B U I L D

|| Right now I am working through the book of Nehemiah. I knew the basic story- how Nehemiah was burdened to build up the walls of Jerusalem, and how the kind agreed that it was a good idea, so sent him there to head it up. But since I never really focused on the little details, I was so encouraged by all the little treasures I found in this book!

"let us build up the wall..." Nehemiah 2:17b

"And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work." Nehemiah 2:18b

The people here didn't just talk about doing something, they actually got up and prepared to do something. They got themselves ready to work hard and get something accomplished. They strengthened  themselves.

How often do we conscientiously prepare ourselves to do a task? Or more often do we just come to a task and do it? How much better could be do a task if we have been preparing for it? 

Nehemiah 3:20 says that this man earnestly repaired his portion of the wall.

How often do we just do something because we "have to"? This man certainly wasn't thinking about just trying to get the job done. He did his work earnestly! He probably tried to produce his best at the fastest pace he could. 

"For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded." Nehemiah 4:18

This verse probably stuck out to me the most. These men were building. They were going about their daily business, yet they were prepared for whatever could possibly come. 

Are you going about your daily business prepared to face whatever temptations may end up coming your way?

link love//It Is Well

Today I randomly came across the Sacred Made website... Talk about inspiration overload!? Go take a look! =)

Love//Charity

Hey Girls!!!

We are finally settling into a routine over here after several months of  wedding planning craziness! I am so excited to get back to blogging, especially now that my Hubby bought a brand new computer! awesomeness!? I've missed writing and sharing my heart> its definitely something God put in my blood! <3

Look for some awesome new posts, and maaaaaaaybe even a new design. maybe! ;-P

XX
Hannah


// So February is kind of known as the month of Love... Valentines Day is the biggest thing on the calendar, and companies go absolutely crazy selling candy and red hearts and cards with sweet little glittery sayings all over them!

some of us are single.

others are in a relationship.

and some others (like me ^_^) have a significant other!


to each of us Valentines means something different. to some of us it means going out the day after and buying clearance chocolate... Or maybe it means someone bought us chocolate... or if you're me> it means you get to share chocolate(or rather hide the last 10th of it so I can actually have some... =P).

some of us go all out> we decorate our houses{or bedrooms at least}, wear pink and red and hearts all month, make heart shaped food, draw hearts and X's and O's all over the place, pass out gifts, etc...

and others try to ignore it all while making jokes...



In all the commercialization I think some of us have forgotten what Valentines Day is really about.

Valentine's Day is about LOVE.

but what is love?

we think of googly eyed dating couples, a dozen roses, and chocolate heart candy...

but that's not necessarily love.

So what is love?

1 Corinthians 13 covers all kinds of good stuff about love{CHARITY}, and we're going to explore some of these verses this month, so stay tuned!

CHARITY:

kind, gentle, or compassionate treatment 

especially towards someone who is undeserving of it,

LOVE

Joy// #5

 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.

Psalms 32:11 

Joy// #4

 Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.

Psalms 35:27 

Joy// #3

  For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

Psalms 30:5

Joy// #2

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Psalms 16:11  

// So, Ive definitely been more MIA than I planned. In just 4 days I will be married to my best friend, and hopefully life will settle down to a new kind of normal. I have all kinds of plans in my head that Im hoping and praying will eventually materialize. Until then Ill leave you with these little encouragements! :) ~Hannah

Joy//#1

Restore unto me the Joy of THY salvation.

Psalm 51:12

Isaiah 53//thoughts on Christmas

Have you ever really truly paused to think of what Christmas is about?

Most of us would respond automatically. Yes. And we would even have the right answer. Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus.

Maybe we’ve thought about it, but have we pondered it?

Do we really take to heart what Christmas is really all about?

We run around like chickens with their heads chopped off trying to find the perfect gift for each family member and friend. Then we take a look at our bank accounts and spazz out because Christmas costs a ton. Or we scramble to try to make a meaningful homemade gift for each one.

All the while we are focused on other stuff. Yes- giving gifts is a good thing. Yes, spending time with family and friends is a good thing. But that’s still not what Christmas is about!

Christmas is about Christ. Christmas is the celebration of JESUS’ birth.

Jesus came to earth so that he could die on the cross and give us the gift of eternal life. That’s a big thought.

He didn’t have to. He didn’t have to save us. He didn’t have to DIE for us.

But he did. He died for us. for you. for me. sinners. sinners who deserve nothing less than going to hell. 

But he died anyway.

He came to earth because he loved us.

//years ago my dad had to memorize Isaiah 53 for a Bible class he was taking. Being very much Daddy’s girl, I was the one who got to coach him. I heard him recite this passage so many times that I almost had it all memorized when I had to do it in high school.

Its an amazing passage. and its beautiful! <3 Its talking about Jesus. Its talking about why Jesus came to earth. Its talking about why Jesus was born. This passage brings new meaning to one of my favorite phrases,

beauty from brokenness.

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?

For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. 

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

 Isaiah 53:1-9

|lovely links| vi. Christmas edition

I havent been online much lately- you could say I've taken an impromptu internet fast- but in just the last few minutes I've read more sweetness than my heart can hold! Here's some super good reads this month!


Here's a good reminder to simplify this holiday season from Kindred Grace, and Holley Gerth reminds us to laugh because Jesus is the reason we celebrate this season! THIS post on InCourage was awesome too! {breakfast for dinner sounds amazing!}

I've really been enjoying Erica Lea's photo a day for December... She's inspiring me to do the same{maybe someday}! :)

This post shares some interesting facts about some popular Christmas Carols!

Defense of Rest... wow. wow. wow. This post was so, so, so good!


Have a favorite read from this month? Share it in the links below and we just might feature it in our next lovely links post! =D

hypocritical words...

"An hypocrite with his mouth destroyeth his neighbour: but through knowledge shall the just be delivered." ~Proverbs 11:9

Have you ever thought about how just a few simple words could completely change someones life? and maybe it wont be for the good?

I've witnessed many of such situations. I've been both the receiver and sadly the giver of such words more times than I would wish on my worst enemy(if I had enemies)...

Sometimes these situations come about on purpose, and sometimes they come about simply by the neglect to watch ones words.

|| hypocritical words aren't necessarily always aimed directly at someone. Many times they are, but gossip(which ANY time you are talking about something/someone that is absolutely NONE of your business) is also hypocritical!!

Have you ever destroyed your neighbor with your words(or even your actions)? Have you ever thought "oh well, they deserved that"? 

Its the HYPOCRITE that destroys his neighbor with words. mean words. harsh words. evil words. 

NEEDLESS words.

Are you speaking more words than you should? Or are you carefully watching your mouth?

Think before you speak. 

"Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips." ~Psalms 141:3  

words...

But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, 

they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

Matthew 12:36  

Today I'd like to challenge you to think about your words...

How often do you think before you speak?

How often do you make sure that what you want to say is necessary?

think before you speak!

|on being an encouragement|

Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, 

when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

Proverbs 3:27 

Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not,

to him it is sin.

James 4:17  

today I have a hopefully fairly simple thought....

->> How often do we skip a chance to encourage someone?

big bang in such a little tiny question!

I mean, really think about it! How often do we see someone hurting and keep walking by? How often do we notice someones discouragement and look away? How often do we hear a screaming heart and stop our ears?

too often... waaaayyyy too often! =(

This hit my heart hard- REALLY hard! and Im ashamed of the answers that fled through my head! 

a lot of times we use excuses- we're too busy, too stressed, too tired, etc. We dont have an excuse though, because we know what is the right thing to do, yet we dont do it.

Take 5 minutes and write a note, make a phone call, stop to say Hi, type an email, make a little package of sunshine! 

Just take 5 minutes!!! If the Lord prompts you, do it- if you dont, you will be held accountable!!

6 books every girl should read// no. 1

You're Already Amazing

A Million Little Things

One Thousand Gifts

Preparing to be a Helpmeet

Jesus Calling

A Young Womans Guide to Prayer


*although these books have been very encouraging and uplifting,
we do not necessarily agree with everything linked to in this post.

seeking what is Christ...

//A dear friend of mine who has been "mentoring" me, challenged me to read the book of Philippians, and I'm still working through it. Here's just a thought from what I read today!

--

{For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's. -Philippians 2:21}

||This verse really jumped out at me today! I've been sitting here pondering it for several minutes now and there's still a lot to think about there! 

Are we seeking to do the things that God wants us to do? Or are we trying to do the things that we want to do? 

And even more importantly: are we making sure that we aren't making our own things out as the things of God????

I'm primarily speaking for myself, but we need to be so So SO careful that we dont get distracted by what we want so badly that we make it out to be what God wants!!!

hypocrites #1

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith:

these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

-Matthew 23:23 

|| The Pharisee’s + scribes were the “high and mighty” “religious” men of the day. They spent their time “studying” and copying the law so that they might better “preach and teach” it.

Like so many of our religious leaders of today <Pastors, Pastors wives, Pastors children, Sunday School teachers, deacons, deacons wives, deacons children, etc.> these men had a lot of the wrong motives. They liked to stress the non-important issues while completely ignoring the things that were most important.

>>>Sound like anyone you know?<<<

=these religious people were good at giving tithes and offerings> and hefty showy ones at that. They weren’t concerned about giving money to help the missionary that needed to buy supplies to feed his family for the next month. They weren’t giving money so that the church could have nice chairs instead of the rickety old uncomfortable pews they already had.

They were concerned about it being known that THEY were the one who bought the missionaries food and fed them for a whole entire month. They wanted everyone to know that THEY were the ones who bought the chairs for the church so that they could say they went to a church with nice seating.

*They wanted to make a show out of church instead of taking care of the issues that were important like judgment, mercy, and faith.

>JUDGMENT- they forgot to judge themselves and their OWN motives. Instead they judged the outward appearance and actions of everyone else. While yes, we are told to judge sin, we are also COMMANDED to judge ourselves FIRST. If our lives aren’t right> if we are prideful, haughty, judgemental, etc> then we have absolutely no place pointing our finger at anyone but ourself!

>MERCY- The hypocrite conveniently forgets that God was so so so merciful to us. God sent His own Son to this world to save us from our sins. We consistently forget that. In Luke 6:36 God reminds us, “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” We are to be as merciful to those around us as God was to us!

>FAITH- having faith isnt always easy. Most of the time it isnt just there. Faith is something that we all have to work at- its something that we NEED people to encourage us to have!

These are the things that need to be emphasized first> matters of the heart< before the outward issues.

Psalm 19:7-10

 The law of the LORD is perfect, 

-->>converting the soul: 

the testimony of the LORD is sure, 

**making wise the simple.  

The statutes of the LORD are right, 

~rejoicing the heart: 

the commandment of the LORD is pure, 

=enlightening the eyes. 

The fear of the LORD is clean, 

>enduring for ever: 

the judgments of the LORD 

are true and righteous altogether.  

More to be desired are they than gold, 

yea, than much fine gold: 

sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

Psalm 19:7-10 

*photo credit goes to my awesome sister Gabby!

10 thoughts to ponder...

The LORD is nigh unto them 

that are of a broken heart...

He healeth the broken in heart...

Psalms 41:9, 34:18, 147:3

1. Who I am is NOT dependent upon anyone else.

2. My relationship with God is independent of any other relationship.

3. My dedication to the Lord is independent of any other relationship.

4.  My sense of value is relative to my relationship with God.

5. God is all-powerful in all situations.

6. Whatever circumstances exist, my inner peace comes from God alone, and not from any other relationship.

7. God is a jealous God; He requires total dedication to Him independent of any other relationship.

8. God alone can bring real peace and happiness.

9. God alone can bring good spiritual health.

10. God alone can bring good mental health.

My worth is immeasureable to God for He created me; He knows me thoroughly; He loves me eternally.

{excerpt: From My Heart to Yours by Glorianne Gibbs}

|lovely links| v.

Check out this encouraging post about Doing the Next Thing over at Kindred Grace!

Michaela shared a definition of REAL WOMEN.

Read about 5 Reasons We are Crippled by INDECISIVENESS...

Ponder THIS thought for a little while!

refinement.

Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; 

I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.

Isaiah 48:10 

This verse >almost literally< jumped off the page as I was flipping to a passage in church yesterday... I had to reread it a couple times. WOW!?

Times have been hard. But God has shown me more and more lately that every single trial is for a reason. 

*We grow the most when we are going through hard times.

There is a reason for every lesson learned. 

Have you ever thought about how much more we can help people if we've gone through the same thing ourselves!? 

LIGHTBULB!?

It seems funny to say sometimes, but Im thankful, so very thankful that God not only brought me through the trials, but that he brought me to them too, because I can have a greater impact because of them!!

Grow through your trials!