For over a weeek I have been trying to pit the words to this blog down, and finally I decided, that I was just going to say what I have to say, and be done with it.  I know that not everyone here are believers, but I don't believe that should exempt me from saying what I have to say, when it comes to my own personal blogs.  And I truly do have a lot to celebrate, so why not give the glory and honor to the one who deserves it, but on the other end I feel like the enemy has been putting me through an attack because I am actually letting myself be used, I am reaching out as I believe the Lord would want.

The Lord has his ways of doing things and sometimes we may not understand, and we may not understand all the struggles we go through, but the Lord is there, that gentle hand to guide us through, and that firm hand when he feels we need that kind of guidance.

I was reminded of this importance truth, as I felt like I was being attacked, and watching those I love being attacked, and when the enemy attacks one I love, I do tend to take it personally, and I find myself praying for them and asking the Lord to guide them,

 I was just reading from Job 4 from Biblegateway.com, and found the words spoke to my heart:

Job 4

Eliphaz

 ¹ Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

 ² "If someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
       But who can keep from speaking?

 ³ Think how you have instructed many,
       how you have strengthened feeble hands.

 ⁴ Your words have supported those who stumbled;
       you have strengthened faltering knees.

 ⁵ But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;
       it strikes you, and you are dismayed.

 ⁶ Should not your piety be your confidence
       and your blameless ways your hope?

 ⁷ "Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished?
       Where were the upright ever destroyed?

 ⁸ As I have observed, those who plow evil
       and those who sow trouble reap it.

 ⁹ At the breath of God they are destroyed;
       at the blast of his anger they perish.

 ¹⁰ The lions may roar and growl,
       yet the teeth of the great lions are broken.

 ¹¹ The lion perishes for lack of prey,
       and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.

 ¹² "A word was secretly brought to me,
       my ears caught a whisper of it.

 ¹³ Amid disquieting dreams in the night,
       when deep sleep falls on men,

 ¹⁴ fear and trembling seized me
       and made all my bones shake.

 ¹⁵ A spirit glided past my face,
       and the hair on my body stood on end.

 ¹⁶ It stopped,
       but I could not tell what it was.
       A form stood before my eyes,
       and I heard a hushed voice:

 ¹⁷ 'Can a mortal be more righteous than God?
       Can a man be more pure than his Maker?

 ¹⁸ If God places no trust in his servants,
       if he charges his angels with error,

 ¹⁹ how much more those who live in houses of clay,
       whose foundations are in the dust,
       who are crushed more readily than a moth!

 ²⁰ Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces;
       unnoticed, they perish forever.

 ²¹ Are not the cords of their tent pulled up,
       so that they die without wisdom?' ^[a]

We tend to forget in the middle of our battles, that the Lord is using us, that he does not fail us, even when we feel like the world is throwing stones at us, when we feel like we are being attacked, we are really being used by God.

In a book called Ignite the Fire, this truth spoke to my heart, and reminded me of the stuggle I am begining to see daily:

"We hurt bady, and wonder why God has allowed such hurtful things to happen." Natalie Moe (63)

We have all been hurt, thats the sad fact of life, but how we react to the hurt is what is important, and whether we let the hurt break us or break our faith....

Copyright Michelle R Kidwell

Oct.05.09

I am sitting here thinking of the blessings of the Lord, and how me moves in our lives. And on that end I not only think of my family but I think of the friends the Lord has brought into my life, and how they have helped me to become the person I am.   I remember hearing somewhere once that our friends are a reflection of ourselves, and if that is the case, I feel honored.

I am reminded often of the way the Lord works in our lives and the ways we are blessed, and I think of how truly rich I am, how truly nlessed I am, to have the people in my life that I have in my life.  My family, my friends, those I care about and those who care about me, those who have served to support me as I grow in this walk of faith, and prepare myself for the ultimate rewards, when we go to Paradise!  And as Sister Willie said, I am asking the Lord to save my circle of friends a corner table.

My beautiful circle of friends and loved ones come in all shapes, sizes, ages forms and bless me in so many ways, Sister Ruth my mentor, Sister Wanda (pictured above) my prayer warrior, Jenny, my comforter, and closet friend.  Fran the one who can always make me laugh, Teresa, who has blessed me by letting me be part of the lives of her Children Tavin and Kaitlyn.

Marlo is my Moms friend, but she is as much mine too, and has always offered the support we needed!  Karen and Karla who encourage me in my writing Sarah Tagert who has helped me with editing numerous texts, and Sarah Davis who has prayed with me through the rougest of times.

Crystal and Linda have blessed me in their own special ways and continue to do so!  Some of these people have been in my life for a very long time, others just a short time, but when you are truly friends the Lord has a way of putting an imprint on your heart like they had been there all along, and in ways they have, because the Lord had jsut placed them on your heart.

(Crystal With Baby David)

Amber my special niece, who has brought me so much joy, and the other children in my life, children that I did not give birth to, but who I want to do all I can for.

Sue who is a wonderful woman and a dear friend, I have been blessed to know her for close to eight years, and my own dear Mom with her friend Susan, who both bring me so much joy.

Dawn who can be both silly and serious!

Tina who is not only my Moms best friend, but a good friend to the whole family.  She is leaning and growing on the Lord, and she can also use your prayers as she is facing surgery that is very serious this week, please pray that the doctors hands are guided and everything goes well.

There's Kaitlie and Mrs Sheryl, though I felt the need to move on to a different church it had nothing to do with them, and I think of them both Mother and Daughter, as dear friends, and Sisters in Christ, and I am blessed to have gotten to know them.

Fran and I

Mikey Enjoying the train ride, he went on with Little Brother, Auntie Michelle, And Amber

Ethan Mikeys Brother

Kennedy Gary and Lisas Daughter