engravings would be an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.
The House and Senate passed identical resolutions this month directing the Architect of the Capitol to engrave "In God We Trust" and the Pledge in prominent places at the entrance, where 3 million tourists visit the CVC each year.
"In God We Trust" has been the national motto since 1956 and has appeared on U.S. currency since 1957. This is another attempt by the radical left to ban God from the public square. The foundation is also challenging the constitutionality of the National Day of Prayer.

Please click here to sign the petition.

Rick Warren: Christians & Muslims

Big news in the Christian World is a speech Rick Warren gave asking Christians and Muslims - the two largest "faiths" of the world to come together to combat the 5 big world wrongs. People keep asking the question: "Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?" (click on title to go to link of article)

First of all it seems he was simply asking we both make a team effort to fix some major problems in our world - he didn't ask us to agree on our biblical differences and opinions. I really am not for or against this as I'm not sure what to think of it. But I DO think that people are misunderstanding the key issue - that he wants to work alongside Muslims not BECOME Muslim. We work with sinners and so did Jesus, is there something wrong in working with them? Now to agree or conform to their ways, their thoughts yes that would be wrong for Christians but we can work with them - I mean we ARE a loving Body of Christ here to spread the gospel right? Yet we sound like shut-in extremists who don't want to talk to anyone peacefully about anything. It's our way or the highway - which yes I do understand it is either heaven or hell there is only one option and choice. But Jesus was a FRIEND to the sinners, even to the persecutors of Christians, so shouldn't we be too?

I'm interested on every one's take on this...

Freedom Rant

I will admit from the beginning this post and a couple to follow are just rants that have been brewing inside of me this morning. I guess you could say that the sermon this morning got me thinking - and if you know me you know that train never stopped all day long and made several stops along the way!

My freedom rant is this:

I still remember being in my College English 101 class and we had to write an argumentative paper. It could be on anything we wanted and we had to do student editing of it. So yes that's right we had to pair up and take turns editing each other's rough drafts. Now to give some of you a background my brother had just graduated Army Boot Camp earlier that year and was currently deployed in Iraq. And who do you think I get paired with The guy who wrote a paper on how dumb war is and how soldiers abandon their families. WOW! Really God?! I still wonder why to this day God let me read that boy's paper because I have NEVER come so close to literally slapping a guy in the face right in the middle of class! I won't go into every detail but let's say about a couple paragraphs into his paper I had to confront him about what he was writing because it was uneducated and unknown ramblings that he had no clue about! We ended up arguing and he is one of those boys that acts like he knows everything as total truth and smiles the whole time he debates like you are the idiot who doesn't know any better. UUUGGGGHHHH! Aggravating! Okay stick to the story - so he ends up insulting my family, I end up slamming my fist on the desk and getting the teachers attention in doing so. He quickly told us to finish the editing (leaving the verbal editing out) and just leave. I had to bite my lip the hardest I ever have to read that paper like I didn't care what the content was about and simply stick to literary elements, spelling, and strong vs. weak arguments. It was HORRID and as SOON as I shut that door I balled my eyes out the entire walk down to my truck.

To those of you who don't agree with war here is my encouragement: Please at least understand that war and these soldiers who risk their life is the SOLE reason you now have to freedom to speak out against it and them! They earned you your freedom of speech so don't slander the giver. I understand if you don't like war and don't want to fight - that's fine there are plenty who will do the dirty work but be gracious in your words and tactful when you speak your opinions.

My pastor gave an interesting illustration this morning of two men out on a boat. They drew a line down the middle and made an agreement that they would stay on their own side and could whatever they wanted with their side. When they got to the middle of the lake the one man got a drill out and began drilling holes in his side of the boat. The other man of course yelled out to him "What in the world are you doing, you can't do that!" To which the other man calmly replied, "This is my side of the boat, it's my RIGHT to drill holes if I want."

Freedom Rights.....hmm....interesting how ones freedom effects another isn't it?

Silent Sundays: Happy Father's Day!

I haven't posted a Silent Sundays in awhile and I figured Father's Day was a perfect day to start back up! Here are a few pics of the two Daddy's in my life - first of all MY Daddy and second my hubby, the daddy of our kiddos! I love you both and wish you the Happiest Father's Day!!

Illumin8 Performance

I am SOOO excited because the dance crew that we have in our CrossFire Ministries was the VERY first thing to perform in our brand new youth building! I've posted about it before on here and I am happy to announce - the certificate of occupancy has been signed and we have already had two youth services in it!

It has been a BLAST and the teens are lovin' it! Now, I tried to videotape our dance and the concert by B. Reith the first night we were in there but my tape messed up so thank you SO much to a teenager in the crowd who DID capture the dance on video! I was going to upload the video onto here directly but I just uploaded it to our CrossFire blog and it took 23 minutes, no exaggeration. Soooo....I made an executive decision and decided to simply put the link on here for you to go view it! lol, so I hope you enjoy it!

Click HERE for video of Illumin8 performance of "Gimme Dat"

South Dakota Women's Conference

My last post which was made a LONG time ago, asked you to pray for me as I spoke at a Women's conference in South Dakota. As I have long promised I'm finally able to make the many posts on my time up there and some other interesting things going on around here. First of all the conference took place just outside Interior, South Dakota at a stupendous Bed and Breakfast called "Circle View Guest Ranch". You MUST check out their website and if you are ever traveling the area, stop by and stay there! Amy's breakfast's are to die for and the view is breathtaking! I have several photos from there that I'll post at different times but here are just a couple of the lookout in the afternoon. Just wait till I post the sunrise pics!

Since I was a speaker (AND the daughter-in-law of the lady putting it on, lol) we arrived early before anyone else and helped get everything set up and ready. Getting there early also allowed me to have first choice of the rooms. It was so fun, I got to walk through every room and look at the features and then decide where I wanted to stay. I finally chose a smaller room with a HUGE COMFY King size bed with a view of the river below. It also had lots of bathroom counterspace a huge plus in my book! Here's a glance at a corner in my room where my hot green tea would be found later on as well as my bible and camera - all ready to catch a sunrise picture early the next morning!

After we were all settled in, the guests arrived and the conference got underway. The first night we gave a surprise baby shower for the owner of the B&B and also had an "box lunch" dinner exchange (you bring a boxed dinner and draw a number to see which one you get!) It's pretty fun. I stayed in a room with my cousin by marriage who is a freshman next year in high school and active in 4-H, so we have a TON in common! She loves taking photos too so she got to play around with my new toy of a camera - and I must say she has a great eye for it. She got some great and unique shots.

Anyways, the next day was my turn, which including three seperate speaking sessions: one before lunch and two after. They all went so smoothly, quickly and without effort. Not to mention I had a blast smearing a whole window with a half baked pancake! Yes I got permission and no I won't tell you why I did it! But it made for a great lesson. Here is a pic of me cooking the pancake.

So overall everything went awesome and God really moved on some of those women that weekend. I was able to create new friendships and grow in old friendships. I always have a blast in South Dakota and this one was no different. Thank you again for your prayers and I look forward to sharing more of my trip up there! Until next time...

Women's Conference

So this post is a bit different than the rest. But a quick update. I am currently in Interior, South Dakota for a women's conference. I have been invited here as the main speaker for the event and am very excited about it. It is a smaller group than last year but more intimate too - so very nice! The conference officially got underway tonight with intro session, some praise and worship and a surprise baby shower for Philip and Amy Kruse - a wonderful couple that own the Bed and Breakfast we are staying at!! I will be doing a post on JUST the B&B when I get home and have more time and can post pictures as well. But I simply posted tonight to ask you to pray for me as I speak tomorrow and that the Lord would be over this entire conference! Thanks and see you when I am done!!

Life Lessons From a Puppy #2

So this one will not be long and by the picture it is pretty self-explanatory but the story is as follows:
We had spent my husband's day off fishing at a friend's pond and after having a some-what frustrating day of tangling lines and losing lures we called it a day and came home. When we got home I began dinner and Nick let the puppies inside, since it was especially hot out that day. Within a few minutes sure enough the puppy, Dakota had pooped (almost diarrhea) on the living room carpet. Now we got this puppy because I wanted her and I made Nick a deal that I would deal with all house-training which yes meant I agreed to clean all messes. At the moment I was cooking though and Nick said, "It's OK I will get it" although you could tell he wasn't thrilled with the idea.

Now to set the scene my husband has an incredibly sensitive sense of smell and he will get queasy stomached very easily! So he naturally thought of an idea to make sure he could muster through the entire mess. See below.

My son of course wanted to help "spray" (the cleaner bottle) so Daddy quickly rigged him up a bandanna too! They looked so ridiculous to me cleaning up dog doodoo that I HAD to get my camera. And thus the double duo:

So very simply my life lesson learned is: Clean up your own dang stinkin' mess! It's twice as gross for someone to have to come behind and clean up the mess YOU made!

Lol, enjoy your day! And by the way the puppy is officially housebroke now so not sure where my life lessons will come from now - guess we will see!

Smoothie Recipe

It is mid-afternoon and my kiddos snack time. I am accustomed to eating snacks myself and since the weather has been warming up have been enjoying a variety of smoothies that I have just experimented with and come up with myself! Today I made up one of my favorites and here is the best part - it is completely HEALTHY! And not to mention anti-inflammatory! So I decided to share my recipe with you in case you want a cool refreshment too!

Juicy-Berry Smoothie

• 3/4 - 1 C. Frozen Mixed Berries (blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries is the mixture I use)
• 1/2 C. Plain Organic Yogurt
• 1-2 TBLS. PomWonderful Juice (100% pomegranate juice)
• 1/2-3/4C. orange juice
• 1/2 TBLS. ground flax seed

1. Throw all ingredients into a blender and grind it all up!
2. I just throw things together so measurements are estimates - play with the amount until you get the desired taste. Also the flax seed is added as a health benefit (great for your skin) and you won't taste it in your drink.
3. Makes 1 serving (about 10-12 oz.)

My Photography

I am so excited to let everyone know that I will now have some of my best photography available for purchase on Imagekind.com. If you look to the right side bar you will see a scrolling banner of my current photos that also includes a link straight to them.

You can get them any way you want - as cards, prints, framed artwork, canvas, anything!

This sight is a GREAT way to find unique artwork and greeting cards from ordinary artists such as myself. I encourage you to check it out for that perfect wall art or perhaps a great Mother's Day card (since it's in a couple days you know)!

I have only added one photo so far, as I just signed up, but keep checking back for more to come!

Thank you for your support!

Life lessons from a puppy

In case you don't know we have recently taken on a new puppy in our lives: Dakota, a black-tri full blood Australian Shepherd. She is an adorable lil brat that has brought lots of joy and playfulness into our home. But for those of you who have ever gotten a puppy you know it isn't all fun and games. So thus I will be doing a series called "Life lessons from a puppy" that will bring you insight into a world with a puppy and where my brain goes during these events.

Life lesson #1...

So the other day I'm walking to my bathroom to get some toilet paper to put into the spare bathroom and when I walk into my room I see this...

I go hmm...what kid got into the toilet paper to try and wipe their nose or clean their hands or whatever other reason they wanted it? So without much thought I continue into my bathroom to retrieve the toilet paper when I now realize who really got into my toilet paper. See if you can guess by what I saw:

So of course my blood starts to boil and I call out "DAKOTA!!!" in a deep harsh voice and go looking for my puppy. I do find her she gets her nose rubbed in it and put outside. When I turn back to my house and the mess of course my first thought is: "I need to blog this!" So I go get my camera and start clicking. And of course on my way to get my camera from the living room I spot yet one more mess.

Now I got it all cleaned up pretty quickly and life went on and you would think that is where the story ends but unfortunately it is not. For exactly one hour and 20 minutes later once again walking into my bathroom...

Oh yes the roll she had already shredded to half of it's size she had later returned to officially FINISH off. So one toilet paper roll, a small trash can full of shreddings, two messes, and a puppy outside I learned one of the many life lessons from a puppy:

"Be careful where you leave your 'stuff'."

(or better understood this way- "Be careful WHO you tell your troubles to")

Tea

It has become my morning routine (really since I've started my Anti-Inflammatory Diet/Lifestyle) to cook my self Old-Fashioned Oatmeal with a TBLS. of ground flax seed, an egg or omelet, and a slice of cantaloupe (or perhaps 1/2 berries instead) and I sit at my kitchen table with a clear view of my bird feeder where Cardinals frequent. To go with my wonderful and relaxing breakfast I make myself a cup of Tazo Green Tea to sip - knowing I'm filling my body full of antioxidants to fight off all the junk I've put in my body either by eating bad or stressing out. Not to mention I LOVE the flavor of it! I even order it at restaurants that have good green tea such as Shogun's. And to top it all off I always have a current book to read while I slowly eat my morning meal. Eating slow is good for digestion you know - so don't tease me for eating like a bird!

Now to the subject at hand - tea. I recently read a good post that had a recipe for truly the best Chai Tea you will ever drink! If you are a fan of Chai Tea you truly MUST try the recipe - it is claimed to be better than Starbucks! You can find it at the following blog, Tea Time. (it is linked directly to that post)

I also wanted to recommend a great website to find tea at - Teavana.com

It is ALL high grade quality tea and all comes loose leaf. If your mom is a fan of tea it would make a GREAT mother's day present too!

So check out Teavana.com and Tea Time for a great Chai Tea recipe!

A note from Joyce Meyer

"Even when we are in a place of obedience to God, we often have no natural way of knowing for sure whether we are right or wrong. We have nothing more than faith to help us take that first step. We may not be certain that what we are doing is the right thing until after we have done it and then look back to see if God's grace was there to cause our efforts to bear good fruit.

Sometimes we may be wrong. That thought seems frightening at, so we think I had better just stay here where it is safe. But if we do that, we will soon be miserable if God truly has told us to move forward.

If our hearts are right and we do our best when we hear from Him, God will redeem us and honor our steps of obedience. If we move with childlike trust to obey what we believe in our hearts He has told us to do, even if that decision is wrong, God will take that mistake and work it out for our good. I know this is true because Romans 8:28 says that all tings work together and fit into God's plan for good for those of us who are called according to His purpose.

Many people are afraid to move because they think that if they make a mistake, God will be angry with them. But this is where trusting His character is so vital to walking in faith. People who are too afraid to obey are so miserable anyways that they cannot get any worse off by stepping out and trying to do what God is telling them to do.

I once had a ministry position at our home church. I loved it, but felt God was leading me to step out into something new. I did leave, but not because I wanted to. I left because God's anointing and power for me to be there had lifted, and I became miserable until I obeyed Him. I realized I would find peace only if I left my "safety zone" and tested what I believed He told me to do. That was the only way to find out if I was right or wrong about hearing his voice. I had to step out to find out!

I exhort you with this truth: Do not spend all your life playing it safe! Safety is very comfortable, but it may keep you from God's perfect plan for your life. Trust His Word and keep your heart willing and ready to obey. You will find throughout your life that God regularly calls us out of our comfort zones and into new places of faith and growth in Him."

-TAKEN FROM JOYCE MEYER'S AMPLIFIED BIBLE COMMENTARY NOTE

P.S. My good friend over at Biskit's Blog has given me this sweet award!

And I would like to pass it on to my parents (becuz they BOTH just started blogging!!)

My mom at "Tea Time" and my dad at "Random Ramblings"

PLEASE CHECK THEM BOTH OUT!!