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My Daughter Is Free by Lisa Richadson  (Excerpt taken from Scrambled Hormones… by Monica Cane)

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Excerpt taken from Scrambled Hormones:60-Days of Encouragement for Moms Raising Teenage Daughters by Monica Cane

As a mother of three—two girls and one boy—I had to deal with three different personalities. I knew this but did not know just how different these personalities would be.

My oldest is a girl. She was special to us because she was our first. I did and do adore her! She was my mini-me as well as my shadow. Where I went, she went. When I moved, she moved. We were inseparable. I loved it! However, she became very fearful of many things and people. I prayed continually for the Lord to take her fears away and to cause her to lean on Him.

One night there was a flood in our city. She was so fearful and couldn’t sleep. I came to her and prayed over her. I told her about the promise God gave us to never flood and destroy the earth again. I told her to remember that, and when she couldn’t sleep to say the name of Jesus over and over again. She developed this habit and applied it in every situation that brought fear to her. To this day she uses my advice and is relieved. My prayers were answered! My daughter is free from most fears, and when she does get fearful, she turns to God…her strength!

http://www.amazon.com/Scrambled-Hormones-encouragement-raising-daughters/dp/0692365184/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1429806865&sr=8-1&keywords=monica+cane%2C+scrambled

So Long Fifty Shades of Pitiful

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By Monica Cane
 
“They shall bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing.”- Psalm 9:14

When I was in my early twenties, I would often hear ladies, who were in their forties and fifties claim that they would be twenty-nine and holding on their upcoming birthday.    I would chuckle under my breath as they would make this announcement but never quite understood their desire to claim any other age than what they really were.  That is until last year when I turned forty-nine.  

On the eve of my forty-ninth birthday it dawned on me that in one year’s time I not only would I be in an entirely new age bracket but an age bracket that comes with many stereo types and stigmas to boot.  I would be fifty years old.  I would qualify for A.A.R.P (American Association Retired People) and be eligible to receive 15% off at Denny’s and even a senior discount at certain movie theaters. 

Just one day between being forty nine and turning fifty, I would suddenly be labeled as part of the senior crowd.  How did this happen?  I was twenty-something a minute ago, laughing at those twenty-nine and holding ladies and now I was on my way to be one of them.

I’m too young in spirit to be turning fifty, I often thought throughout the year.  People who are fifty have grey hair and take naps but I color my hair and avoid naps like the plague I told myself.   The fact that some nights I stay up until 11:30pm playing Words with Friends and still get up early in the morning full of energy has got to count for something right?  Isn’t fifty suppose to be the new thirty?  So why not just call it thirty?

As silly as it all sounds, I spent most of my forty-ninth year contemplating these types of questions and thoughts.  Should I join the twenty-nine holding club or should I embrace the new season, the new decade I would soon be in.
I would love to tell you that I handled it all with grace and made peace with turning fifty but I didn’t.  On my fifty birthday, almost three weeks ago now, I woke up and felt like crying because while I really do feel like I’m in my twenties, the fine lines around my eyes, my drawn cheek bones and mousey hair don’t necessarily match up with how I feel on the inside.   

So on my 50th birthday before all the cards, emails, phone calls and face book messages came flooding in I boo-hoo’d just a bit and asked God to help me get over my fifty shades of pitiful.  In the midst of my whining I opened a devotional book, hoping the scriptures would bring me some comfort….And don’t you know God met me right there in the moment.
Psalm 9:14 jumped off the page.  “They shall bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing.”

At first glance I didn’t like how it said “in old age” talk about rubbing it in.   But then I read “they shall be fresh and flourishing” and I was instantly reminded that my greatest desire for many years now has been to honor God and to be fresh and flourishing in my daily walk with Him.

God reminded me so clearly in that moment that my job here on earth is to know Him and make Him known and that has nothing to do with my age.  I re-read Psalm 9:14at least ten more times then sucked up my snivels before thanking God for His willingness to keep me (and all of us) flourishing all the days of our lives.

Now that’s not to say that I’m completely ready to wear the I’m a Fabulous 50 t-shirt but it is to say that I am very encouraged knowing that to God, age really is just a number.  We are all called to flourish.  Instead of fifty shades of pitiful I am now secure in knowing I am a flourishing fifty shades of fruitful and will continue to be as such, and so will you as we seek God every day of our lives.

Do I Have to Go to Church to Be Right With God?  

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I was just finishing my break at work when a co-worker walked in and made the comment, “I believe in God, I just don’t go to church…That’s okay right?” I immediately regretted that my break was over because I would have loved to have gotten into a conversation about it. I didn’t have time to say much but made a mental note to discuss it whenever the opportunity presented itself again.  

A couple days later I went to my dentist for a teeth cleaning. As I leaned back in the dental chair, the assistant wanted to know what it meant to ones faith if you believed in God but didn’t attend church.  Two people, two days apart, same comment regarding church attendance and faith.  Gee, what a God-like coincidence.  Despite the gritty paste on my teeth, the scrubbing utensil and water-sucker-outer-thingy in my mouth, I managed to share what I could then decided to write this article.

There are so many things that could be said on this subject but first let’s begin with the core issue—salvation.  According to scripture, there is only one way to be saved and church attendance isn’t it.  

Whether you read the King James version, NIV, The Living Bible or any other Bible version, the way to salvation is spelled out simply and directly in Romans 10:8-9.

“For salvation that comes from trusting Christ—which is what we preach—is already within easy reach of each of us; in fact, it is as near as our own hearts and mouths. For if you tell others with your own mouth that Jesus Christ is your Lord and believe in your own heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (The Living Bible)

It doesn’t get clearer than that.  If you truly believe in your heart and accept that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for your sins through His life, death and resurrection, then you my friend, through your faith have the assurance of eternal salvation.  
It’s a heart thing. It’s as simple as that.   There is however, one little thing you may want to keep in mind. God is the true judge of our hearts and no matter what we confess with our mouth, it is our actions, lifestyles and choices that often reflect what’s really going on in our hearts.
Personally, I said I believed in God for a long time.  And the fact that I was a pretty good person led me to believe that I was in pretty good standing.   But as I began to purposely seek God, I realized that there was nothing about my actions that truly reflected a heart change—a heart choice to accept God as my Lord and Savior.  

It wasn’t until I began attending a strong bible-teaching church and was encouraged to read the Word of God for myself, that I discovered talk is cheap.  Surrendering my will to God and letting Him lead me, grow me and teach me His ways was the heart commitment He was looking for.  I had said the right words but my heart wasn’t aligned and God new it way before I did.

So with that said, where does going to church come in?

In the book of Mathew we learn that Jesus established the church during His earthly ministry. It was created as a place of refuge, a community of faith, hope and love.  It is meant to be a place for spiritual nourishment, teaching, correcting and guiding in God’s way.  Because we are all sinfully human, we’ve let each other down, disappointed and hurt one another in the church and out, which is one of the main reasons people don’t want to go to church.  They don’t want to be hurt.
One commentary described the purpose of church well: “The church is not organized for the sake of organization but so that Christ can be honored and glorified in the midst.”

Is the church filled with hypocrites?  Will anointed preachers, teachers and church members occasionally let us down? Absolutely, they are human and fail, just like everyone else.

However, if the church as a place that brings glory and honor to God then we must look beyond what we think about the stumbling people and instead focus on learning about God.  With the right focus, going to church doesn’t have to be a burden or scary thing.  It can be the place like Jesus intended.  A place where we let God worry about the fakers and hypocrites and spend our time gathered with like-minded believers growing together in our faith.
So, if you are a sincere believer who has confessed with your mouth and believed in your heart that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior but you live the rest of your life without ever stepping foot into a church building, will that change your eternal destination?  I highly doubt it.  
But you will miss out on growing in faith with other believers, developing friendships with prayer warriors, who know how to lift you up in prayer when you’re struggling.  You’ll miss getting to know seasoned believers who can mentor you in the areas you need and sharing the gifts God has given you for the betterment for your brothers and sisters in faith.  

Of course you can share outside of the church, but we have to realize that the church based on faith in Jesus Christ definitely has a place in our life; otherwise God would never have made a point to establish it. 

If you haven’t been much of a church goer-type due to “those hypocrites,” take a chance.  Going to church is not going to get your “more saved,” or “more right” but when you go with an open heart on God instead of a critical eye on people, your faith will be strengthened and you will grow like never before. 


God Chose You Indeed 

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(Excerpt from Scrambled Hormones 60-Days of Encouragement for Moms Raising Teenage Daughters by Monica Cane)

God Chose You Indeed 

“Before I made you in your mother’s womb, I chose you.”- Jeremiah 1:5

When my youngest daughter was born, though she was my third child, it was the very first time I actually realized that God is the Creator of life.  

In my complete ignorance, I had basically given myself the credit for creating such beautiful kids the first two times.  I didn’t understand that I was merely a vessel and that it was God’s creative design that formed my little beauties. It was when seeing my third red-faced, wrinkly, beautiful newborn that I finally had an epiphany—God creates life.

It’s no wonder that upon committing my life to God a year after my daughter’s birth, I was drawn to scriptures such as Jeremiah 1:5—”I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb,” and Psalm 139:15—“My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.”

I believe God gave me the epiphany about Himself upon the birth of my second daughter—a spiritual marker that would forever remind me of His faithfulness, particularly during trying seasons, just as He did for the Israelites long ago.

It just so happened that my most trying season had to do with raising teenage daughters and learning how to maneuver through all the hormones.  At the height of hormonal mother/teenage daughter tensions when I thought perhaps I had fallen short one too many times as Mom and wondered if God was tired of caring, He would always remind me of that spiritual marker moment when I realized that He is our Creator and as such He will always love and care for His creation, even the hormones.

The Problem:  I’m not a perfect mom.

 

The Promise:  Before I made you in your mother’s womb, I chose you.

 

The Plan: Take a long look at yourself in the mirror then say aloud, God chose me. 



Click here for: Scrambled Hormones 60-Days of Encouragement for Moms Raising Teenage Daughters