All You Had to do is Ask 😂

On Jons website last week 

So I went to my husband's website last week and started laughing as I saw that he took a picture of the picture I took hanging up in our living room.  There is a big glare from the glass that covers the photograph and is pretty hard to really appreciate the picture itself. 

Example 😊

All that to say... All Jon had to do is ask me for the original picture to send him for it to be a much more attractive, higher quality picture and look and be substantially better! I would have sent it to him asap!

I wonder if we just asked God more... talked to him daily ... if we might not find that He is actually just waiting for us to ask because He WANTS to help us.  If we talked to Our Father more, might we have a higher quality life?  Would things crystalize? Would things just plain old look better? Would we find ourselves being blown away at what He brings our way? 

I bet all the answers above would be "YES!" 

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. ”

— Mark 11:24

Being Thankful is Magical

Happy Thanksgiving from Jon and I 

First I want to thank YOU for joining me for these posts.  

I am also thankful for your sweet emails encouraging me to get back at it after our recent trip to Rome, Greece, Turkey, and Israel. 

There has been a lot going on of which I will be posting about in the days to come, but until then I would like to say Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one of you.

I love Thanksgiving because we all begin thinking about all that we are thankful for.

There is something magical about being a thankful person.  

Being thankful is more than saying "thank you" ... it's more than showing good manners, although that does cast a pleasant vibe on any relationship. Being an actual thankful person is having a heart of thankfulness.  It's understanding we have a good and loving God. It's letting our mind investigate all the things that have been, are, and will be good, valuable, rich, meaningful, and beautiful in our lives.

This kind of attitude forces us to have less headaches and worries. Being thankful rids us of toxic emotions.  It reduces depression and increases happiness.  That is actually even scientifically proven. 

Being thankful is freeing in a sense.  It's fun.

Maybe why this is true is because in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 it says that we are to give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you.  This is God's will for us to be thankful. 

I'm finding myself today being so thankful for God's incredible, magical, and beautiful faithfulness in my life.  He is good.  He is good to me and for me. I'll bet this is also true for you!  

Happy Thanksgiving my friends! 

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts...and be thankful.”

— Colossians 3:15

I'm Out!

Boat in the Sea of Galilee - "Shop" Photo

Okay loved ones.  I'm going to be out and about for the next 2 1/2 weeks or so.  Rome...Greece...Israel are calling my name. 🙌

I'm very aware that no one is waiting with baited breath for my posts. 😂 Although many of you have been the very sweetest in sending me encouraging emails, and I seriously thank you for that. It touches my heart. 💛

So I wanted to let any of you know that are curious, I'm not sure when I will or won't have internet so the posts might be a little "here and there." 

But if I'm able to include y'all on the fun of our journey... I sure will.

Hugs and love to you.  Know this my friends... God's journey for you will blow your mind.  Never give up walking with Him.  He will always always always always blow your mind with His goodness and extreme faithfulness.  Don't forget to talk to Him.  Ask Him.  Do the extra ordinary by His Spirit living inside of you.  Our God is a great and good good Father!  And He loves... you!

I'm Out! 😘

Loves a Rush

Love is a rush for me.  To show love to people is a serious rush. 

Rush = A sudden strong emotion or physical feeling.

Some people try and get a rush from drugs, or a sport, or ?

I was giving this a lot of thought.  When or if I do something nice for people--help someone out in a big or small way, show an act of kindness, etc--at this point in my life I do not do it to try and gain approval from whoever I am doing something thoughtful for.  I do it because it is a serious rush to brighten someone's day.  To help make their life a little easier.  To show they matter.

I'm talking about whether it's something nice or kind to a neighbor, stranger, spouse, one of my kids or in-laws or grandkids, co-workers... If they showed no greater appreciation for me, I can honestly say I really don't care.  It isn't about that.  

I'm thinking back, when I was younger, I sometimes did "loving things" to gain approval (which was all right because that was a great start).  And the Bible actually gives us motivation to love for  what even might seem to be for our own gain, "we reap what we sow." God knows we are made of dust.  He made us.

But as I've lived life, I have such a real appreciation for our greatest call in life. To Love. To love without expecting anything back at all is seriously the very best.

Now, there is NO question that when there is reciprocation it touches my heart deeply and means the world to me. And to be very honest, most the time I absolutely feel love and kindness returned to  me in a huge way.  But there has certainly been times where I haven't felt reciprocation, but that will in no way stop me from being loving to that sort of person or situation.  Because that is not why I do it.  I do it for the rush.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”

— Matthew 22:37-39

The Bible says "it is better to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35).  The funny thing is, is I can't pat myself on the back for doing something loving because I do get more out of it always than what I give.  Not from the person but from the rush that comes.  I believe this rush comes directly from the hand of  GOD.

I used to read this verse and sort of think it meant something like... It will be better if you give. That is the right decision to make.  But as this would surely be true, I'm also starting to think it also just means: it is better to give than to receive.  It means "It is actually better to give... it's funner to give.. it's more enjoyable to give than to receive. 

In Matthew 5 it also talks about loving your enemies... and I'm telling you the truth, there is a huge rush in doing that too.  Because it's against everything in us and stands out like crazy. It's so unique and super cool. People do not know what to do with that. It's a rush.

All I'm saying today... experience the rush of being loving.  You may be misunderstood at times or thought to be trying to gain someones approval.  Who cares.  Enjoy the rush of being loving.  It's super fun. 💛

I've Got Confidence

I've got confidence in our gracious, merciful, beautiful Father.

I've got confidence for you and your life. Tons of confidence as you walk on this path of life WITH HIM...not that you or I are walking perfectly at all ... but we look to Him.  We give our lives to Him.  We give our thoughts to Him. We give our hearts to Him.

I've got confidence that Our God that started a good work in you will be faithful to complete that good work.

I don't have confidence in who you and I are.  I don't have confidence in our greatness or way to get out of a jam.  I have confidence in God.  I have confidence in our Father in us and His work through us.

I am confident that, whether it is for you or a loved one you are concerned about, whether big or seemingly small:

“...He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

— Philippians 1:6

Moving Forward

“...and they turned their backs and went in reverse instead of forward.”

— Jeremiah 7:24

Now that's just sad.

The voice of God will always move us forward.  If we are moving backwards, we are not listening to HIS voice, but someone else's instead.

It doesn't matter today if we've been going backwards in the past, but what does matter today is that we are moving forward now!

Follow the ways Our Father in Heaven has shown us in His beautiful loving Word.  Follow what GOD has put on YOUR heart.  Do not compare yourself or life story to anyone else because God made you uniquely YOU and your story is not to look like anyone else's.  

And get ready for an exciting, adventurous, unique, impacting life you will be leading because following Jesus is never boring! And following Jesus means always moving forward!

Refreshment

Shop Photo

When we pause and think about the last few days, has the sense been more like strife and confusion OR has it felt more peaceable, gentle, and easy? 

The outcome of our last few days would reflect the place that we have settled in with our hearts and where we have looked for answers.  It would reflect where our life source has come from.

Maybe you say, "Shoot Tambo, my days have been full of strife and confusion... " I would say you and I can change that.  We can change it by finding our wisdom from above instead of elsewhere.

Let's anchor our very core of all that we are in the depths and refreshing place found in our Heavenly Father.

Let's pour out all our cares on Him.  That's what He wants anyway.  Let's look to Him for strength and direction.  Let's find our refreshment in Him.  Let's make peace.  Let's obtain beautiful wisdom from above. 

God has given us the choice of where we find our life source... Let's choose wisely because, it will without question, affect our day and those that are around us. 

I love that God has given us the opportunity to choose refreshment in Him. We can "sow" peace by making "peace." Very very cool!

“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.”

— James 3:17-18

Strong

My brother Brett and sister-n-law Debbie Meador... 

Jon and I enjoyed a wonderful lunch yesterday with my awesome brother Brett and his beautiful wife Debbie.  Jon and I love these two.

When I think of my brother Brett I think of "strong... diligent... solid..." (BTW he is an awesome pastor in Portland Oregon: check it out at atheycreek.com).

Often times we can look at people like my brother and think "We could never be that solid or strong or diligent ..." But the truth is this, God's commandments are our enablements... 

In Ephesians we are commanded to "....Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might." ... I love that our commandment is to get strong from the power of HIS might.  That means we don't need to be naturally strong. 

So even if we are not naturally strong like my brother, who even he would say he gets his strength 100% from God too... We can know no matter who we are, we get to rely and gain power from HIM!

So let's look to the strong for strength today.  It'll make ALL the difference. 

Always always there is glorious and good news for each and every one of us in God's Word!

SOOO good!

“...be strong in the Lord, and in the power of HIS might.”

— Ephesians 6:10