Thanksgiving....Not a good day to be my pants

Thanksgiving....Not a good day to be my pants

I've tried, in vain, for years to not be the typical girl that grows up and *poof* I'm a God-fearing SAHM (one of the few times you'll EVER see that abbreviation on my page!). Every Facebook status is a scripture, instead of posting a funny - including bad language picture, they post spiritual quotes, and yes, more Bible scripture. 

Why have I tried not to be that person? Logical question. Because I grew up a Christian. Becoming a Christian was entirely my choice. Attending church, learning the verses, the Sword Drills, the Youth Conferences, the weeks at church camp, sure they were fun, but the Wednesday nights when I really didn't want to think about church, but got forced to go, anyway. Those years of knowing who God was, but thought he was my safety net. I wanted to play away from the net, knowing that when I made too big a mess of things, I could turn to God to clean it up. 

There are 2 types of Christians on Facebook. The Christian that tries hard to adhere to God's commands for our lives. Their verses usually will give me some bit of calm amidst the storm I may be in the throes of. They post benign funny things, Every bit of it would be safe to let my grandmother(RIP) read. 

The other type is the person who's last 10 posts were off-color jokes, sexual innuendos, mention of partying recently...then almost as an accident, a scripture reference, tucked neatly into a timeline, with a hearty "Amen" typed over the picture.

I've tried to not be either person, because I don't want to be viewed as a hypocrite. The only reason I worry about that is because I view people as hypocrites when they try to ride both sides of the God fence. In one way, it's the best of both worlds. You can have your fun without worrying about language, because you're just human after all, right? You make a joke, quote some scripture, your moral compass feels pretty good where it is. 

My reason for not wanting to be a fence sitter is easy. Revelations 3:16 tells us that if you are as lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. (paraphrasing) But God follows that up with saying the lukewarm person is a false idea of being a Christian. It may cause others to believe that Christianity affords no great rewards or satisfaction if Christ, alone, can't keep you happy. Matthew 6:24 and Hosea 2:10 give further insight to how God views those that want to serve two masters. 

So I'm older now, I've had the blessing of leading 2 of my 3 children in asking the Lord into their hearts. There was no happier day than when they came to me asking how to be a Christian. I have my 4 year old left to bring to God. I'm thankful for the fact that God trusted me with these children with the knowledge, on God's side, and Hope on mine, that I can raise them to be Godly children. 

Today is...well was...Thanksgiving. I love that I don't feel stressed trying to think of something deep and meaningful to be thankful for today. I begin my prayers with thanking God for being my eternal Savior. I thank God for my family, my husband, my children, I thank God for giving me such wonderful neighbors and best friends. I'm even thankful that my husband doesn't have a job, yet, because God has a plan and I rejoice that HE has it figured out because I am hopelessly and gloriously LOST! I Thank God that we get the chance to celebrate and talk about his birth this coming month. I'm thankful for the gift ideas and that I KNOW God will provide for what we need. 

I've recently started tithing. This should be something started LONG before you're in your 30's. But I've always been tremendously stubborn and have always hated being told what I have to do. I didn't understand that God blessed me to have what income I had in the first place, so his asking for such a small portion of it back is a blessing. Give thanks every day. Give thanks ALL day. My prayers have no beginning and ending. When my mind can wander, I talk to God. I talk about what's on my mind, what is worrying me, beg for forgiveness of my sins, ask God for guidance, and above all THANK Him for His unending GRACE! 

 "Ingratitude is a sin, just as surely as is lying or stealing or immorality or any other sin condemned by the Bible. One of the Bible’s indictments against rebellious humanity is that “although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him” (Romans 1:21, NIV) An ungrateful heart is a heart that is cold toward God and indifferent to His mercy and love. It is a heart that has forgotten how dependent we are on God for everything." - from Billy Graham's How to Be Thankful in All Things  Find the full message HERE!!!

Remember, as my niece, Stinkerbell says, your middle finger....It's nothing but the 'Cuss Finger' and isn't even good enough for picking your nose! Who said Christians can't have fun?!