Growing Your Faith

It is Fantastically Fun Filled Friends and Family Friday!! Can I get a whoop whoop?!? I recently finished reading my third book from beginning to end. It is the first time I have had the pleasure of doing that. I proofed and edited the chapters and still found errors I had missed in my first proof. It does not take away from the story and I found myself saying, "WOW!" as I finished the last page.

It is pretty cool when you find yourself captured and your faith growing as you read your own story. I guess its one way you know that you truly allowed God to write it.  I am in the process of notifying my publisher of the minor errors I found in print today and they should be taken care of quickly for the final print and any orders off Amazon over the weekend. I truly pray that word of this particular book gets out. I think by reading all three one's faith would surely grow by leaps and bounds and even the way you look at things will shift and all for the good. I am super excited to watch the words for my next book 'In the Midst of Spiritual Warfare' to fall on the paper. By encouraging others I have blessed myself 10 fold :D I truly get Paul's desire to encourage and share the good news. With that being said, here is a little something written by Paul. Taken out of Colossians, Chapter 1, beginning at verse 17:

17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation[g] under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Have you ever wondered if you are 'good enough' to get into heaven? Have you ever questioned how you could have an abundant life? If you answered yes to either question, I highly encourage you to check out my third book: You are Worthy Too: Angels, Answers, Signs and Wonders. I guarantee it will change your outlook. After you read it, share it. Should you love it, buy my other two books and keep your eyes open for my next book that will be out before summers end!

I like to share songs in many of my blogs but some of my readers cannot hear or watch them due to the device they are using at the time. Today I heard this song on my way to work, it is sung by Sara Groves and I think the title is 'The first song that I sing' ~ anyway, I love the melody as well as the message. These are the lyrics:

In the morning when I rise
Help me to prioritize
All the thoughts that fill my day

Before my schedule
Tells me that my day is full
Before I'm off and on my way

I want to praise you
I need to praise you
Let the first song that I sing
Be praises to my God and King

Before the curtains part
Before my day is starting
Before I make up the bed

Before the snooze alarm
Reminds me that it's morning
Before the dreams have left my head

I want to praise You
I need to praise You
Let the first song that I sing
Be praises to my God and King
(Praise the Lord, Praise Him)
(Praise the Lord, Praise)

Before my feet hit the floor, I'll praise you Lord, I'll praise you Lord
Before I fill my cup, I'll lift you up, I'll lift you up
Before I start my day, I'll sing Your praise, I'll sing Your praise
Before I start my car, before I get too far....

I want to praise You
I need to praise You, oh
Let the first song that I sing
Be praises to my God and King
(Praise the Lord, Praise Him)
The first song that I sing be praises..
Let the frst song that I sing be praises..
(Praise the Lord, Praise )
Let the first song that I sing
Be praises to my God and King

(First song that I sing)
Sing your praise to the Lord
(First song that i sing)
Come on everybody
(First song that I sing)

First song that I sing be praises..
(First song that I sing)
Come on everybody
First song that I sing be praises..
(First song that I sing)
Let the first song that I sing
Be praises to my God and King
(Stand up and sing come on, Hallelujah)
Let the first song that I sing be praises..
Come on everybody
(First song that I sing)

(Come on sing, sing, sing)
Before my feet hit the floor 
(Come on sing, sing, sing)
I am going to praise you Lord
(Come on sing, sing, sing)
First song that I sing
(First song that I sing)
(Come on sing...)
First song that I sing
(First song that I sing)
(Sing, sing, sing)
(Praise the Lord)
(First song that I sing)
(Come one sing, sing, sing)
(Praise the Lord)
(Praise the Lord)
(Come on sing..)
(Sing, sing, sing...)

Below for those who can listen and watch, here is her music video as well!

In the mean time, be blessed and be a blessing,

Wendy Glidden, walks with God, Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden 2014

Less is Often More!

Today is Thursday, May 15th! On my calendar it is clearly marked as Tremendously Thankful, Thoroughly Thoughtful Thursday. Today I am thankful for having less.

Last weekend was Mother's Day. The best part of that day is getting the cards the children made me while at school. My second graders filled in balloon prompts on a card. My favorite line on Michael's card was the one that said, "My mom likes smaller houses."

I literally laughed out loud when I saw it. He must have overheard a conversation I had had with his father while driving in the car. I was chatting away explaining to him how much time I saved by us living in a smaller house. I said I loved living in a small house because it didn't take me anytime at all to clean the place and have the rest of my day.

On Marissa's card she had said she enjoyed watching me read the Bible everyday. That made me smile but for a completely different reason. Recently since we downsized from a three bedroom apartment back into the house that God gave me, we donated the majority of our books to a laundry mat as well as a Goodwill. Each one of them is responsible to read for ten minutes each night. I decided rather than check out books at a library, that it would do the children good to read out of the bible. I have selected certain Chapters and verses that I pray cause them to become curious for more of what God has to say about things.

Recently we have read out of Ephesians, Timothy and Philippians just to name a few. I think one of my favorite readings was from Philippians, chapter 4. The children discovered that the phrase 'whatever' was used in the bible. I shared with them that the phrase 'As if' can also be found in the bible. I used that to explain how many think the bible is old school and there is nothing in it that applies to our age. Sadly that is a lie spread by Satan through those who either don't take the time to read God's word for themselves or those that are simply too self involved to recognize the truth within the pages.

I sit back today reflecting all that has taken place in the last 6 months or so. I moved out of my small home as winter closed in and moved into a gigantic apartment that was always cold and much too spacious in all honesty. I used to joke that I had to walk to another state to hang the girls clean clothes up in their closets. It literally took me the entire weekend to organize and clean our home each weekend. In those few short months, I somehow managed to publish three books in both print and e-book formats. The apartment is something I should have never been approved to move into. As it turns out, when it comes to apartments, the federal rule states that you can only have two heartbeats per room. For those of you that have followed my blog, you know that when I first went to apply for this apartment, I had recently left Mike or rather he had actually left me and moved to Florida. You also know at the time, I had six children with me; four of them were girls and two of them were boys. Any way you slice that pie, not only did I have more than two heartbeats per room, I also had more than six on my original application. I knew God had moved me to go to that apartment and I also felt He was in the process of moving me again before things went into motion. By the end of February, the maintenance crew had done an inspection of my home and had discovered that we had one heartbeat too many living in the apartment and they gave me a 60 day notice to vacate. I was not formally evicted through the court system, I was simply sent a letter stating I had to be out by April 29th.

I guess some people in my shoes would have been caught up in a whirlwind of emotion. I on the other hand have gotten much better at praying for direction and then waiting for an answer. I always believed that God gave me my home on wheels for a reason so that is where we went back to. Winter is over, although tonight it will dip down to a chilly 37 degrees, so the mobile home truly is a great place to go back to. Now, while I do not have Internet or even 24/7 electricity, I have all I need. A bed for each child, a warm shower, lights that run off of our battery power and a very small house to clean! While I lost space, I gained massive amounts of time, including quality time with the children. We hang out at the library or the park more now because our day is not gobbled up by constantly cleaning floors! Less truly can be more. It all depends on how you look at it.

Today, seeing how it is Thankful Thursday, I am going to leave you with the advice found in Philippians 4, beginning with verse 4:

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

What you focus on with your mind will alter how you go about your day. This is certainly why we are advised to renew our minds. Make sure you renew yours daily with a bit of God's word which has much encouragement to stay focused on the truth. That being said, Mercy Me just came out with a new album which is titled, "Welcome to the New". It is full of wonderful songs but I really really love the words sung on the song also called 'Welcome to the New' for those that can listen online via my link, enjoy. For those that cannot view it on your electronic device, take the time to search them out on You Tube when you have the opportunity!

I would also like to invite you to read my full story ~ well the parts that I have published anyway. I have many more books to follow. I think I could write everyday for the rest of my life and still have stuff to share. For now, you can find all of my books in both print and e-reader formats at www.amazon.com/author/wendyglidden for less than $13 you can own all three on your e-reader and if you prefer print over electronic, you can own all three for less than $25. With each purchase you are supporting my ministry. I truly appreciate each purchase!

Be blessed and be a blessing <3,

Wendy Glidden, walks with God, Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden 2014

A Quick Plea: You Are Worthy Too

And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. - Ephesians 3:18 (NLT) I feel a blog coming on. I have been so crazy chaotic lately I have not allowed myself much time to kick back and let my fingers fly. This morning when I read this verse, the download flashing into my brain was as beautiful as a rainbow. I look forward to focusing on this later today and allowing the Spirit to share a little knowledge to me  Be blessed on this Marvelously magnificent miraculous Monday. . . Speaking of miracles and signs and marvels and wonders, My third book is a collection of miraculous testimonies that God called me forth to share ~ in purchasing my book not only will you learn amazing truths about me, one whom you call friend, you will also be supporting my ministry in a financial way. It does not matter whether you chose to hold an actual book in your hands or should you prefer an ebook, all three of my currently published books are available in both formats. It is my purpose in life to encourage and inspire hope and I know because of who called me forth to write these books that they will do as much for any and all who dare to purchase and read them! The first two books are a chronological account of my first 22 years. My third book is a collection of amazing stories designed to reveal the Glory of God for those with curiosity toward such things. Here is a link to purchase a print version of book 3: Angels, Answers, Signs and Wonders. On the cover is a picture of the Home that God brought to me after He told me what I was looking for. This story is included in this volume.  It is my prayer that this volume leaves you longing for more of my story. It is my dream to support my family and my ministry while fulfilling my God given purpose ~ I was created for such things https://www.createspace.com/4776295