Hearts of Christian HomeKeepers™

I had the dream again last night.  You know, the one with the bicycle in it.  I always have some sort of version of the Bicycle Dream when I am feeling particularly stressed about something.  The places and time vary but the overall theme is the same.  I am far from home or my final destination and my only means of transportation is a bicycle.  I am in a near panic because I have so far to go and only this bicycle to depend on to get me there.  Sometimes my bike is old, sometimes it is new.  Last night it was a black second-hand mountain bike with flashing lights and I was traveling from Shreveport, LA and was trying to get to my old hometown of Lake Charles, LA.  A 4 hour trip by car so you can imagine how long it would take by bicycle.

I have had bicycle dreams for years now.  Long enough to know what they mean.  They only occur when I am under a lot of stress.  They are my release but more so, my signal that something has to give.  I have to turn to God and turn it over to God.  That is what I did today.  My stressful situation is this part-time job I have had for the last 3 years.  I am a foster/adoptive home recruiter for the state Dept. of Human Services.  Recently there have been some personnel and job description changes that have made my professional life pretty stressful.  I knew I needed to give it to God and this morning, I had the sign from Him, via  a bicycle, that this problem has now been received in Heaven and I can quit worrying.  I am going to turn in my resignation on Tuesday.

Why does it take a dream or some other outwardly sign for us to realize that God is in control?  Why can’t we remember that as naturally as breathing?  I think it is just part of His amazing grace.  We are His children and no matter how big and ugly we perceive a problem, it is nothing that He can’t handle for us.

I wonder if there are bicycles made for two up in Heaven?

What does “worship” mean to you?
To you, is worship simply the prelude to the sermon during a church service?
Is worship simply reverent honor and homage paid to God?
I believe it is much more than that. I love Him so much. I adore my Jesus and I can’t help but worship Him.
Worship, I believe comes from the heart. Deep down inside of us there is worship for our wonderful, awesome God.
I love to sing to Him and love on Him.
Having a heart of worship has just been part of my life. I love to worship the Lord. I even long to worship Him.
I have to worship, but I absolutely love it!
Even when we don’t sing my favorite praise and worship songs at church, I still worship.
Do you “have” to be at church to worship?
Absolutely not. I worship at home, in my car, in the bathtub/shower, walking through the grocery store!
As much as I love to sing to Him, He loves to hear it!
“The Revelation Song” is one of my absolute favorite worship songs on the planet.

The Revelation Song

Worthy is the,
Lamb who was slain
Holy, Holy, is He
Sing a new song, to Him who sits on
Heaven’s Mercy Seat
[Repeat 2x]

(Chorus)
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And I will adore You…!
Yeah!

Clothed in rainbows, of living color
Flashes of lightning, rolls of thunder
Blessing and honor, strength and
Glory and power be
To You the Only Wise King,
Yeah

(Chorus)
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come, yeah
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And – I – will – adore You!
Yeah!

Filled with wonder,
Awestruck wonder
At the mention of Your Name
Jesus, Your Name is Power
Breath, and Living Water
Such a marvelous mystery
Yeah…

(Chorus)
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come, yeah
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And – I – will – adore You!

Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come,
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And – I – will – adore YOU…

(Chorus) (Repeat at a cappella)

Come up lift up His Name
To the King of Kings…
We will adore YOU Lord…
King of heaven and earth
King Jesus, King Jesus
Aleluya, aleluya, aleluya!
Majesty, awestruck Honor
And Power and Strength and Dominion
To You Lord,
To the King, to King
To the King of Glory

I just love the chorus “with all creation I’ll sing”.
I think of the sounds of creation. Frogs, crickets chirping, birds singing, the crashing from the waves of the ocean, the cooing of a baby, the laugh of a child, even the roar of a lion. God created them all. I believe each creature has its own, unique way of praising God.

The Lord loves our praises. He inhabits the praises of His people. We are literally music to His ears!
Even when you’re going through the most pitiful, toughest, roughest of days, I can begin worshipping Him and I feel the burdens lifting.
Worship is a release. It’s me saying “God you’re everything and no matter what my situation/circumstance is, I’m going to worship you”.
When I see I’m going through a trial or tribulation, I go to the Word and then I worship. I raise my praise! I turn off the “world” so to say, and I turn UP the praise and worship music. I listen to teaching tapes and just focus on God and all His promises to me. I read the Bible and just “feed” upon His word. There is life in His word.
I just sit at His feet. Everything you need can be found in His presence.
I encourage you to “raise your praise” today!

Enough Stuff
“Wouldn’t a new chair look wonderful here?” my mom commented as I showed her the extra rooms we had just added to our house by deciding not to rent out the adjacent apartment. Our four children were growing and our little home was becoming increasingly crowded so my husband and I decided to open up the doors between the two living spaces. “No mom, we have more than enough stuff, what we need is more breathing room.” I replied. It felt so good to have some empty space to move around in my home. I didn’t need to add a thing, just reorganize what I already owned.
As we started to move things around our “new” home I realized I had more than enough stuff and started my “donate to the church yard sale” pile. The pile grew larger with each room we cleaned and rearranged. I began to see how all this stuff owned me instead of me owning it. No wonder I had felt suffocated in my home. How much time was I using tending all this stuff instead of enjoying life?
As the home transformation continued I became pickier about what to keep and resolved to evaluate before I added more stuff. I had a revelation. All those homes I envied because they were so neat were that way because they didn’t have an abundance of stuff. Knowing when enough stuff was enough I was on my way to a more streamlined home. When friends stopped over I won’t cringe because of the piles of mail, laundry, whatever on the table waiting for me to decide where they go.
. Now that I have room for my sewing machine I started a quilt from my girls’ out-grown dresses instead of keeping them in the attic. As my family changes with the seasons of life the amount of stuff we require will change. I hope I can continue to be sensitive to how much stuff I need. It’s hard to not keep the treasured dollhouse or train set for my grandchildren but all those plastic toys don’t need to stay.

Enough Time
I’m exhausted, it’s late and I still have so much to do. Make the flyers for the spaghetti dinner, type up the Sunday school lesson, correct school papers for the kids, iron hubby’s shirts, sew a costume…the list goes on and on. How do I find enough time for everything? The answer is I don’t. The Lord has blessed me with only so many hours each day. I need to be a better steward of my time. I need to prioritize.
Prioritizing is not an easy task. I needed help so I enlisted family input. I asked each of my children what it was that mom does that no one else can do. I figured that would be a good place to start. Their answers surprised me…snuggle with a favorite story book, sing Broadway show tunes with them really loud, give them guidance in difficult situations, correct them when they need it, know who they really are, pray for them. Sometimes it’s the little things that mean the most. The big “up-front” time stealers like keeping the neatest, cleanest house or doing laundry every day are not the most important. Those things still need to be done, but not at the expense of time to dream with your loved ones.

Enough Input
As I run my errands I put the radio on to catch up on what’s going on in the world. The talk show host goes on and on about things that really rile me up or frighten me. I bring in the mail and magazines bring new views on homemaking, fashion, current events and trends. That night I read the newspaper and become saddened by all the bad news being reported. The Internet brings me more opinions and information that I think I need to live in today’s world. I talk to neighbors, friends and colleagues at work and find more outlooks on situations than I can comprehend. All this input overwhelms me and I find myself becoming depressed. My brain just wants to shut off, but I have an information addiction. How much do I really need to know? How many sources should I be turning to? While I’m listening to all these voices how can I hear God speaking to me? I need to sort through all that is offered by using God’s filter and His Word. That would be the only way to know when enough is enough and I will be truly filled and satisfied.