Today you will see 3 post from me as I am playing catch up.  

You see as part of this 31 day challenge I am suppose to post daily...

yeah....I missed 2 days this weekend.

I am determined to do 31 post so...

This is a "makeup" post for Friday...

Why didn't I post on Friday??  

Well you see I was consumed by a discussion in a Facebook group that truly bothered me.

A mom from another part of the country asked about a program offered through the school.  The program is called Release Time Bible Education (RTBE).  In our area the program is focused on middle school students however different places focus on different grades.

The question was simple...had anyone ever heard of such?  Many hadn't...maybe you haven't.

Release Time is conducted off of school grounds at a local church.  People from various churches in our school district volunteer to lead a class of kids and study the Bible with them.  This is a completely optional program that parents can sign up for.  Students are bused to the location using a RTBE bus or church bus.  The school in no way funds this program.  Student miss an elective once a week to attend.  

The question was simple but a debate ensued about how wrong it was to allow these parents to make this choice about their child's education.  These moms were attacking each other over their beliefs and value systems like vultures attacking roadkill.  They complained about how allowing students to attend such a class what taking away from their child and their education...

I was floored...I mean really...this is a group of mainly moms...

the idea of the group is to support each other but here they were tearing each other apart.

I was saddened, distraught as they called my God, a fairytale.

It was obvious some of these ladies harbored deep resentment towards any sort of established "religion."  Some even went so far as to say that it wasn't safe in America to admit you are not a Christian...and went on and on about the Christian privilege.  

I attempted to use all my social media engaging skills have learned over my years of advocating for agriculture.  They all landed on blind eyes (and hearts).  

All I know to do is pray for them...

Will you join me...

praying for these lost souls right here in our own backyard.

Those who are so afraid it seems of God that they lash out at the very idea of their child hearing about Him.  They are denying their children the opportunity of hearing the Good News and hiding behind lackluster excuses and misinformation.  

Dear Heavenly Father, 

Thank you for all our many blessings.  Thank you for all you have done and will do for each of us.  I come to you today with a heavy heart....one that aches for these folks and their children.  Please guide them to you...let their hearts soften so that the Holy Spirit may take hold and help them come to the feet of Christ Jesus.  I also ask that you keep us humble in this situation and let all the glory and praise be given to you.  In Jesus Name,

Amen. 

  

Have you ever faced this type of opposition to Christianity?  How did you react?

Until next time,

Caci

I never realized how much and how often in a marriage you are ask not only for give-and-take
 and sometimes to submit.

Now growing up no one would've called me a submissive person. 

I bucked the rules at every chance I got. 

At every stop along the way I had questions
I wasn't going to go down without a fight.

 I was always what you would call
a spitfire,
a troublemaker, 

 one that was gonna blaze their own path in the world 

no one was gonna hold me down 

That's me on the right with Gumby...

funny how things change as you grow older and wiser 

how the right person in your life can change everything 

and is even more amazing how God works in your life 

even when you're fighting him as hard as you're fighting the rest of the world

That's me on the right at the 2001 National FFA Convention

in 2001 I graduated high school 

tomorrow marks 12 years since I walked across the football field  

and was able to turn the first of four tassels 

it was a bittersweet day for me

 I remember without a doubt it I focus was on my plan for my life

 I wasn't worried what anyone else had planned for me 

I knew where I wanted to go
I knew what my goals were

(I was so determined to get away my aunt got me a complete set of luggage for a graduation present)

what I didn't know was what God's plan was for me

fast-forward:
about 10 months later in my second semester of college 

I met this guy in my calculus class 

he was living down the hall for me,
that guy turned out to be my future husband 

I didn't know it then but on that day 11 years ago my life was changed.

God was working in my life in a way that I never could imagine 

God was using me to do things that I didn't even know about

Upon starting to date William things are to change shortly 

my focus was no longer so much I'm partying and hanging out with my friends 

I worked building a relationship with him 

it quickly became evident (to both he and I) that we were in this for long hall haul 

 3 years & 3 months after we started dating we were married

This is still my favorite picture from our wedding

The reason I started listening

Our family on Mother's Day 2013

So until next time...

Caci

Faithful Fridays are a new addition to the blog this year!  I thought it might be great once a week to post on how I am trying to remain faithful to God.  This post keeps me accountable for my daily time with God.  It also gives me a chance at least once a week to focus on the blessings God has bestowed upon our family.  Some weeks that is much harder than others!!

So how have my faith based goals gone the first 11 days in the new year??

Goal 1: was to memorize 24 verses of scripture.  I am still working on my 1st verse of the year but will be adding number 2 next week!  I do have the basics of the verse hidden in my heart and will continue to work on it.  I have found myself turning to my index card binder often over the past 11 days to remind myself of the verse and to go before the Lord in prayer.  

Goal 2: was to spend more time in prayer and allow God to guide me.  I feel that I haven't spent nearly as much time in prayer  as I would have liked.  I need to be more dedicated and purposeful with my prayer time.  I catch myself praying throughout the day about little things but I feel that I also need to set aside some quiet time morning, noon, and night to do some focused prayer time.  As far as letting God guide me...well there are many times when I am not sure if I am doing my will or God's.  I try to make sure that what I am doing is pleasing to the Lord and that I am looking to him in all aspects of life not just in the big stuff.  I want to make sure that I am living my life for him all the time not just when it's easy.  I think my biggest struggle here is deals with finances.  It's hard to give up control to God and know that he will provide for our needs.  

Goal 3: was to read through the entire Bible in a year.  This one has been a little difficult as it requires you to set aside time each day to read between 4-5 chapters of the Bible.  I have gotten behind a couple of times but I am happy to say that currently I am caught up and have completely read the book of Ezra!  1 book down and 65 to go!  The weekends seem to be the hardest for me as we don't have a structured day on the weekends.  

In addition to these goals I also spend other times with the Lord.  I was blessed this week to get together with my WIC group on Wednesday night for a good girls night.  We enjoy a meal together, pray together, and study God's word.  We are working through Beth Moore's "David, Seeking a Heart Like His."  I have really enjoyed this study.  God has used this study to guide me in many ways!  I also really enjoy just spending time with the ladies in my group.  The majority of us are all in the same stage in life...we are 30ish, married, with kids and have full time jobs.  We do have ladies in our group who don't fit that description and I think that it's great!  Those ladies offer us a different insight into how God's word works in their life.  Many times we are so caught up in ours we forget that the same scripture may work differently in one life than the other...but the idea is the same...God is working in their life!  

Next week my Good Morning Girls group starts their study in Luke!  I am very excited for this study.  It's an 8 week study.  I am leading a Facebook group through the study.  I have tried this before and it worked out ok but I lost motivation because other's in the group weren't interacting.  I pray that the new group helps to keep up my motivation!  

I also try to work a little each day on vacation Bible school (VBS).  I do this so that I don't feel overwhelmed later in the year, which this year is even more important as we are expecting baby #2 in March.  I am happy to say we have dates set, starting to line up volunteers, and working on set design already!

So right now my typical day includes multiple small burst of time with the Lord.  I am thankful for the time I can spend with him alone but I also enjoy the time I spend with him and my family and friends.  Each type of interaction with the Lord blesses us greatly.  

Oh and by the way...I have to say HAPPY NATIONAL MILK DAY

So take a moment and let me know how are your faith based new year's goal going?  

Caci