Emotions aren't enough....

a friend sent me this on an email....i think its so helpful for so many women.....enjoy! :)

The Truth About Feelingsby Jon Walker
“… And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ ….” (Philippians 1:9-10 NIV)
Submitted now for your consideration is Pamela, a loving wife, a nurturing mother, a prayerful Christian. This morning her husband, Richard, left a tender note on the bathroom mirror, inviting Pamela to join him for lunch at their favorite restaurant.
Pamela eyes the clock all morning, anticipating meeting her life-long love at 1 p.m. She’s excited and feeling extraordinarily loved by her husband, so she leaves for the restaurant early so she can buy Richard a small gift. She splurges a little, buying two balloons that float from the ribbon around the present.
As she pays for the gift, she notices her cell phone isn’t in her purse – again. No matter, it’s 12:30 and in a few short minutes she’ll be with Richard, giving him her undivided attention. Who needs a cell phone in moments like that?
Pamela arrives at the restaurant first, and she patiently waits for Richard to arrive. What she doesn’t yet know is that there has been in a horrible, tragic traffic accident, and Richard died at about the time she was tying the balloons to his present, excitedly anticipating their romantic rendezvous.
The point to this painful snapshot is that our feelings don’t always reflect the truth. Pamela was soaring high on feelings of love, completely unaware of the awful truth bearing down on her. Her feelings are not yet in line with the truth.
Imagine Pamela as she waits for her husband. When he doesn’t arrive soon, she becomes annoyed. After 20 minutes, she’s irritated and hurt. Her feelings still do not line up with the truth.
By the time 40 minutes have passed, she is worrying. This just isn’t like Richard. Maybe something has happened. She borrows the restaurant's phone and calls Richard’s office. His boss says, “Pamela, we’ve been trying to reach you. There’s been a terrible accident ….” The truth and Pamela’s feelings collide – and become one.
There’s nothing wrong with our feelings; God gave them to us. As one of my friends often says, “Feelings are just feelings.” Sometimes they reflect the truth; often times they don’t. They can serve as an early warning system, such as when fear alerts us to danger, or they can draw your attention to the one God wants you to marry, when you feel an overwhelming sense of love.
But your feelings do not define the truth. Only God defines the truth. You may feel worthless, but the truth is you are uniquely created by God, who loves you deeply. You may feel like you can walk on water, but the truth is you can only do that if Jesus calls you from the boat. You can’t; God can.
The apostle Paul teaches us to discern the truth, not through our feelings, but through knowledge and insight. He writes, “… and this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ ….” (Philippians 1:9-10 NIV)
Eugene Peterson, in The Message paraphrase, translates that passage like this: “… You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush ….” (Philippians 1:9b-10a MSG) Otherwise, you end up in a life “shaped by things and feelings instead of God.” (Colossians 3:5 MSG)
Your feelings are from God; they are a gift, and there is no need to avoid them or be ashamed of them. However, God never meant for our feelings to measure our life and determine how we live it. Your feelings do not define you; they are not designed to interpret the situations you now face. Only God’s truth can define you, and only God’s truth can pass judgment on the circumstances of your life.
The great and best Good News is this: God’s truth is a person – Jesus Christ, our Lord.
So what?
· You are not your emotions – You are defined by God, not your emotions. You may not feel like it, but God says you are wonderfully and fearfully created in his image, accepted in the Beloved. He loves you no matter what you’ve done.
· God uses your feelings – God may use your feelings to reveal a piece of your heart that you need to turn over to him. He may use your feelings to draw you closer to him. Paul speaks of feeling like a wretched man, and that draws him deeper into the grace of God. Your feelings of hopelessness in a situation may be what God uses to show you that you’re hanging your hopes on the wrong thing – because he is the God of a hope that will not disappoint.
· Your obedience is based on the truth, not feelings – The facts may appear daunting, but it is up to God, not you and your feelings, to interpret the facts. God calls us to be obedient to the truth, not to the way we feel. As C.S. Lewis says in Mere Christianity, if you don’t love someone, behave as if you do, and your feelings will catch up.
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your love never changes.....from sunrise to sunset

These are a few songs I absolutely loooove.....i love paul wright's voice, so you should look him up on myspace or you tube or also on his site.....he is amazing and his lyrics are so awesome to bring brokenness in spirit as we pour out our love to HIM! enjoy :)

Your Love Never Changes
Im tired of falling on my face lord get up tell myself (oh oh oh oh)i'm tired of singing the same songsna na na na (ha! oh oh oh oh)i'm so high i'm so low i'm so hot i'm so cold i'm so young but i'm feeling so old i'm at peace i'm at war i want less i want more i want it all but i don't know what it's for
and all that i am is all that you see when nobody is looking at me i fall to my knees you're calling my name
and you love me just the same - whoa!because your love never changes - noyea you love me just the same - whoa!cuz your love never changes - no
i?m back on the right track again (ya know i?m back)i?m back hanging with the right friends (ya know i?m back)i?m back on my feet againkicking back (kick it) ?ha? just laughingi?m so high i?m so lowi?m so hot i?m so coldi?m so young but i?m feeling so oldi?m at peace i?m at wari want less i want morei want it all but i don?t know what it?s for
and you love me just the sameyour love it never changes whoa!(uh 1-2 1-2 1-2) your love never changesbecause your love never changesyour love it never changes no!(1-2 we rock on, we rock on kid) your love never changesyea you love me just the sameyour love it never changes whoa!your love never changescuz your love never changes your love never changesno your love never never
yea you love me just the same (come let?s kick it kick it want to live it live it)yesterday today tomorrow everyday (love?s the ticket so ya gotta give it give it)yea you love me just the same (come let?s kick it kick it want to live it live it)yesterday today tomorrow everyday (love?s the ticket so ya gotta give it give it)
and you love me just the same (love me just the same) whoa! your love never changesbecause your love never changes (because your love never changes) no! your love never changesyea you love me just the same(love me just the same) whoa! your love never changesbecause your love never changes (because your love never changes) no!
yea you love me just the same (come let?s kick it kick it want to live it live it)yesterday today tomorrow everyday (love?s the ticket so ya gotta give it give it)yea you love me just the same (come let?s kick it kick it want to live it live it)yesterday today tomorrow everyday


From Sunrise to Sunset
Father in heaven, forgive me for sinningI know I need a new beginning.
Father in heaven, forgive me for sinningI know I need a new beginning my world is spinning.
From sunrise to sunset help me not forgetall that you've done for me.
From sunset to sunrise help me keep my eyesupon Your glory.
Say ah yea (ah yea)say alright (alright)every sunset (sunset)every sunrise (sunrise).
Oh I need ya, oh I need ya right now.You came down from heaven above toshow me Your way, You way is to loveso help me love love and not judge or hold a grudge sayin...

feels like home to me....

so praise God...over the last two weeks I really have found my home-like feeling in mexico...it really is starting to feel like home to me.....i love walking down the street and seeing people I know.....its so great! so awesome to see some of my English students in the street and meet their families....its so awesome to have the same taxi driver and remember their name.......Lord you are good and your mercy endureth forever!

GO!

you have to GO!
you have to GO! and check out this site:

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=6a54d5371f00e3fdd70d

JOSHUA PROJECT

www.joshuaproject.net

This is a really cool site that I discovered here at MTS. The site gives you lots of information on different people groups all over the world....what their life is like...how many believers are in their population...if they have a Bible in their own language...and some other great facts to know for how to pray for them.....

Did you know there are still six thousands different people groups that have never heard the name of Jesus? They still don't know the blood He shed for their freedom from fear, death, and the traps of sin......

Check out the site.....they highlight a different people group each day....
You can be a part of people all over the world finding Christ by praying, sending money for missionaries, and GOING!

"AND THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT THE KINGDOM WILL BE PREACHED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE WORLD, SO THAT ALL NATIONS WILL HEAR IT; AND THEN, FINALLY, THE END WILL COME." MATTHEW 24:14

salvation has come....

OK THIS BLOG TOTALLY GETS ALL CAPS! HOW AWESOME TO SEE WHAT GOD IS DOING HERE...WE HAD OUR FIRST BAPTISM LAST NIGHT! THERE IS THIS GUY ARMANDO THAT SEVERAL PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE YEARS HAVE BEEN SHARING CHRIST WITH. FRIDAY NIGHT HE DECIDED TO BECOME A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST AND WAS BAPTIZED LAST NIGHT. PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR HIM AS MOST OF HIS FAMILY DOES NOT BELIEVE THE SAME...PRAY THAT GOD OPENS DOORS FOR HIM HERE TO WORK AND PROVIDE FOR HIS FAMILY AND BE THE SPIRITUAL LEADER TO THEM...AND REFUSE TO GIVE IN TO THE STRONG TEMPTATION FOR SO MANY MEN HERE TO GO TO THE STATES AND WORK.

ALSO, CELEBRATE A GIRL SEVEN WHO CAME TO KNOW CHRIST LAST YEAR THROUGH SOME OF THE MOMS HERE SHARING WITH HER...AND LAST NIGHT SHE WAS BAPTIZED AS WELL! GOD IS DOING SOME AWESOME THINGS HERE IN TLAXIACO.....AND I AM SO THRILLED TO SEE THE OTHER LIVES THAT WILL FIND FREEDOM AND JOY IN TRUSTING THEIR WHOLE HEARTS OVER TO THE ONE WHO IS WORTHY! :)

THANKS FOR THE PRAYERS YOU ARE SENDING UP ON BEHALF OF THE PEOPLE IN TLAXIACO.....